Volunteer Recruitment & Retention Seminar

Volunteer Recruitment & Retention Seminar

Volunteers are the cornerstone of many organizations and the wonderful services provided to our community. Sometimes, however, recruiting volunteers can be an enormous undertaking for an already overworked staff. We would like to help solve your problem. The McPherson County Community Foundation is offering a free two-hour workshop on volunteer recruitment and retention on Thursday, April 25.

The training is being offered two times to accommodate more attendees. The first session is 10 am to 12 pm; the second session is 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm at Hutchinson Community College McPherson Center, 2208 E. Kansas.

Each year, more than one-third of all Kansans volunteer in some way. Many others remain on the sidelines because they don’t feel empowered to get involved or they don’t think they have enough time. Others have a tough time finding the right opportunity for them.

At Volunteer Kansas, they make it easier for you to volunteer by matching you with opportunities at respected, well-established organizations throughout the state so you can spend less time looking for a place to volunteer and more time volunteering. Nola Brown, Executive Director of Volunteer Kansas, will guide participants through the process of applying to be an approved organization on Volunteerkansas.org and teach how to set and edit volunteer opportunities.

The second part of the session focuses on the actual recruitment of the volunteer. Recruiting the right volunteers can often be an ongoing struggle—particularly when volunteer turnover is the culprit. On the surface, finding more volunteers may seem like the answer, however, upon further investigation the issue is more often around finding the right volunteer and keeping them on board.

Nicolette Geisler, Executive Director of the Kansas Volunteer Commission will conduct this portion of the session. Participants will:

*         gain an overview of recruitment strategies and techniques;

*         identify barriers that prevent or discourage people from volunteering; and

*         obtain strategies on how to retain volunteers.

The Kansas Volunteer Commission (KVC) is a governor appointed commission that serves to promote and develop volunteerism throughout Kansas by connecting nonprofit other while also providing resources and support to local service organizations and individuals. KVC strives to uphold the value of service and volunteering to all Kansans to effectively address community needs, respond to disasters and inspire a commitment of service to all citizens.

The mission of the Kansas Volunteer Commission is achieved through:

  • Supporting Kansas AmeriCorps, Volunteer Generation Fund programs and Kansas Mentors.
  • Administering federal funding to AmeriCorps State and Volunteer Generation Fund programs.
  • Providing assistance to AmeriCorps National, AmeriCorps Vista and Senior Corps programs.
  • Creating a network of service organizations throughout the state.
  • Recognizing outstanding individual volunteers, organizations and communities with the Governor’s Points of Light Award.

There is limited seating available at each session, to register, please email Sharon Long, Program Officer at sharon@mcphersonfoundation.org or call the MCCF office at 620.245.9070.