COMMUNITY VOLUNTEER AMBASSADORS | FINAL REPORT 2018/19 MEMBER ACCOMPLISHMENTS QUANTITATIVE DATA TOTALS:
154,001
VOLUNTEER HOURS CONTRIBUTED BY INDIVIDUALS
$3,916,245 TOTAL VALUE OF VOLUNTEER TIME LEVERAGED
3,496
TOTAL VOLUNTEERS INVOLVED WITH EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING
958
VOLUNTEERS INVOLVED WITH VETERANS GROUPS
4,287
Through the CVA Program Stewards Individual Placement Program in partnership with Northwest Youth Corps was tasked with the purpose of providing support to park units service-wide in expanding capacity through volunteerism, service-learning, and community engagement programs and activities to support parks annual projects, visitor service and customer service goals. NOTABLE PROJECTS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Bark Ranger: •Monx Cullen, C&O Canal NHP: "I collaborated in the drafting of the NCR Bark Ranger Booklet with the other NCR CVA’s. We had this idea to promote BARK principles because we have issues with dogs of leash at my site."
VOLUNTEERS INVOLVED WITH DEFERRED MAINTENANCE
•Maddie Vidmar, Harpers Ferry NHP: "The creation of National Capital Region materials has started the process of standardizing the BARK Rangers program on a service-wide level. We have become a point of contact for units across the nation wishing to launch their own BARK Ranger programs."
8,545
•Logan Boldon, at Great Smoky Mountains National Park wrote a winning Hartzog Award nomination for the Laurel Falls Rover Volunteers.
VOLUNTEERS INVOLVED WITH NATURAL AND CULTURAL RESOURCES
5,715
VOLUNTEERS INVOLVED WITH STEWARDSHIPS EVENTS
1,592
TOTAL SKILLS BASED VOLUNTEERS *Data from Quarter One is inconclusive due to government shutdown and members not having access to data on government computers as well as not being in service for five weeks. However, the data we received has been added to the overall totals. Volunteer rate is based on the current Independent Sector Releases New Value of Volunteer Time of $25.43 Per Hour for 2018.
MEMBER DEMOGRAPHICS: Demographic Numbers of 2018-2019 CVAs Including Percentages (parentheses contain general US demographics according to 2010 census):
Male: 20 members; 38% (49.2%) Female: 33 members; 62% (50.8%)
White (not Hispanic or Latino): 45 members; 85% (72.4%) Black or African American: 2 members; 4% (12.6%) Asian: 1 member; 2% (4.8%) Hispanic or Latino: 1 member; 2% (16.3%) Two or more: 3 members; 5% (2.9%) Chose not to self-identify: 1 member; 2%
MEMBER POST CVA TERM SUCCESS: 4 Members accepted full-time permanent jobs with a DOI agency 2 Members accepted full-time permanent positions with CVA partner organizations (Stewards, NYC) 8 Members returned for a second term in the CVA Program (including CVA Leader position) 5 Members returned to school pursue graduate degrees 4 Members accepted full-time permanent positions with NPS non-profit partners (Ex. friends groups) or positions with other nonprofits
COMMUNITY VOLUNTEER AMBASSADORS | FINAL REPORT 2018/19 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR MEMBERS: •Jackie Meyer from the National Mall and Memorial Parks said she was accepted as a member of the Emerging Leaders Program for the Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education Conference. •Julie Savage from Mesa Verde National Park was asked to be the NPS Representative at the 4th Native Youth Community Adaptation and Leadership Congress (NYCALC) at the National Conservation Training Center. Julie wrote a great post about this in the CVA Blog. •Rachel Panasci from Weir Farm presented a her joint proposal between Weir Farm and the New Britain Museum of American Art and Florence Griswold at the 2019 National Council for Public History conference in Hartford, CT. •Six CVA members from the Pacific West Region attended an NPS led ‘How to Succeed With Volunteers-in-Parks’ training at Golden Gate National Recreation Area, partially led and facilitated by GOGA CVA Sydney Mentrup. (Final report available written by CVA’s in attendance for training takeaways and resources for future CVA participants).
“Hampden-Sydney is a private, all male college, where students usually specialize in business and economics. I attended their career fair representing Richmond NBP and Maggie Walker NHS. Myself alongside another ranger stood there talking to those young men about all the opportunities the National Park Service has to offer, to which many were surprised. Everyone envisions the park service as solely interpretive rangers giving tours. I was happy to shed light on all the background work that happens as well. I loved watching their faces light up when we told them they could have a job in the National Park Service that not only uses their degree, but a job they would enjoy. As the ranger and I were leaving, the director of the career fair came up to us and thanked us immensely for coming. She explained to us that one of her students named Turner, who was so set in his path to go into economics, walked out of the career fair with the biggest smile on his face. When she asked him why he was so happy, he explained to her how he’s found a new passion in the National Park Service because of mine and the ranger’s passion we had for the service when we talked to him. He told her “I’m so glad I came to this. My entire life has been opened up for me.” Since it was my first tabling event, those words stuck with me. I’ve developed a love for tabling and being able to tell other people the joys of working with the National Park Service and how they can too.” -Claire Murphy, Richmond National Battlefield Park
COMMUNITY VOLUNTEER AMBASSADORS | FINAL REPORT 2018/19
FOCUS AREAS: MEMBER STORIES VETERANS & ACTIVE MILITARY ENGAGEMENT The CVA coordinated and led SUU Student Veterans of America. The objectives of this episodic group was to educate about micro-trash and then take action by picking up trash in parking lots and on trails and to devote time volunteering. Both objectives were met and the group plans to come back in July.
