As the days of spring dwindle, like many people’s bank accounts this time of year, Ohio State is bringing some of the nation’s hottest music acts to concert free of charge.

The Ohio Union Activities Board, Undergraduate Student Government and the greek community are hosting the annual Rock the Block concert and day of service Saturday. In addition, OUAB is hosting the sixth annual Big Free Concert May 13.

Rock the Block is a unique event that repays students with a free concert ticket for their community service during the day. With more than 1,300 students already registered for the day of service, others are expected and encouraged to sign up at 10 a.m. at the corner of 15th Avenue and High Street.

Volunteers will be doing everything from planting flowers around campus to making blankets for an orphanage in Africa, said Julie Peugeot, OUAB co-concerts chair in an e-mail.

Alex Davis, OUAB co-concerts chair and production manger for the Big Free Concert said, “I really like the idea of rewarding students who are passionate about serving their community with some perks like a free concert ticket.”

For the Rock the Block concert, sponsors are bringing the Virgin College Mega Tour featuring headliner Yellowcard and other music acts like Will Hoge, Spitalfield and Watershed. Yellowcard is best known for their modern-day punk-pop hit album “Ocean Avenue,” but released its new album “Lights and Sounds” in January.

“I like the mix of performers they have coming to campus,” said Sean Valerio, a senior in real estate and urban analysis. “Yellowcard is obviously a band that most people would want to go see.”

The tour also sets up batting cages, video game kiosks and bean bag toss tournaments along with numerous giveaway opportunities to win free iPods, T-shirts and a chance to meet the band. Previous concerts have included artists such as Guster, Matt Nathanson, Josh Kelley and Ben Kweller.

A portion of the Rock the Block ticket sales will benefit Buckeyethon, a 14-hour dance marathon that helps raise money for Columbus Children’s Hospital and the Children’s Miracle Network.

The Big Free Concert is moving this year from the Buckeye Lots back to the South Oval, a central and convenient location where sponsors expect more than 8,000 students to attend.

“It’s going to be a great show right in the heart of a great university,” Davis said.

Months of planning go into the production of both concert events, especially in the consideration of who will be performing.

Corey Dugan, OUAB member in charge of event services for the Big Free Concert said, “When we’re looking at bands, we’re trying to figure out who will draw a crowd, whether that means they are brand new to the music scene like Teddy Geiger or a very established artist like Jurassic 5.”

Indie-rapper MC Chris will host the concert featuring Jason Mraz, Jurassic 5, Teddy Geiger, We are the Fury, KTB, local artists and the winner of Romophos Battle of the Bands held at Newport Music Hall Thursday.

The array of artists’ sounds varies from the hip-hop sound of Jurassic 5 to the sophisticated folk-sounding British singer Katy Bennett, aka KTB.

Davis said, “We are very lucky here at OSU to be able to see such amazing musical acts for free, and I think most students really appreciate that.”

The Rock the Block concert at the Schottenstein Center starts at 8 p.m. The concert is free for those who participate in the day of service; the remaining tickets are open to the public for $24.50. The Big Free Concert begins at 4 p.m. on the South Oval and is free to OSU Columbus campus students and one guest with a BuckID.

More information can be found at ouab.net.