1. Strategies for Cities on Successful Volunteer Engagement

2. Karmit
About MAVA Initiative – why doing and funded by Bush foundation

3. Growth of Local Government Volunteering
Growth of volunteering in 1970s-1980s & recent anecdotal evidence of cities relying more volunteers during recession
Long term role for volunteers: long-term budget constraints due to: aging populations, declining or stagnant revenue sources, increasing personnel/administrative costs
Pressures higher in greater Minnesota/ rural areas
Surveys of City Officials show they see value

4. Aim of Session Participants will:
Learn from the experiences of small and large cities with volunteer engagement
Share your experience to help build the knowledge base of city volunteer engagement
Taken home insights from the volunteer perspective drawn from recent MAVA interviews

5. MAVA Initiative
Awarded a Bush Foundation Community Innovation Grant to convene conversations with partners, cities, volunteer managers, volunteers, and citizens interested in building new strategies to engage a diverse citizenry in community problems.
Will hold what’s learned, develop a curriculum, educate and train cities throughout the state to grow citizen involvement in problem solving and service.

6. Goals of Pilot Survey of Four Cities
Explore how willing people are to volunteer for cities
Contrast self-reported willingness with actual reported volunteering
Examine interest in specific programs of interest to cities
Pilot study: see if the basic proposed relationships show any validity & test out measures.

7. What we have heard from cities
Learned from:
Focus group at the League of Cities Conference 2014
From interviews with 15 cities
From grant co-hort group – Cities of
Dassel Rothsay
Mounds View Warren
Roseville Apple Valley, Inver Grove Heights,
Rosemount & West St. Paul

8. What we have heard from larger cities
Seeing a growing interest by cities in volunteer engagement
Key steps in building a volunteer program
Designating in entry point for volunteers
Pulling volunteer program together under a volunteer manager
Motivation for volunteering for cities is somewhat different than other volunteers
Many potential roles for volunteers

9. What we have heard from smaller cities in Greater MN
Composition of communities are changing
Newcommers may not be as interested in long standing volunteer efforts
Needing to re-invent how community events are being done
The wrong person in key role can drive others away
The City Clerk role is important

10. Literature: civic involvement
Civic engagement: those who volunteer early and more often are more likely to develop life-long attachments to service (Janoski et al., 1997; Musick & Wilson, 2008).
Closeness to community & civic engagement in politics & national issues

11. Evidence of Upsurge in Volunteering
Reports show increased interest due to budget concerns:
Mostly practical-oriented reports: League of MN cities case studies & survey of city managers.
Focus groups in 12 MN cities: citizen want their cities to expand volunteering as a long-term budget strategy
But no recent study has tried to examine systematically whether citizens will respond to calls for service.

12. City Administrator/Clerk-Treasurer
Shannon Mortenson
City Administrator/Clerk-Treasurer
City of Warren
Warren

14. Goal in the Strategic Plan was to create a Park Board using all volunteers
Organized Park Board in March 2015
Creation of Volunteer Program gave city credibility
Volunteers were being used to keep up flower gardens at a city park
Recognized the garden volunteers and they enjoyed that
Future plans to expand Park volunteers to work at events only
Used Facebook and the city newsletter to inform residents of the need for volunteers on the Park Board. Facebook was the most effective
People that were passionate about the city facilities applied for the positions

15. POINTS LEARNED Valuable to attend MAVA training
Volunteer T-Shirts were a big hit
Recognition on Facebook and the local newspaper was well received
Having an application and description reassured the residents that it was legitimate and was created for longevity

16. Diane Erickson Volunteer Engagement Manager
Cities of West St. Paul, Inver Grove Heights, Apple Valley, Rosemount .
West St. Paul
Kelly will introduce Diane and remind participants to enter questions for the panel in the chat feature.
Inver Grove Heights

17. Four Cities Apple Valley - Population: 50,487 (2014)
Area: sq miles (45.51 km²)
Inver Grove Heights - Population: 34,344 (2013)
Area: sq miles (78.01 km²)
Rosemount - Population: 22,666 (2013)
Area: sq miles (91.19 km²)
West St. Paul - Population: 19,756 (2013)
Area: 5.01 sq miles (12.98 km²)
Diane

18. How to share your time and talents
Adopt a Hydrant, Neighborhood or Park 
City Events/Short Term Opportunities 
Community Support
Document Imager/Scanner
Endangered Birds/Bees Assistant
Facility/Maintenance Support
Gardening/Landscaping
Invasive Plant/Tree Removal 
Office Support
Or Bring us your Ideas About How you Would Like to Help in the Community!

19. Group volunteering
Opportunities for area businesses, churches, civic groups, etc. to participate as a group can be explored.
Typically groups will do a park clean up, planting project, invasive plant removal, or assist with a special event.

