Volunteer Program

Why is staff buy-in important? Without staff buy-in at all levels (teachers, front office staff, program managers, etc.) and senior leadership support, a volunteer program will never get off the ground and become successful.

How can you get staff buy-in and sustain it? Initially, the vision and enthusiasm needs to come from the top down as a supported initiative to utilize and value volunteer support. Once that has been communicated, the next step is to educate staff as to what that means for them. There is always the hurdle of yes “the idea of it sounds great” but people do need to put in the work to get a payoff. Roles need to be created, staff need to make their volunteers feel welcome, needed and appreciated. Once a staff member has positive experience utilizing volunteer support and can see the impact/added value, word spreads and interest gains momentum.

Why is this step important? With any program or initiative, you want to get as much planning work done before launching. Budget is fairly minimal (typically on the smaller end of an organization’s spectrum), but you want to be sure you have enough to get it going and plan for it to grow moving forward.

What other factors are there to consider? Salary/benefits, number of sites and estimate of how many volunteers your organization might be in need of. Does the estimated workload constitute a part time position, full time position or multiple positions?

What are some examples of things the program might require while getting up and running? Some examples might include; marketing materials, manual and forms (design/printing costs), cost of background checks, and recognition costs (party, awards/thank you cards).

A common mistake is to recruit volunteers for the sake of recruiting. This philosophy ends up with dissatisfaction from both parties because there aren’t clearly defined roles and expectations. First, identify that there is a valid need. This will lead volunteers to feeling like they are utilized and valued in your organization.

What are some factors to consider when trying to identify a need?

• General volunteer (extra set of hands)
• Skill based
• The volunteer’s expectations

Some requests can range from fairly general “need a volunteer to help supervise a lunch/recess period” to a very skill based request “volunteer needs to have an engineering degree/background to support the Robotics team or Project Lead the Way”. Placing these types of requests first begins by getting to know your volunteers and reviewing their applications.

An application is the first step in gathering information about who the volunteer is, what their areas of interest are, background (education, career). This will help you get a better understanding of why they are interested in volunteering and where to place them later on.

There are many things you can ask volunteers to include on their application, but here are the basics:

• Contact information
• Areas of interest (grade levels, site preferences, special skills, previous volunteer experience
• Availability
• References
• Ever been convicted of a felony?
• Media release (with option to deny permission)
• Demographics if your organization wants to track (gender, race, age)–also listed as optional and not mandatory

Why are background checks necessary for volunteers? Simple. Safety, risk management and liability. Volunteers working in and around a school district are going to have direct contact with children who are minors. For their safety, it’s best that adults who are entrusted to represent the school district/community education be vetted.

What factors are there to consider when implementing a background check policy? First of all, you will need to consider how often your organization will require renewal. You will then need to determine cost. Volunteers are already volunteering their time and talent and may be put-off having to pay for a background check. Discuss this with your team and see if it’s possible for the district, or community education to cover the costs. The benefits of what the program/department/school district/community/students/participants receive, far outweigh the price tag.

So where and how can I get a background check on volunteers? First check with your district human resources department. There are different types of checks and your school may require a certain kind. The most basic check is a state-only check, so if a person had a criminal history in another state, it would not show up. There are also national searches, which is recommended, as well as international searches. There are a lot of agencies to choose from whether it’s a local BCA (Bureau of Criminal Apprehension), Verified Volunteers, Orange Tree Screening, etc.

It’s very important to outline what you expect of your volunteers. This sets the tone and parameters before they even have their first shift–they physically sign off on this document and acts as a binding agreement in case behavioral issues arise.

Verbiage can be more strict or flexible based on what your staff/team/administration agrees is necessary for volunteers to be willing to abide by. In my experience, organizations utilizing volunteers who come into contact with any type of vulnerable population tend to have the strictest guidelines.

Guidelines surrounding dress code, giving/receiving gifts, sharing personal contact information, sharing details names or any other information about the people you volunteer with, providing transportation, social media/photo policies and more are all examples that are covered in this section.

Orientation is an essential time to thoroughly explain the role and expectations to the volunteer. It’s also the perfect setting to get to know more about them and work towards personalizing their experience. Although the volunteer may directly report to a different staff lead once their shift rotations begin, this allows you to get to know them and they you.

The orientation/interview process depending on your volume of incoming volunteers can be very time consuming. Although many people feel it’s best to get to know volunteers on a 1:1 basis, sometimes time/space constraints can be tough to pull it off with a greater volume. Some organizations offer specific orientation times (twice per month, for example) where they lead group orientation instead of individuals.

Example interview/orientation questions

1. How would you describe yourself?
2. Share some about your family/childhood history.
3. Tell me about your background (educational, professional, etc.)
4. What makes you interested in volunteering in (your organization’s name)? What are you hoping to gain?
5. Describe a past volunteer experience you have enjoyed?

When looking for responses, it’s not so much about the answer volunteers give, but getting to know them so you can better place them in a role that would be mutually beneficial. Volunteer managers should know that you do NOT need to say yes and onboard every volunteer—you’re not obligated to accept everyone. If there are any red flags or you feel they would not be a good fit, you need to feel comfortable addressing that they are not a fit for your organization. It’s not an easy thing to do, but typically if you place someone that you have major doubts about–there are issues down the line with behavior, performance, boundaries, etc.