December 2006
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Editor: Kristin Romanis |
In This Issue
As one of their major assignments in 2007, final year students majoring in Public Relations: Contexts and Applications for the Bachelor of Arts in Communication at the University of Technology Sydney have offered to help members create a professional, well-researched, persuasive and winning sponsorship and fundraising strategy tailored specifically to members' needs (e.g. Health, Welfare, Education, Environment, Sport).
Alcoa of Australia: Promoting the volunteer spirit
We often see a day designated to raising awareness of social issues but one Australian employer has dedicated a whole month to promoting employee volunteering. Aluminium producer, Alcoa of Australia designated October as its Month of Service and employees in Victoria, NSW and Western Australia gave their time to over 20 community projects in October 2006.
The Month of Service is just one of several highly effective employee volunteering programs developed by Alcoa to direct hands-on help and funding to grassroots projects. All the programs are employee-driven, connected with Alcoa's long-term community partnerships and are consistently and visibly supported by senior management.
The Centre for Volunteering's Networking Breakfasts in 2007
What would you like to discuss with your Volunteer Manager colleagues at The Centre for Volunteering's 2007 Networking Breakfasts? We value your input and we are always looking for new ideas. Please tell The Centre about any issues you want discussed at a Networking Breakfast.
Would you like to facilitate one of our Networking Breakfasts on a topic of your choice or a topic that you are studying that others would like to hear about?
Email Alison Keene or phone her on 02 9261 3600.
February 2007 Networking Breakfast
Tuesday, 20 February 2007, 8:30am–10.30am
The Centre's first Networking Breakfast for 2007 is a forum to talk about the fundamental issues of recruitment, retention and rewarding of volunteers. A panel of two or three volunteers will help guide the discussion as well as give us their perspective. Find out what do volunteers really think and how can we use their insight to help us plan for the above issues.
Numbers are limited. It is essential that you RSVP to attend and order breakfast in advance. Breakfast costs $5 and includes fruit salad, raisin toast and muffins. Tea and coffee are free. Email Alison Keene or phone her on 02 9261 3600.
Our forums are held monthly at The Centre for Volunteering, Level 2, 228 Pitt Street (between Park and Market Streets), Sydney.
The School will introduce competency-based training for Volunteer Managers, one-day workshops and skills training for volunteers.
New ASI Scholarships introduced in 2007
The School of Volunteer Management is pleased to announce one scholarship for entry into the Diploma of Business. This new scholarship will be provided by Advanced Solutions International (ASI). ASI is offering a full-fee scholarship to any full-time staff member in a not-for-profit organisation. There are also five half-fee scholarships available to full-time staff members in a not-for-profit organisation that is current customer of ASI.
The Centre for Volunteering is having a break
The Volunteer Referral Service will close on Friday, 15 December 2006 and will re-open on Monday, 8 January 2007. If you would like to volunteer, please contact The Volunteer Referral Service after Monday, 8 January 2007.
The Centre for Volunteering will close for Christmas holidays on Friday, 22 December 2006 and will re-open on Tuesday, 2 January 2007.
Congratulations to The Centre's raffle winners
The Centre for Volunteering would like to thank everyone who entered the Nivea gift pack and Tupperware raffles for their support. The raffles were drawn at The Centre's International Volunteer Day Thank You Party for its volunteers on Tuesday, 5 December 2006. The Centre would like to congratulate the lucky winners:
- Nivea Gift Pack – Melissa Vieusseux
- Tupperware prizes – Bob Sutton, Elissa Buttsworth and Sarah Swarbrick.
International Volunteer Day (IVD) Thank You Party
On Tuesday, 5 December 2006 The Centre for Volunteering hosted a Thank You Party for its in-house volunteers. Over 50 volunteers joined The Centre's staff for a tasty lunch and some drinks. A great time was had by all. Each of The Centre's managers spoke about their volunteers' amazing work and dedication. Take a look at the IVD Thank You Party photos.
