Transcript Best practices for managing your

From Good to Great!
Best practices for managing your
AmeriCorps members
Facilitated by:
Paula DeBoles-Johnson, MPA, CCM
Program Consultant
Learning Objectives
From this training participants will learn:
How to improve member effectiveness
 How to promote retention and promote lifelong
civic engagement
 The tools to help members move from their year
of service to Life After AmeriCorps

Member Recruitment
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Create a plan.
Outline all the steps in the recruitment process.
Make sure that each party understands their role
and participates in the process.
Make sure that all recruitment documents are
updated. Make time to verify accuracy!
Your recruitment team should have some
consistency and a few new players.
Make sure that there are many layers beyond
completing the application.
Recruiting Special Populations
Recruiting Males
 Recruit at sites that males
frequent (i.e. barbershops,
cycle shops, gyms, bowling
lanes, etc.)
 Use males to recruit males
 Visit nontraditional sites
(churches, Boys & Girls
Clubs)
 Make the pitch to
fraternities, at sporting
events and male specific
clubs.
 Host an open house
Persons with Disabilities
 Contact your disability
partners
 Utilize other agencies that
work specifically with Persons
with Disabilities & place flyers
there
 Contact the local colleges
and universities
 Contact the local high
schools
 Post flyers in hospitals,
physical therapy & doctors
offices and specialized
equipment businesses
Track Activities to Maximize Results
Location
Activity
Person
Responsible
Outcome
City Hall MLK
Program
Presentation to 47
people; left
brochures
James Brown
10 names to
follow-up
2/2/13
Booth at College
Fair
Accepted 7 resumes,
passed out 100 flyers,
63 applications
Jane Doe
2 applications
completed at
fair, 8
received later
3/6/13
Kiwanis Club
Breakfast
Presentation to 13
people
Bob Smith
2 follow-up
telephone
calls
Date
1/21/13
After Recruitment – What’s Next
Who’s part of your screening and interviewing
team?
When should you schedule interviews?
What questions should you ask?
◦ "A child is having an issue with a teacher and isn't responding
to that teacher, what would be your course of action?"
◦ "If you were confronted by a distraught community member
and you didn't know the answer, what would your course of
action be?“
◦ "Please describe yourself in one word and tell us why you
chose that particular word."
Top Choices & Next Steps
 Have
them volunteer for a 1-2 weeks
 Get them screened (NSOPR at a minimum)
 Give them something to accomplish
 Others should be watching them as well
Finally, the TEAM makes a decision based on
performance during the volunteer period.
The New
Team
Training
Background Screening
Volunteer Recruitment
Service Projects
Evaluations
Accommodations
Personal Disaster Planning
Professional Development
Special Requests
Life After AmeriCorps
Civic Reflection
Reporting
Best Practices
Tips:
 Make sure that partner sites
are aware of training dates
 Start planning early for
required trainings
 Give your 2nd year members
leadership opportunities as
trainers, mentors and leaders
of service projects
 Spend your first two weeks
getting required trainings
done, especially First
Aid/CPR.
 Set benchmarks for
evaluation early
 Check in with members, site
supervisors and partners
often
 Recognize excellence
often
Use Your Tools!
What are some of the tools you need to
successfully run your AmeriCorps program?
Where can you find these tools?
If you need assistance regarding ANYTHING
related to AmeriCorps, who can you contact?
How to Build Exceptional Members & Programs
 Great Communicators
 Awesome Advisors
 Terrific Team builders
 Forward thinking Planners
& Managers
 Exceptional AmeriCorps
Representatives
POSITIVITY EVERYDAY!
“The brain is like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positive ones.”
Rick Hanson, PhD
 Focus on the GOOD!
 What might happen in your own life if you looked for the good
before launching into the bad?
 Relationships need a healthy balance of positive to negative
interactions. Because we deal with people, negative situations will
occur – make a conscious effort to infuse the positive!
 When you catch yourself saying something negative…..STOP.
Keeping the Energy & Excitement
 Members should know what’s expected of them. Keep this in
the forefront.
 Let members take the lead on projects.
 Select Team Leaders for the upcoming year. This shows that
you are rewarded and promoted for good work!
 Bring in motivational speakers a few times a year. (Maybe
they want to hear from someone else).
 Incorporate Teambuilding activities that are informative &
exciting!
 Invite other Corps to participate in Corps days and Service
Projects.
 Life After AmeriCorps planning should begin as soon
as Orientation ends.
Begin with the End in Mind!
Preparing Members for Life After AmeriCorps
Reflecting
on Service Year
Resume Writing
Professional Development
Education Award Information
Transitioning from National Service
AmeriCorps Alums
Celebrating the
successes of the Corps
is essential to retention,
personal growth and
program commitment!
Everyone likes to know
that what they do
matters!
Celebrate and acknowledge hard work often!
Roadblocks to Successful Service!
 Failure to follow program policies/rules
 Grievances & Inspector General Complaints
 Retention
 Perceived Favoritism & Inconsistencies
 Lack of Information & False Information
 Failure to document vital information & incidences
 Loss of funding & vital partnerships
 Failure to PLAN
Questions & Answers
Thank You!
Please don’t forget to
complete your evaluation.