SAVE Recognition Event
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The Volunteer Center is happy to recognize all skills-based volunteers using their knowledge and expertise to better their communities. 25 skills-based volunteers and supporters came together on October 7 for a recognition event where they were able to network, share stories and celebrate the positive impact they have made.
Chris Campbell, Executive Director of the Executive Network Group, had this to say about the program:
"The idea is a good one. We have lots of people that are out of work that are professionals. We have lots of non-profits who could use the professionals but can't afford them. They get to put it on their resume, and it is a win-win-win-win-win-win. The enthusiasm at TVC bubbles out. There is a great vision and once we put the proposition out to ENG members the response was excellent."
Another volunteer commented that "it gave me a story to tell when I interviewed face-to-face at Chase Bank and I did get that job partly because of my project management skills."
The Volunteer Center would like to thank all of the skills-based volunteers who have donated their time and experience to improve our communities. You all have made a great difference for others. Thank you! Th
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SBV Impact
A letter from Little City Foundation
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To our trusted Little City Used Book Sale Team:
I hope this email finds everyone happy and healthy. I have the pleasure of sharing some very exciting news with you. As you know, the fate of the largest used book sale in the Midwest was in serious question for next year. We knew that thousands of long-time customers would be affected if we were to cancel a 50-year old event that encouraged reading, reusing and community service.
In addition, Little City enjoyed the dedication and hard work of hundreds of volunteers who dedicated their afternoons to either helping in the warehouse or at the sale itself. As one of our key stakeholder groups, we made certain that their time, dedication and support was taken into consideration as well.
So, without further ado, I would like to announce that Little City has teamed up with Harper Community College to host the Little City Book Fair 2011 in the gymnasium of the college. We are very excited about this new partnership. As you saw from the financials of previous book sales, the cost that went into the tent alone was quite significant. With this new venue, we have already saved thousands of dollars. Additionally, we have strategically shortened the sale from a 10-day event to a 3-day event.
As such, we'll only need to collect 100,000 books. The warehouse has already been rearranged, we've added to our drop-off sites, and already received 2,500 books from a corporate partner. Realizing we will have to reach out to a more local audience and at the same time try to keep our North Shore constituents, our marketing and PR plans will need to be more robust and strategic than ever.
I just want you all to know that we could not have done this without your time and talent. Your role with this project, and Little City overall, is a true testament to the SAVE Program and I look forward to the next opportunity to speak about it on a national level (maybe I'm getting ahead of myself, but I like to think the opportunity is there).
With my sincerest appreciation,
Kathryn Nelson
Manager of Volunteer Services
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Dear SBV Advocates,
We have great news to share as we look at our first quarter results for this fiscal year. Though each day more stories come through that point to the economic situation in Illinois becoming more desperate, our Volunteer Center has been able to find new opportunities to help our region. Using ourselves as a model , last year we were able to leverage between $587,000 and $1.768M of inkind skills-based volunteer services. (depending on which method of compiling the "value of a volunteer" we use to calculate the amount).
Since those of us in the business know that providing Volunteer Management Services is not free, we are very interested in standardizing a common method to calculate the value of the skills-based services we are providing our agencies and our local communities. Our good friend, Veronica Parages, Director of Skills-Based Volunteering for HandsOn Network does a great job in this edition of the SAVE Report outlining the variety of viewpoints on this topic and the multiple methods that are being used nationally. Please take time to read Veronica's column and respond with your perspective so we can get your feedback on what method makes the most sense to you. We will keep you informed as new information comes in so you can share it with your organization and funders.
Best regards,
Chris Smith
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SAVE NEWS
SAVE Focuses on Education
Through various strategic community and corporate partnerships, skills-based volunteers are gearing up for a year devoted to impacting students and student achievement.
The Volunteer Center of NW Suburban Chicago's SAVE program begins its second year helping the community through skills-based volunteerism with a new focus on educational impact. Through the support of the Program of National Significance (PNS) grant, SAVE is focusing on building capacity in schools and agencies with a goal of helping 500 low-income and limited-English proficiency students, and recruiting 125 skills-based volunteers. This includes 30 volunteer leaders.
