U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Getting Started: Establishing a Volunteer Program in Your Agency

NCJ Number
139336
Date Published
1988
Length
149 pages
Annotation
This booklet, designed to help California alcohol-abuse- prevention service providers develop a volunteer program, presents step-by-step directions for conceptualizing, planning, implementing, and managing a volunteer program.
Abstract
The opening chapter is designed to help agency administrators and staff explore their needs for a volunteer program. It examines ways volunteers can augment agency services and discusses the pros and cons of establishing a volunteer program. Another chapter guides an agency through three important planning stages: determination of the need for a volunteer program, needs assessment to determine how volunteers can best serve the agency, and implementation of the planning process once an agency decides to establish a volunteer program. A chapter guides an agency in the translation of its plans into action through the following steps: preparation of job descriptions for volunteers, development of a recordkeeping system to monitor the new volunteers, the creation of a volunteer recruitment process, and the development of volunteer screening and selection procedures. A chapter on program management is designed to assist administrators with four interrelated managerial functions: the creation of a volunteer orientation and training program, the development of effective supervisory procedures, the design of formal and informal ways to recognize volunteer contributions, and the establishment of a regular evaluation component to measure the program's success. 42 references and 75-item bibliography