Volunteer Strategies That Work: Towards a Sustainable Model

IntroductionVancouver Community Network

Volunteer Strategies That Work: Towards a Sustainable Model

Vancouver Community Network


Introduction• Community Learning Network

Coordinator

• Training and Volunteer Coordinator• Presentation

Mapping VCN and community assets:

Using volunteers to build capacity


Introduction to VCN

• Non profit Internet Service Provider• 1993 - Started providing text based email• 1996 - Obtained charitable status after court

case• Run by board of directors • Volunteer pool of over 60 people• 6 staff people, including CAP and CLN

project coordinators


Community Learning Network

• Internet and community development (CD)• Defining how and if possible• Over 10 active partners including 6 community

centres• Sustainable / leave a legacy• Technology demands support• Raising basic skills• How could we use volunteers?

Building VCN's Volunteer CapacityVancouver Community Network

Building VCN’s Volunteer Capacity

• Snapshot of VCN volunteers

Building VCN's Volunteer Capacity Snapshot of Volunteers


Snapshot of current volunteers

– Gender breakdown



Gender Breakdown

Overall:

• 25% are women

• 75% are men




– Gender breakdown

– Languages spoken



Languages Spoken

• Burmese

• Cantonese

• English

• French

• German

• Hindi

• Japanese

• Korean

• Malayam

• Mandarin

• Persian

• Polish

• Spanish

• Serbian

• Croatian

• Tagalog

• Ukrainian

• Urdu




– Gender breakdown– Languages spoken

– Skill level (education)



Skill Level

• 65% have post-secondary education:– 30% have Bachelor’s Degrees– 25% have Diploma or Certificate– 10% have Master’s Degrees

• 30% currently enrolled in technical courses or programmes

• 5% have no post-secondary education




– Gender breakdown– Languages spoken– Skill level (education)– Work experience



Work Experience

Computer-related experience:

• 70% have minimum 1 year

• 30% have none

Canadian work experience:

• 65% have none

• 35% have non-computer-related experience




– Gender breakdown– Languages spoken– Skill level (education)– Work experience– Motivation



Motivation

Volunteers want to:

• Gain Canadian work experience

• Work in a technical environment

• Meet and socialize with other people

• Keep their skills fresh

• Improve their English-language skills



• Volunteers at VCN

• Sources of volunteers


Sources of VolunteersEducational

Institutions:• British Columbia

Institute of Technology

• Kwantlen University College

• Langara Community College

• Simon Fraser University

• University of British Columbia

• Vancouver Community College

Service Agencies:• Immigrant Services

Society• North Shore

Community Services• Richmond Connections

Info and Volunteer Society

Other Sources:• Vancouver Public

Library• VCN website• Volunteer Vancouver





• Placement of volunteers


Placement of Volunteers

Four core user support roles:

• Reception/administration

• Help desk

• Public access support

• Network support





• Placement of volunteers• Team building


Team Building

Six core volunteer teams:

• Technical writing

• Photography

• Web administration

• System abuse

• Mailing list administration

• Training






• Team building

• Documentation & curricula development


Documentation & Curricula Development

Training materials for each workshop:

• Assessment forms

• Training curricula

• Sign-up sheets

• Handouts

• Homework

• Evaluation forms






• Team building

• Documentation & curricula development

• Building the training team


Building the Training Team

VCN volunteer trainers gain skills by:• Reviewing VCN documentation• Assisting experienced trainers in workshops• Train the public with the assistance of

experienced trainers• Providing other team members with

ongoing support and feedback• Recruiting more trainers

Towards a Mentoring Training Model


Community Learning Network

• Diversity of users– Long term process to raise basic skills

• Experimented with using a paid trainer to raise skill level at a community partner– Wasn’t leading to goals of projects – Drain on funds – then what…?

• How to incorporate the volunteers?– The process…



Refocus• A CLN goal: Define how to combine internet

and CD in a sustainable manner • Community partner was open to a train the

trainer program– Would we pay for a trainer?– They had volunteers, but what happens when

they move on?

• Recognized:– need in the community through CAP/CLN– untapped assets at VCN and in community



Training Need in the Community

Dozens of sites, e.g.:• Confirmed:

– Domestic Workers Association– Carnegie– West End Seniors Network

• Potential:– Community Directions– Raycam Community Centre



Untapped Assets• VCN

– Currently have 7 skilled & interested volunteer trainers

– Skilled staff in train the trainer, curriculum development

– Process for intake of volunteers

• Confirmed Community Partners– Have volunteers willing to learn and staff engaged

in process of building capacity



How to use these assets to sustain training in the long term?

• Set up a mentor-based train the trainer system

• Strategically choose sites with: – interested volunteers and – staff engaged in process



Community Partner

• Interested volunteers

• Volunteer skill level

• Training content (e.g. Carnegie vs DWA)



VCN

• Number of community partners are limited by:– Volunteers we have– Staff time to:

• Teach volunteers how to give train the trainer workshops

• Coordinate lab space• Refine curricula for each partner• Define training schedule



The Mentoring Training Model

1. VCN volunteers:

a) Raise skill level of site volunteers

b) Train site volunteers to be trainers

c) Use site trainers as assistants for more general audience – set an example

2. Site trainers:a) Run workshops with VCN volunteers as assistants

b) Run workshops with other site trainers

c) … Train others to be trainers?



Measuring Sustainability

Degrees of success:• Site volunteers

provide training but for how long?

• Site volunteers train others to be trainers

VCN Maintenance• Will need to revisit the

site

• Purely sustainable – no maintenance

Benefit to VCN• Increased interest in volunteers

ConclusionVancouver Community Network

Conclusion: Organic Experiment

• Number of sites involved depends on degree of success

• Staff needed to coordinate

• Must make strategic decisions

• Learning as we go

ConclusionVancouver Community Network

Volunteer Strategies That Work: Towards a Sustainable Model


Volunteer Strategies That Work: Towards a Sustainable Model

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