SAVE in education is working closely with the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program to integrate skills-based volunteers, 55 and better, into at least two school districts and five agencies that support education.
Utilizing the successful "Ready, Set, Go" model, TVC has already kicked off initial meetings with the local school district in Wheeling as well as other districts and agencies that support education in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. Projects are still being identified by highly skilled pro bono project managers.
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Leaders in the Field
Calculating the Value of a Skills-based Volunteer
A special post by Veronica Parages, Director, Skills-Based Volunteering, Points of Light Institute - HandsOn Network
As explained in a brochure developed by the CNCS, HON and a group of nonprofit organizations that you can access through http://www.nationalserviceresources.org/sbv , Skills-based Volunteering (SBV) is a strategic type of volunteerism that exponentially expands the impact of nonprofits by incorporating a whole range of skills that strengthen the operations and services of nonprofit organizations.
Therefore it means that SBV is applicable on all dimensions of volunteerism. Pro Bono volunteering, originally coming from the legal sector, is providing consulting services for free. Pro Bono is actually a subset of SBV, and provides a nonprofit with the kind of professional expertise critical to maintaining a productive and sustainable organization.
Today there is no recognized standard about how to calculate the value of skills-based and pro bono volunteering. However, there are several approaches being used on the market. We would like to take this opportunity to ask you for your comments and suggestions on the various methodologies that we are working on to create possible standards. The value of SB volunteers may vary depending of the type of projects done, but not all SBV players agree on this principle. One of the main questions we have to answer is:
Do we measure the $ value of our skills-based volunteers based on:
- The price that it will cost to a nonprofit if they have to hire a consultant to do the project?
Or
- The price of the time and the value of the skills-based volunteer as a regular employer will pay for it, which means the value in that case is based on their current or past salary?
Or
- The price of the hourly rate that a nonprofit organization will be able to pay a staff person to do the job?
Read more here and vote!
 Veronica, originally from France, has 20 years of Human Resources and Recruiting experience in management positions. Veronica arrived in US in 2003, where she spent a year as a full time volunteer-heading up efforts at several Atlanta nonprofits and working directly with her children's school. She joined Points Of Light Institute to take over the responsibility of launching the overall Skills-Based Volunteerism Initiative for HandsOn Network
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Trainings
HandsOn University
The Volunteer Center recently collaborated with HandsOn Network to develop the content for the first Skills-based Volunteer Management course in partnership with the University of Phoenix. This is being offered at no cost to all HandsOn affiliates.
Through November 1, participants that register for and complete the Skills-based Volunteering Course through HandsOn University will be entered to win free registration to the 2011 HandsOn National Conference on Volunteering and Service in New Orleans, LA. Follow the link below and click on the "Try Our First Course FREE" button to get started:
http://www.handsonnetwork.org/tools/handsonuniversityonline
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Case Study
FootPrint Fund: Allegra Marketing and Print
As the sluggish economy continues to put a damper on small business spending, Allegra Marketing Print & Mail in Palatine, a member of the Allegra Network, is offering a helping hand to nonprofit organizations that have nowhere to turn.
Since the program's inception, the Allegra Network has donated more than $2.7 million dollars in marketing and printing services to nonprofit organizations nationwide. Some of the beneficiaries of the program have included the American Cancer Society, Boy Scouts of America, the American Diabetes Association, the Special Olympics, and the Salvation Army.
Allegra Marketing Print & Mail has greatly helped The Volunteer Center through the FootPrint Fund by helping them develop their agency brochures, membership campaigns, marketing materials and more.
Find out more about Allegra's FootPrint Fund on The Volunteer Center's website.
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The Volunteer Center of Northwest Suburban Chicago (TVC) is devoted to improving lives by developing, advancing and promoting community volunteer initiatives. Since its inception in 1969, the agency has supported volunteer programs through its partnerships with more than 170 social service agencies, schools and businesses.
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Karla Micheli and Anthony Hoell
Editors, The SAVE Report The Volunteer Center of NW Suburban Chicago |
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