CEO attends International Not-for-profit Convention and Exhibition 2006
The Centre's CEO Lynne Dalton recently attended the International Not-for-profit Convention and Exhibition 2006 organised by the Not-For-Profit Network (NFPN) held on the Sunshine Coast. The conference was attended by over 300 delegates from New Zealand and Australia who came from not-for-profit organisations representing both private enterprise and organisations such as The Centre for Volunteering which has a non-profit member base. According to Lynne, it was a worthwhile opportunity to learn from similar organisations about how they achieve their outcomes in terms of their internal strategies and mission. It was also an opportunity to share experiences and successes in how to get the message to the community about the good work that the sector does. Lynne was able to bring back from the conference some valuable contacts and ideas which can be utilised in The Centre's day-to-day operation and resourcing. A website that you might like to investigate is www.Vault1.com.au. This organisation can assist you to find savings in a number of areas which traditionally cost the sector a lot of money such as telecommunications and insurance. Finally, Lynne said the conference was one of the best she's attended in terms of learning, networking and resources.
School of Volunteer Management on the NSW Department of Education and Training's 2007-2008 Approved Providers List (APL)
The School of Volunteer Management's application to be listed on the NSW Department of Education and Training's 2007-2008 APL for the Strategic Skills Program has been accepted. The School is now approved to deliver its eight Diploma of Business units to a number of metropolitan and regional areas in NSW.
The Department of Education and Training (DET) pays registered training organisations (RTOs) for the delivery of training under the Strategic Skills Program. The Strategic Skills Program provides qualifications to enhance employment opportunities and the up-skilling needs of industry and existing workforces.
This listing increases the School's access to funding opportunities and projects which are limited to APL-listed RTOs. It also increases the number of organisations with access to the School's Department-funded training for the next two years.
Project Updates
Student Community Involvement Program (SCIP)
The Centre for Volunteering would like to thank everyone who has been involved this year in working towards the objective of engaging young people in their communities through volunteering opportunities.
To all those who attended the follow-up SCIP Breakfast Seminar on Tuesday, 21 November 2006, thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas on the topic of youth volunteering and providing feedback on new youth volunteering initiatives.
In November-December 2006, the SCIP team ran very successful Community Education Days at the following schools:
- Ravenswood Schools for Girls, Gordon
- Oxford Falls Grammar School, Oxford Falls
- Bethlehem College, Ashfield
- Liverpool Girls High School.
Many thanks to the wonderful guest speakers who participated in these events for their engaging and thought-provoking talks, and to the students and teachers at the schools for their enthusiastic response.
The SCIP team says goodbye to student intern Jessica Forster who will be going back to Wartburg College in Iowa, USA, to continue her studies. Her help these past few months has been very much appreciated and we wish her all the best with what we are sure will be a very bright future in the field of education.
Volunteering Makes a Difference (VMAD)
On Wednesday, 25 October 2006, a group of young people from the Youth Off the
Streets' (YOTS) Outreach program in Macquarie Fields volunteered at The Wayside Chapel in Kings Cross. These talented young volunteers put on a music performance that had everyone dancing in the street. This event was an initiative of the YOTS Service-Learning Program and The Centre for Volunteering's VMAD pilot program that provides positive volunteering experiences for disadvantaged or at-risk young people. The pilot program has shown that tapping into young people's skills, talents and interests when developing volunteering opportunities will allow an organisation to expand the ways it can meet its objectives and reach its service users.
A big thanks to the young people at YOTS (and to Lawrence and his guitar!) for their beautiful, engaging and inspiring music. We hope to hear you again really soon!
On Thursday, 9 November 2006, Jacinthe Brosseau, The Centre for Volunteering's Community Project Manager, attended a Service-Learning Integration Meeting at YOTS. This meeting was organised by Sarah Clegg, Service-Learning Coordinator at YOTS and partner on the VMAD pilot program. The purpose of the meeting was to gather the YOTS program managers and teachers in order to promote understanding, participation and cooperation. The various service-learning/volunteering opportunities developed through the VMAD/YOTS partnership were presented, and expectations, concerns, risk management and evaluation methods were explored and discussed.
© The Centre
for Volunteering 2007 |
ABN 28 002 416 024
Level 2, 228 Pitt St, Sydney NSW 2000
T: 02 9261 3600 | F: 02 9261 4033 | E: info@volunteering.com.au
www.volunteering.com.au
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