-Mackenzie Pavlik, Zion National Park
"This quarter has been successful with veteran and active military engagement. We have one VIP who is an active member of the U.S. Coast Guard and has provided several contacts within his ship in order to recruit more of his peers. We have also just on-boarded another VIP who was a marine for four years and is now in the reserves. He approached our booth at Beacon Hill Festival where we had volunteer applications ready to hand out. Both are interested in the National Park Service as careers and are under the age of 30. I am excited to strengthen these relationships and have several liaisons into these communities." -Allie Burdick, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
BACKLOG MAINTENANCE "I have been working with a serviceman from Camp David to establish monthly volunteer events and a long term volunteer relationship. We had our first service project with Camp 3 in a long time at Owens Creek Campground. They rehabilitated the walkway going down into the site 14 where the skid loader had torn it up during construction by the YCC. We have volunteered with them 2 more times since then (both preparing for and on actual NPLD). We have another date scheduled in October (2018) to do blazing on the horse trail." -Lorne Haines, Catoctin Mountain Park
NATURAL & CULTURAL RESOURCES "We successfully began training a group of volunteers to participate in our inaugural certified guide program. We have two groups committed, one with leaders trained, to participate in our Adopt-A-Section program focused on sustainable cleaning and condition assessment of headstones in Stones River National Cemetery. Claire has been busily cultivating other groups that may join that program. Claire had a successful outreach with local Girl Scout leaders that we hope to build on to develop volunteer and interpretation opportunities for a youth group that has not had historically strong ties with our park. Our biggest highlight was a successful National Public Lands Day event that engaged 120+ volunteers and more than a dozen local partners. Claire did the vast majority of the planning and coordination and ably served as the on-site supervisor for the event."
-Feedback from Site Mentor regarding Claire Casey, Stones River National Battlefield
COMMUNITY VOLUNTEER AMBASSADORS | FINAL REPORT 2018/19
FOCUS AREAS: MEMBER STORIES EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING One group that contacted me about setting up a recurring volunteer project over the summer was the Capital Cycle Camp. This was a six week long cycling camp intended for 3-14 year-olds. Each day the group would meet and then cycle around the city. Every Tuesday they came and volunteered with us, I was the person who helped schedule their projects and worked with them each project. The group was difficult to work with, a majority of the children did not understand why they were volunteering. It was extremely difficult to keep them engaged and working for two hours. Over the six weeks I worked with them, I learned quite a bit about leading young children and various ways to keep them engaged. I also learned how to talk to younger children and understand what they are thinking as well as communicating what I am thinking and expecting from them. Overall, this was an amazing experience since I was the one in charge of everything they accomplished. I think this group will continue to come volunteer at the Mall every year and I think it offers an amazing chance to teach young children the importance of volunteering and how fun it can actually be.
-Jackie Meyer, National Mall and Memorial Parks
STEWARDSHIP EVENTS "National Public Lands Day was a part of my work plan from the beginning and I dedicated a lot of time to building a new event and building partnerships with Alaska Department of Fish and Game to have a great event. I was supported by multiple staff members who helped me create everything from advertisements, to the schematic of the bird houses that ended up being built. On the day of the event, 17 community members showed up to build and restore tree swallow nesting boxes along the Potter Marsh boardwalk- part of the Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge, managed by the AK Department of Fish and Game."
-Sarah Bruce, Alaska Public Lands Information Center “Ms. Bruce led this event, gathered the VIPs, made the connections with the Partner organization (Alaska Fish & Game) and ensured that the event we off without a hitch! Great work!!! There were months of preparation she put into this event and a number of organizations she worked with and in the end it all paid off.� -Clarence Watkins, Chief of Interpretation, Alaska Public Lands Information Center
SKILLS BASED VOLUNTEERS The Teacher-Ranger-Teacher (TRT) project is a nation-wide partnership between a national park and a local teacher for the purpose of expanding educational offerings for underserved populations. Basically, a teacher from a Title 1 school agrees to work with the park for a summer; during this time, the teacher builds new lesson plans and educational materials at the park, or revises the materials that are already available at the park. The teacher receives a stipend, and a graduate class with expenses paid. I have been assigned to seek out interested teachers and reach out to them for recruitment purposes. I have successfully reached out to all schools in our county, plus one more local school.
-Jennifer Albertson, Hot Springs National Park