Engage Library

Recently, the British listserv, UKVPMs, had a flurry of postings regarding formal credentialing or accreditation of volunteers.

In response to the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in Hong Kong, the Agency for Volunteer Service (AVS), along with Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK), launched the “SARS Prevention Volunteer Campaign” to mobilize volunteer resources all over the community to…

While the recent war in Iraq posed a variety of ethical, moral and humanitarian questions for many of us, it was the headline of the local daily paper that caught my attention and challenged me to confront a potential area of volunteerism with which I am not particularly…

Laura Otten, the Executive Director of La Salle University’s Nonprofit Center, was the opening speaker at the first “National Nonprofit Human Resources Conference: Putting People at the Center,” sponsored by Action Without Borders, in Philadelphia, PA, USA, on June 12-14, 2003.…

Excerpt from "Steve Says…" The strangeness began about 20 minutes into the meeting when a number of the assembled academics launched an all-out orchestrated attack on the survey [entitled “A Measure of Commitment – Volunteering for Serious Social Problems.”], contending…

Victoria is a fascinating city nestled in the westernmost portion of British Columbia. It is a city which is known for being “more English than the English” and a great place to have afternoon tea in the old style. You wouldn’t think they’d be producing material on the cutting…

As Managers of Volunteer Resources, Executive Directors and other leaders of volunteer programs in nonprofit organizations, you are dealing with one constant: CHANGE. To stay current with trends in the volunteerism field, technology advances, new management systems, etc., you…

The 1998 book by Simon Winchester, The Professor and the Madman (Harper Collins, 1998), recounts the true story of (as the subtitle proclaims) “murder, insanity, and the making of the Oxford English Dictionary.” But what does this have to do with volunteers?   The compilation of…

Somewhere, in an organization quite like yours, a staff member is in the countdown for the annual fundraiser... With the countdown underway, the lead staff member is juggling a thousand balls: confirming logistics for the entertainment; finalizing attendance figures with the…

One of the hottest and most complex topics in volunteer management is the screening of volunteers. The amazing thing is that making comprehensive background checks of volunteers is a relatively new practice, almost unknown twenty years ago. It is now, however, a requirement in…