September 2007 Brown Bag Minutes

At this fourth Brown Bag, panelists discussed the report by the Corporation for National & Community Service, Volunteering in America: 2007 City Trends and Rankings. In addition to statistical analysis, the report contains an analysis of several key findings relevant to Montgomery County. Panelists also discussed creative ways to maximize volunteers as a resource for the non-profit community through services like the Pro Bono Consulting Program.

Panelists included:
Shelby Jennings (CNCS)
LaMonica Shelton (CNCS)
Della Stolsworth (Pro Bono Consulting Program)
Becky Wagner (Community Ministry of Montgomery County)

Nonprofit Montgomery! and
Montgomery County Office of Community Partnerships (OCP)
Fourth Brown Bag Lunch
September 18, 2007

Panel topic, “Maximizing Volunteers as a Nonprofit Resource: 2007 Trends and Challenges”


Welcome/Introductions
MaryAnn Holohean welcomed everyone to the meeting and introduced Suzanne Carbone, Public Libraries/Archives, who gave a brief overview of the Foundation Center and the Foundation Directory Online. The Foundation Directory Online, available at the Rockville Library, is an electronic database that provides access to comprehensive information on grantmakers and grants. It includes over 80,000 foundations, corporate giving programs, and grantmaking public charities as well as a searchable database of 500,000 recently awarded grants. It is the best source of information in the world for grants. The database is not available at any other library in Montgomery County. The Foundation Center provides seminars at Rockville Library on a regular basis. A library card and pin number are needed to access the database. This is the first Foundation Center in the nation that has made this information available on line.

Ann Evans, Acting Director of the Volunteer Center, introduced the panelists.


LaMonica Shelton – Senior Policy Analyst, Corporation for National & Community Service (CNCS), http://www.nationalservice.org/
The mission of CNCS, a federal agency, is to improve lives, strengthen communities, and foster civic engagement through service and volunteering.
o The Corporation is headed by a CEO who reports directly to the President of the United States.
o It is the largest grant provider in the nation – $900 million a year.
CNCS serves as an umbrella for:
AmeriCorps – 75K members each year participate in intensive service; the largest funded program
Senior Corps – Citizens ages 55 and over volunteer to meet the needs of America’s communities; largest number of participants.
Vista – Focus on reducing poverty
Learn and Serve America – Engages students, teachers and others in service learning.
Strategic Initiatives
o Mobilizing more volunteers – volunteering is a resource to address the nation’s most pressing problems.
o Ensuring a brighter future for all youths.
o Engaging students in communities.
o Harnessing the experience of baby boomers.

• Goals
  o Increase the number of volunteers from 65 million to 75 million by 2010.
  o Mentor 3 million more youth living in at-risk environments; engage over 3
  million at-risk youth in service.
  o Engage more college students and baby boomers in volunteering.


• Volunteers are necessary.
  They respond well in disasters.
  They help generate more volunteers.
  They help strengthen nonprofit organizations.

Shelby Jennings – Research Communications Specialist, CNCS

• As part of its mission, CNCS conducts research about the volunteer activities and
  trends of Americans.
  o The research is based largely on the data collected annually by the U.S. Census
  Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  o The aim of the research is to provide nonprofit and government organizations
  with an in depth understanding of the trends and habits to help them develop
  better strategies for engaging more Americans in volunteer service.
  o Data used to develop the report is from the Current Population Survey (CPS).
  · The CPS is one of the largest and most reliable surveys in the United
  States, and includes 60K households.
  · CPS produces the country’s monthly employment and unemployment numbers.
  · Volunteering information has been collected every September
  since 2002.
  o Volunteering for political campaigns is not excluded from the data.


• Volunteering in America
  o The volunteer rate has been at historic highs since 1974, but declined in 2006.
  o The growth in volunteering has been led by teens (ages 16-19), baby boomers (ages 45-64) and seniors (ages 65 and older).
  o Older adults have volunteered at much higher rates than in previous years. They have the most intensive volunteer hours – 100 hours per year, some more than 500 a year.
  · As baby boomers get older there will be a larger base of volunteers.


• Volunteering in states and cities
  o The City report provides the most detailed information for local communities.
  o The more local the information on volunteering, the more actionable it becomes
  to grow service and volunteering.
  o Montgomery County is included in the information for Washington, D.C.
  · The Washington MSA ranked 15th in volunteer rate.
  o Many of the top-ranked metro areas are in the central part of the country.
  o Central cities lag behind (24%) suburbs and rural areas which have similar
  volunteer rates (29%).
  o The number of nonprofits and their ability to retain volunteers may affect a community’s volunteer rate.


• Do some communities care more?
  o Community factors can drive volunteering
  · Level of attachment to the community
  · Homeownership rates – the higher the homeownership rates the higher
  the volunteer rate.
  · Multiunit housing
  · Education – the high school graduation rate has the most effect on the
  volunteer rate.
  · Poverty - the higher the poverty rate, the lower the level of volunteering.
  · Commute time – longer commute times to work may limit opportunities for volunteering.
  - Washington, D.C. area has the 2nd longest average commute time.
  The longer one is alone, the less social interaction; there is a
  direct correlation between social interaction and volunteerism.
  · Diversity – the more diverse the community, the lower the level of trust. Low trust has a negative impact on civic engagement (Putnam study).
  · Population density – The denser the population the lower the volunteer level of participation.


