KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Emmanuel Adebola, a master's level of social work student from the University of Tennessee, was interested in expanding help for the Knoxville community.
Last summer Adebola and Russ Jensen Director of Knoxville 311 Center for Innovation, came together to find a way to reach out to more people when no one was available at the offices.
In late December and earlier this year, the program started kicking off. UTK student volunteers gathered and began operating live chats to help Knoxvillians during the weekends and after hours.
"Just seeing the different circumstances that people live in, I've just always wanted to help out any way that I possibly can," Adebola said.
It was about three years ago when 311 creates a chatbox called Baxter to help people when no one was available to answer the phone. Jensen, 311's director, said the biggest problem was that people would receive limited information.
When you call 311, you can ask for help with garbage complaints, pothole repair, streetlight problems, traffic signal issues and much more.
Jensen said the two most popular issues that people reach out for are housing and utilities. For example, if you're behind paying your rent and are about to get evicted, he said they look up what you need to do and who you can reach out to.
"What we're trying to do is okay, let's find all the people that maybe are having trouble getting help, after hours, and let's see if we can get them access as well," Jensen said. "Food comes up every now and then in particular in the after hours closer to the weekend sometimes, but it's almost always housing and utilities with a bullet even before covid."
While talking to a live chat may sometimes feel as if reaching out to a robot, behind these ones are student volunteers from UT.
"We're getting highly motivated students that are very interested in service work and take it seriously. and i'm passionate about it," Adebola said.
Adebola said there are two main requirements, to be a UTK student and over 18 years old.
The director said they want to be able to operate 24/7 by fall. They are taking it one step at a time to make sure they're balancing the volume that comes in.
"Being able to access several different resources, whether it's mental health or legal aids, or whatever the case may be, that's a great resource to have in the palm of your hand," Adebola said.