Training Materials

Learn more about best practices in volunteer recruitment and engagement, and how to get the results you need.

NOTE: These are examples from public libraries and should be reviewed and modified to ensure fit with local policies and culture.

Title Keyword Tags Year
The Essential Guide to Managing Volunteers at Your Nonprofit
A free comprehensive overview for volunteer management from VolunteerPro.
Capacity Building 2018
The Ellis Archive - The Susan J. Ellis Foundation
The archive primarily consists of digitized documents from Susan J. Ellis' personal resource library. Focused on Susan’s passion -- the… more
Staff Training 2020
Teen Summer Volunteer Orientation - Riverside County CA
Sample Teen Volunteer Summer Reading Program orientation agenda
Volunteer OrientationMillennials teen volunteers, Teens
Tech Made Easy - Instructional Guides (Includes Zoom)
These new Tech Guides are now available for public use. They contain step-by-step instructions on how to teach seniors, who are often late-tech… more
Capacity BuildingJob Specific Volunteer Training tech coach, tech tutor 2020
Target Market Success Story: Volunteers with Full Time Jobs
Ever wonder how and why someone with a full time job would be willing and able to volunteer at the library? Here's a 5 minute video clip of one… more
Engaging High Impact Volunteers 2015
Target Market Success Story: Teen Volunteer
This 5 minute success story is an interview with a library teen volunteer coordinator and one of her awesome teen volunteers talking about what makes… more
Millennials Teen 2015
Talking Racial Equity? Make Sure You Understand These 17 Words
A good list of terms to be familiar with from Technical.ly
Capacity BuildingStaff Training racism, inclusive, diversity 2020
Talking racial equity? Make sure you understand these 17 words
A shared vocabulary is the necessary first step for discussing racial equity. This glossary of terms might be helpful.
Capacity BuildingStaff Training diversity, equity, inclusion 2023
Systemic Exclusion in Volunteer Engagement
The vast majority of managers of volunteers absolutely abhor deliberate acts of racism and want to be more inclusive. Since they don’t engage in… more
Capacity BuildingStaff Training racism, inclusive, diversity, Recruitment 2020
Surveys in Volunteer Engagement
This February 2024 Get Involved live quarterly one-hour informal Zoom conversation addressed the topic of surveys. Types of Surveys that are used in… more
Staff Training surveys 2024
Surveys in Volunteer Engagement
On February 8, 2024, this Get Involved live Zoom discussion focused on Surveys in Volunteer Engagement. The group discussed types of surveys and… more
Staff Training surveys 2024
Survey Design: The Top 10 Best Practices to Maximize Your Results
Survey design is extremely important as it can make or break your survey's completion rate. This article reviews some survey design fundamentals, and… more
Capacity BuildingStaff Training surveys 2022
Supporting Volunteerism by People with Disabilities
A thorough guidebook to help with attracting and engaging volunteers with disabilities.
(The document does not contain a date that it was published.… more
Capacity BuildingStaff Training disabilities, inclusive 2024
Successfully Managing Library Volunteer Program Changes
What should you do when it’s time to change the policies and procedures that govern or guide the volunteers that work with your organization? How can… more
Capacity BuildingStaff Training change management 2018
Successful Volunteer Recruitment Strategies for Baby Boomers & Generations that Follow
This is a one hour archived webinar presented by Carla Lehn in February, 2012. Presenter slides and handouts are available at the link below.
Do you… more
Volunteer RecruitmentBaby BoomersEngaging High Impact VolunteersOn-line Volunteer Recruitment Volunteer Recruitment, Skilled Volunteers, Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millenials 2012
Success & Sustainability Factors
Video clip on this topic from a Get Involved Volunteer Engagement Institute in Oakland California in May 2015. (17.5 minutes)
Capacity BuildingEngaging High Impact VolunteersStaff Training Sustainability, retention 2015
Strategies for Attracting Today's Volunteers - DOVIA Sacramento Webinar
This archived webinar was presented by Carla Lehn for DOVIA Sacramento in February 2011. Learning Objectives for the session:
Participants in this… more
Staff TrainingOn-line Volunteer RecruitmentEngaging High Impact Volunteers Recruitment, online recruitment, Volunteer Job Description, Webinar 2021
Storytime Training Guide - Roseville, CA
Training Guide created by Children's Library staff at Roseville Public Library to train Storytime Conductor volunteers. See also:
Getting Staff On… more
Job Specific Volunteer Training Storytime, Storyteller, Training 2009
Sticky Situations: Applying Ethics to Your Work with Volunteers
We all encounter ethical dilemmas in our daily work.  But rarely do organizations focus on ethics related to volunteer engagement.  This… more
Staff Training Ethics 2022
Staff Training: Volunteer Vaccination Verification - San Jose CA
Training developed by San Jose Public Library for volunteer engagement staff at branches to learn how to do volunteer vaccine verifications in order… more
Staff Training COVID-19 2022