Hot Topics Archive

Austin Public Library Teen Virtual Volunteer Program

When the Austin Public Library closed for the corona virus there was concern about the need to keep staff busy during telework, so Stephanie designed teen volunteer assignments to function more like a teen program that would create supervision opportunities for staff.

Here are the virtual volunteer positions she created for teens:

• Video Content Creators - and bonus Planning Template for Teen Craft and Gaming Videos –
• Bibliocommons Book Reviewers
• Distance Puppeteers 
• World Language Info Guide
• Art and Lit Mag (loosely based on this:  https://www.jocolibrary.org/teens/elementia

More Teen Ideas:

Boulder Teen Summer Volunteer Roles During COVID-19

Woodland QuaranTEEN Book Reviews

Many thanks to our library friends around the country who are sharing their COVID-19 plans and materials!

Sample Volunteer Re-Engagement Surveys:

Assessing Volunteers’ Interest in Returning After Shelter in Place

Assess HomeBound Delivery Volunteers’ Interest in Continuing after COVID19 Program Changes in Place

 

Ideas for Summer and Re-Opening Volunteer Roles:

Teen Summer Volunteer Roles During COVID-19

Book Drop Helper and Sorter Volunteer Job Description

Here are some more ideas for keeping current volunteers engaged and/or expanding services:

Queens Public Library Social Media Ambassadors

Austin Public Library Social Media Ambassadors

Queens Public Library Covid19 Oral Histories Project

Virtual Volunteering Opportunities – San Jose Public Library 

And some current volunteer job descriptions could be amended to describe service provided on an online platform:

Job Center Volunteer – Chandler Public Library AZ

Job Center Coach, Sacramento Public Library

Homework Coach – San Jose Public Library

EBooks Coach – Huntington Beach Public Library

ESL Conversation Club Facilitator – San Jose Public Library

Please consider sharing your materials at the link below to be added to the Clearinghouse to keep others from having to re-invent the wheel!

Need to find ways to keep your current volunteers engaged? Or just need different kinds of help during this uncertain time? Consider Virtual Volunteers – they do work for you from home!

Could you use a graphic designer, researcher, writer, translator, proofreader, or video editor? Those opportunities can be posted on VolunteerMatch and marked “virtual” rather than “one location.” VolunteerMatch has also added to each volunteer opportunity posting a chance for you to answer this question: “Is this opportunity helping your organization respond to the COVID-19 crisis?” When you answer yes, your posting will get visibility in additional ways.

Here are some more resources to get you started:

Never a Better time to Explore Virtual Volunteering than NOW

 

How to Tap Into the Power of Virtual Volunteers

VolunteerMatch Covid-19 Hub

Virtual Volunteer Success Story – Brownwood Texas

Spanish Language Virtual Document Translator Job Description -  Salinas CA

Social Media Specialist Job Description – CA State Library

4 minute interview California State Library Virtual Volunteer – Social Media Specialist

 

How to Find a Volunteer Management System that Actually Meets Your Needs

14 Volunteer Interview Questions

The Volunteer Perspective – Industry Insights 2019

Mesa (AZ) Public Library's amazing online booksale operation (about $100,000/year) which is a volunteer driven project supervised by the library's volunteer coordinator. We are grateful to Mesa's volunteer coordinator who has shared a 10- minute video about the project, as well as the volunteer job description and a number of invaluable, well-researched training pieces that can be used to prepare volunteers to take on these roles. You can find it all here: https://getinvolvedclearinghouse.org/training-materials/online-book-sale-operation-mesa-az

Five Survey Templates to Measure Volunteer and Board Satisfaction

 

The essential guide to managing volunteers at your nonprofit

 

Beware of these 6 trends lurking in your volunteer program

Volunteer Management: How to Get It Right

 

Archived Webinar

November 20 VolunteerMatch “Tour”

 

New Volunteer Job Descriptions

Creation Station Coordinator – Show Low AZ

Library Assistant – Show Low AZ

Computer Coach – Show Low AZ

 

Also New This Month: New Maker Space Photos

Writing Accurate & Useful Volunteer Position Descriptions - March 2020

Connecting with Today’s Volunteers to Transform the Friends of the Library - September 2019

Revitalizing Library Volunteer Engagement - 2018



Successfully Managing Library Volunteer Program Changes - August 2018

 

Do’s & Don’ts of Supervising Library Volunteers

Adult Volunteer Application – Huntington Beach

Volunteer Handbook – Pacific Grove

Beyond Retention: How to get better data to inform your volunteer engagement strategy

Don't Just Recognize Volunteers, Invest in Them . . . and in Yourself

Volunteer Recognition: Matching Motivation to Rewards

When Recognition Hurts Recruitment (and what we might do about it)

Recognizing Online Volunteers and Using the Internet to Honor ALL Volunteers

Skills Based Volunteering ToolKit

Building Capacity Through Volunteer Leadership

Want to Write a Volunteer Program Annual Report? Here’s How to Start

Why Should We Pay Attention to Volunteering Trends

CRM Integration

 

Rethinking Volunteer Recognition



Volunteer Appreciation Guide



Volunteer Recognition: Just Say No to Years of Service Awards



3 Ways to Recognize Volunteers



Recognizing Volunteers in 2017



Celebrate Collective Accomplishments, Not Volunteered Time



 

Many thanks to these libraries who recently shared materials for us to share with you! Please send us yours in the “Share Your Materials” box below.

Social Media Coordinator Volunteer Job Desc -- Salinas CA

Spanish Language Virtual Document Translator – Salinas CA

List of Volunteer Job Descriptions – Corona CA

Volunteer Guidelines – Austin TX

California's Get Involved Regional Leaders develop networking and training events for library volunteer engagement coordinators in their regions across the state. They decided a tool was needed for library volunteer programs to determine their Return on Investment, and then share that data both internally and externally in the form of an attractive but brief infographic that could also be used as a program's annual report. They developed this ROI worksheet to be used by individual libraries to create the data for the infographic, and included sample infographics.

Feel free to download and use this worksheet for yourself, and if you're interested in using one of the infographics, there are 3 templates with minor variations that can be found for your use here:

Infographic Template #1

Infographic Template #2

Infographic Template #3

And 3 different library examples using the templates here:

Example A

Example B

Example C

Three Things We Know About Engaging Millenials in Your Cause





Millenials and Volunteering: Bridging the Generation Gap





 

NOTE: Please share your materials - volunteer job descriptions, handbooks, policies & training materials - with us for the Clearinghouse. Just click on "Suggest a Resource."

Position Descriptions



Genealogy Group Facilitator - Texas



Circulation Assistant – Texas



Volunteer Technology Coach – Texas



Training Materials

Shelving with Dewey - Illinois



Recruitment Success Story – Flagstaff, Arizona



Buckeye Arizona Library’s Experience with Get Involved

 

Can We Reject a Volunteer?



You Can’t Fire Me, I’m a Volunteer!



Controlling Complaint Conversations



 

Three Things We Know About Engaging Millennials in Your Cause

 

Liability, Insurance, and Risk Management Issues for Volunteer Programs



Managing Volunteers: Balancing Risk and Reward



Checklist to minimize the most common volunteer risks



Nonprofit Volunteers – Minimizing the Risks 



Volunteer Background Checks: Giving Back Without Giving Up on Privacy



Background Checks – Nonprofit Risk Management Center