Volunteer Iowa opens fall cohort opportunity
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 15, 2022
Contact: Michelle Raymer
Volunteer Iowa Program Officer
michelle.raymer@volunteeriowa.org
515.348.6235 / 800.308.5987
DES MOINES, Iowa – A national Points of Light program led statewide by Volunteer Iowa, the Service Enterprise Initiative is a proven, research‐based model that equips organizations to leverage volunteers and their skills across all levels to successfully deliver on their social mission. It diagnoses strengths organizations can leverage and challenges that need to be addressed to achieve sustainability. The model continues to achieve results across the state of Iowa, with over 50 certified organizations and many more working towards certification.
An informational webinar about the Service Enterprise Initiative will be held on Wednesday, June 29th from 10:00-11:00am. Staff from Volunteer Iowa, joined by previous participants, will share how participating in this research-based assessment, training, and coaching process can build the capacity of organizations. To register for the webinar, click HERE.
Through a multi-month virtual engagement with Volunteer Iowa, organizations will move through a change management process with innovative training and consulting support, that will result in embracing volunteers into their core operations and greater impact.
An organization will receive:
- A thorough research-based assessment of existing organizational capacity and volunteer engagement practice
- Up to 16 hours of training on change management and reexamining the ways in which the organization engages volunteer
- Individualized consulting to address unique organizational opportunities and challenges
- National certification signifying the organization’s commitment to and proficiency in appropriately leveraging the time and skills of volunteers to meet the social mission of the organization
“We had an idea of what we wanted to do and goals for the volunteer program, but it wasn’t until we sat down and looked at our Service Enterprise diagnostic and started attending the trainings, that we were able to hone in on the steps we needed to take to get to our goal,” said Sarah Lettow, Engagement Coordinator with the ALS Association Iowa Chapter. “We were able to create a bigger and better goal for ourselves because we saw what was possible.”
Applications are due August 5th to be considered in the fall cohort, with trainings beginning in October. More information is available by visiting https://www.volunteeriowa.org/SEI.
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About Volunteer Iowa (Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service)
Volunteer Iowa and its partner agencies work with organizations and individuals on three main fronts. The first is to help agencies develop quality programs that use service as a strategy to fulfill their missions and address Iowa’s greatest areas of need. The second is to help engage Iowans in their communities by promoting service and expanding the volunteer base. Finally, the third area of work is to connect individuals with appropriate service opportunities by building the volunteer infrastructure. More information is available at volunteeriowa.org.
About Points of Light
Points of Light – the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service – mobilizes millions of people to take action that is changing the world. Through affiliates in 250 cities and partnerships with thousands of nonprofits and corporations, Points of Light engages more than 4 million volunteers in 30 million hours of service each year – we put people at the center of change. For more information, go to pointsoflight.org.