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
5 Tips for Recruiting Volunteers
Five recruitment tips for volunteer management consultant, Rob Jackson.
Capacity Building Recruitment 2022
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
The Virtual Volunteer Life Cycle: A Complete Guide
A good overall guide for recruiting, screening and managing remote volunteers.
Engaging High Impact VolunteersCapacity BuildingStaff Training virtual 2022
Volunteer Orientation and Training: The Ultimate Guide
A 2022 article from Wild Apricot on what to consider when planning volunteer orientation and Training.
Capacity Building volunteer training, orientation 2022
Preparing Co-Workers to Lead Volunteers Online and On Land
Ideas for training staff to engage with volunteers.
Staff TrainingCapacity Building Staff Resistance, staff buy-in, staff training 2022
Rethinking Retention: Understanding Strategic Volunteer Relationships
This one hour webinar was presented as part of the Get Involved: Powered by Your Library initiative on September 29, 2022 by Jennifer Bennett,… more
Capacity BuildingInterviewing Volunteers retention, attrition, Recruitment 2022
Research and Case Studies Regarding Virtual Volunteering
Research on virtual volunteering compiled and updated in March 2022 by Jayne Cravens of Coyote Communications.
Capacity BuildingEngaging High Impact Volunteers virtual, virtual volunteer 2022
Fun Volunteer Teambuilding Activities That Will Keep Your Remote Team Engaged
This article from Tobi Johnson about Volunteer Team Building activities includes instructions for both in-person and virtual activities.
Capacity BuildingEngaging High Impact Volunteers team building 2022
First Day Volunteer Orientation Checklist - Kitchener Public Library
This checklist is used by the Kitchener Public Library for a volunteer's first day of orientation/training.
Volunteer Orientation checklist, orientation, Training 2022
Changing the Frame: Civic Engagement Through A Racial Equity Lens
Since Robert Putnam’s book Bowling Alone: America’s Declining Social Capital came out in 2000, policymakers, nonprofit funders, and pundits have sent… more
Capacity BuildingStaff Training diversity, equity, inclusion 2022
Virtual Volunteers: Keys to Success and Sustainability
More and more organizations rely on a hybrid workforce – with staff and volunteers working on-site and on-line. More recently, engaging volunteers… more
Staff TrainingCapacity Building virtual volunteer 2022
Live Online Discussion of Diversity Equity & Inclusion
California Library Volunteer Leaders: Live Open Online Discussion on Diversity Equity & Inclusion in Volunteer Engagement – This recorded… more
Capacity BuildingStaff Training diversity, equity, inclusion, White Saviorism 2022
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
Safety While Volunteering - COVID 19 Policies/Procedures - San Jose CA
Powerpoint presentation used by San Jose Public Library to share COVID-19 policies and procedures with volunteers.
Volunteer Orientation COVID-19 2021
Volunteer COVID-19 Protocol Training - Huntington Beach CA
Protocol training for volunteers returning to the library during/after COVID-19 pandemic
Volunteer Orientation COVID-19 2021
Insights & Impact 2020: Measuring the Social Impact of Volunteerism
This report describes new ways to calculate the value of volunteer time. These approaches rely on data from Independent Sector and from the U.S.… more
Capacity Building ROI, Reporting, annual report 2021
3 Tips for Finding New Board Members
Great advice for how to think about and plan for board member recruitment.
Capacity BuildingEngaging High Impact Volunteers boards, Trustees, Recruitment 2021
Addressing Issues of Equity in Volunteerism
A brief article on this important subject with some ideas about where to look and what to do.
Capacity Building diversity, equity, inclusion 2021
Engaging Volunteers: A Comprehensive Literature Review
Literature Review completed for AmeriCorps by ICF International in 2021.
Capacity BuildingStaff Training literature 2021
Questionnaire Design Tip Sheet - Harvard University
A tip sheet on question wording from the Harvard University Program on Survey Research.
Capacity BuildingStaff Training surveys 2021