• Addressing long commute times
  o Workplace volunteer programs
  o Flexible work schedules
  o One-time volunteer opportunities such as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
  o Flexible volunteer opportunities – tele-volunteering, flexible volunteer schedule.


• Volunteer Retention
  o 1 out of 3 persons drop out of volunteer service from year to year.
  o Faith-based volunteering has the highest retention rate.
  o Practices that lead to increased retention:
  · Recognition – award ceremonies for volunteers.
  · Screening procedures to match volunteers with assignments.
  · Training and development opportunities for volunteers.
  o Service learning requirements – to keep youth on the path of volunteering, it is important to involve them in the planning of service.


• Ideas for community leaders
  o Promote service learning schools
  o Emphasize volunteerism among the growing numbers of seniors.
  o Encourage and create policies that promote home ownership.
  o Support small and new nonprofit organizations.
  o Support businesses that are taking steps to increase volunteering in the community.
  o Ask people to volunteer.

Della Stolsworth – Pro-Bono Consultant Program, Volunteer Center

• The Pro-Bono Consultant Program, begun 3 ½ years ago, is a program of the Montgomery County Volunteer Center. The program was created to increase volunteer opportunities and to meet the needs of nonprofits. One of the needs of nonprofits is skilled resources.


• Volunteer opportunities are short-term projects (usually no more than 3 months).


• Program is perfect for those who have a fear of commitment and like variety/different choices.


• 20-30 percent of volunteers continue to work with the organization and remain committed.


• The program allows for a great deal of flexibility – most work can be performed from home, at the agency or other locations.


• Key component of the Pro-Bono program is the screening and matching process.
  o Potential volunteers are interviewed and their experience verified by the Volunteer
  Center staff.
  o Projects are reviewed before acceptance to ensure that they meet the program
  timeframe and guidelines.
  o Because Pro-Bono consultant candidates are interviewed one-on-one, their real
  passions are able to be tapped increasing retention.
  o Once volunteers are interviewed, they select projects of interest and a meeting is
  arranged with the nonprofits/agencies to discuss their needs and parameters. There is
  no obligation to accept a project.
  o Volunteer’s skills, knowledge and experience are matched to projects and agencies.


• The Volunteer Center remains in contact with the volunteer and the agency throughout the project to ensure a successful completion.


• At the end of the project, the volunteer and the agency evaluate the results.

Becky Wagner – Executive Director, Community Ministry of Montgomery County

• Interfaith coalition is a natural volunteer base.
  They do not work exclusively from their group of congregations or with the faith community, but also corporations.
  · Looking to grow their relationship with mid-size companies.
• There are over 7 thousand volunteers a year working with programs.
• 135 congregations looking at the business community to see who shares their values.
• $3.6 of $8 million is cash and the rest is in-kind.
• Have to find a balance between the gifts of the volunteers and the needs of the organizations.
  o Matching professional skill sets of volunteers with the needs of the agencies.
  o Under-utilized volunteers become very unhappy and will tell others.

• The volunteer piece is taken very, very seriously.
• “The experience you want, the experience you need.” This includes students who have to (service learning hours required to graduate), and people who have to (court ordered).
• Never know the outcome of volunteering. Some of the largest personal contributors have been gained because of their service experience.
• 65% of residents of Bethesda are un-churched and feel good about it.
• More people are volunteering fewer hours.
• Early retirees are natural volunteers, but because of the economy, many have had to take second jobs.
• Of the 33 thousand new residents to the area, 50% are immigrants.
  o Most immigrants have a very different idea of volunteerism.
  o Many assume the government takes care of these problems, so why are you asking them to help?
  o It is best to align those of the same culture together.
  o A lot of challenges with the diverse community – help must be asked for discreetly.
• It is very important for the nonprofit who is asking for help to be able to define exactly what they want in a volunteer and have a work plan.
  
  
  Questions/Comments


• Any correlation between service learning requirements and the increase in teen volunteering?
  o Not certain; but it was found that there is a correlation between those high school students who were required to volunteer and those who volunteer as college students.


• Is there any way to measure a person’s attachment to their community?
  o There are certain questions (trust, emotional attachment, commitment) that could be
  asked, but it is a very lengthy and difficult process to get questions changed on the
  survey.


• Diversity, as is inclusion, is a white concept.
  o Volunteering means different things in different cultures. We are familiar with the traditional white model of volunteering.


• Changes in demographics affect everything that has to do with volunteering.
  Has any data shown what roles groups such as the Volunteer Center play in the level of volunteering? Who is asking people to volunteer?
  o This information can be found in the report from the Points of Light Foundation.
  o Businesses
  · Corporate Volunteer Council focuses on their members.
  · Allstate depends on the Volunteer Center for referrals.


• 61 million people volunteer through some formal organization; 5 million volunteer informally.
• Are there certain challenges volunteering with small organizations? Are there certain models that work better with small organizations?
• The Pro-Bono program is a great proven model for small organizations.
• Nonprofits need coaching/training on how to prepare for volunteers – program of work and project proposal form.
  o This is what we need, and this is what we hope you will do for us.
• Can Nonprofit Montgomery! do this training?
  o Nonprofit Montgomery! can network to bring the nonprofits and trainers together.
  o Maryland Nonprofits is a resource for training and technical assistance.
  o It should be written into grants that organizations must have training.
  
  Next Meeting


• Tuesday, October 16