20. Tips for Success
Often change is successful by taking baby steps. Sometimes you take 2 steps forward and 1 step back, and sometimes 2 steps back and 1 step forward. Slow and steady and being patient is the key where there is resistance.
Relationship building is so important. Until you build the relationships with the supervisors and other staff needing volunteers, they are not going to be open to the process. Continuing to develop those relationships, once established, is also very important. Lastly, once a volunteer is placed, continuing to check in and nourish the relationship is also key.

21. Terri Boese
City Clerk/Treasurer
City of Dassel
Dassel

22. Tips for Success
3. The best way to promote your program is with each success, and always be actively listening to see if there might be a comment that could lead to a new volunteer position.

23. Dassel
Population of 1,469 SW Minnesota (40 miles from St. Cloud)

24. Involving volunteers
Make sure you communicate extensively on what opportunities are available for volunteers. We are finding out through our survey that most people are not aware of all the volunteer opportunities in our community.
Make sure they feel appreciated and have fun!

25. Volunteer Perspective
Implications for Cities
Volunteers are usually happy with the experience.
Good Volunteer Manager matter.
Cities have a good product to offer that volunteers find rewarding.

26. What volunteers want: Volunteers want you to be prepared for them.
Volunteers want to feel welcomed.
Provide good training – adequate/specific.
Volunteers want to do interesting and important work.
They need to know how much time it will take.

27. What volunteers want:
6. They want to be appreciated. 7. Volunteers want you to communicate with them often. 8. Volunteers want to know they are helping to make their community and the world a better place. 9. They want to be socially connected. 10. They all want to learn something new.

28. Discussion
What have you found that works with volunteers in your city?

29. For Involving Volunteers
Tips from MAVA
For Involving Volunteers
© Minnesota Association for Volunteer Administration (MAVA) 2015

30. Fundamental strategies
1. Design volunteer roles to involve volunteers in a wide variety of roles, including higher responsibility roles and shorter term assignments. Closely align volunteer roles with the city’s priorities. 2. Assess volunteer recruitment needs and activate recruitment efforts as needed. 3. Update recognition for today’s volunteers.
Because who is volunteer and what volunteer expect is changing, MAVA developed 9 cutting edge strategies for the current volunteer workforce. These are from highly recommended best practices and from what MAVA has learned from leaders of volunteers of new strategies they are trying
See Handout 1, 2 and 3

31. Emerging strategies
4. Standardize the volunteer program. Develop a volunteer handbook and consistent policies for volunteers. Standardize volunteer recruitment and orientation. 5. Maximize use of technology in the volunteer program. 6. Measure impact through volunteers. .

32. Maximization strategies
7. Act on volunteers’ ideas and put volunteers in positions to identify needs and solutions. 8. Have a well defined organizational structure including roles for volunteers. 9.Develop a positive organizational culture focused on impact through volunteers. .
See Handout 4

33. Group Activity
What is the biggest step your City can take to move forward with volunteer engagement?
Which of the 9 strategies will you focus on?

34. Involving New Americans and Diverse Communities
What is the range of diversity that you have in your cities?
What has been successful in getting this range of diversity involved with the city?
Demographics are changing rapidly in MN and important to get full spectrum of community involved.

35. Involving new Americans
1. Relationships matter. 2. Find a shared value (e.g. engage the family). 3. Build on the talents of immigrant volunteers.
MAVA did project several years ago on involving New Americans as volunteers.
Lead by Dr. Mai Moua.
Dr. Mai Moua, Volunteerism in Immigrant Communities

36. Involving new Americans
4. Assess capacity to deliver. 5. Know the cultural history, background including cultural competency skills. Conduct on-going internal dialogues 6. Engage the whole organization in inclusive work.

37. Lesson learned from Cities
Seek volunteer management training for staff working with volunteers.
Before recruiting volunteers, create policies and structure for your volunteer program. Have positions and roles ready for the volunteers
Have a solid plan and support from the City Council and city management.
Don’t be frustrated if it takes time. It is all about building relationships.

38. Lesson learned from Cities
5. Create a clearly identified entry point for volunteers.
6. Work with local chambers of commerce and civic groups to help recruit volunteers and to take on volunteer projects.
7. If you have a volunteer that is creating a negative experience for other volunteers, deal with that. Terminate or reassign the volunteer.
8. When recruiting a volunteer to lead a project, make sure that they are ready and able to do that before you turn it over to them.

39. Resources http://www.mavanetwork.org/cities See Handout 5, 6 and 7
Tips for starting and building a volunteer program
Value volunteers bring
Ideas for volunteer positions in cities
List of cities willing to share ideas
Sample volunteer management tools shared by cities
See Handout 5, 6 and 7

40. To join MAVA or for resources: www.mavanetwork.org
Wrap up
To join MAVA or for resources: