Creating Service Programs that last: The Coalition of Projects Model

Bonner Summer Leadership Conference 2010Heather McNew Schill, M.Ed.

Coordinator, Student-led Service ProgramsCenter for Excellence in Learning Through Service

(CELTS)Berea College

Welcome to the sessionWho is in the room?

Please share your name, school and why you came to this session

Who am I?Coordinator of Student-led Service Programs at

Berea CollegeSupervise around 80 college students (through

the Berea College Work Study Program), which coordinate 10 community service programs and supervise approximately 200 college student volunteers using the Coalition of Project Model

The Coalition of Projects ModelI first learned of this model at the 2002 COOL Conference.

I attended a day long forum called Building It Up: A One Day institute on building and strengthening campus-based community service

programs led by John Hoang Sarvey. John was a staff member at COOL, who later went on to work as the Executive Director of City

Year.

The Model Consists of the following: 1. Umbrella organization of multiple projects2. Issue or neighborhood focused projects3. Group coordination of volunteers4. Cascading Leadership structure5. Coalition-wide support functions for the projects6. Systematic training of project leaders7. Systematic exchange of challenges and best practices among projects8. Systematic quality improvement process 9. New Project incubator10. Office space that’s student-oriented, has a “hang-out” quality

Umbrella organization of multiple projects- The Model

Cannot be just one single student organization, but instead it should be a system of several organizations

Overall program serves as an umbrella to combine resources, expertise and effective systems

Each program has its own leadership and volunteer base

Project Leaders (students) feel the primary responsibility for their project, not their staff supervisor

Project Leaders are developed from among volunteers

Umbrella organization of multiple projects-

How It Works in CELTS Each of the 10 Student-

led Programs are officially recognized as a separate club/organization

CELTS serves as the umbrella for student-led community service and academic service-learning

Student Program Coordinators are responsible for the leadership of their specific program. They are responsible for the selection and training of their volunteers

No one can become a team member in a program with out first being a volunteer

Coordinator, Student-led Service Programs

CELTS Student Director

Student Program Coordinator

Student Team Members

Volunteers

Student ProgramCoordinator

Student TeamMembers

Volunteers

Student ProgramCoordinator

Student TeamMembers

Volunteers

Issue or specific community focused project- The Model

Each project/program has a specific and unique focus: Focus could be on specific issues, a specific

community, or organizational affiliationVolunteer recruitment is made on the basis of

specific issues rather than the general concepts of volunteerism or community service

Each of the student-led programs has a different issue focus and population served. Two have affiliations with national organizationsEach program recruits its own volunteers at the annual Volunteer Extravaganza, where potential volunteers choose the specific program in which they wish to work

Issue or specific community

focused project- How it works in

CELTS

Group Coordination of Volunteers- The Model

Volunteers work in groups or teams, rather than individual placements

This encourages informal (or formal) orientation, reflection and accountability

This leads to a sense of community and support

Group Coordination

of Volunteers-

How it works in CELTS

• Each student-led program has a Student Coordinator and a team of 2 to 4 students working for them

• Student Coordinators are responsible for the orientation, reflection and accountability of their team members and volunteers

• I would hope our students feel a sense of community..

Cascading Leadership Structure- The ModelUtilizes successive sets of student leaders

who spend 3 or 4 years with the same project/program

Often students start as a volunteer, become a assistant project leader, project leader and then serve in some support or leadership role for the overall organization

This structure allows for students to develop skills and experiences to run their projects independently

Cascading Leadership Structure- How it works in

CELTS This is the exact

structure of our student-led programs Students begin

working for us as volunteers and are able to move their way up to Team Members, Program Coordinators and CELTS Student Director

Student leaders develop skills which they in turn help teach the younger students- both volunteers and team members

Volunteers

Team

Members

ProgramCoordinators

StudentDirector

Program Coordina

torsSecond

Year Team Members

First Year Team

MembersVolunteers

StudentDirector

The Training Cycle

Coalition-wide support functions for the projects- The Model

There is a coalition-wide group of student leaders who help support project leaders in areas such as recruitment, funding, training, etc.

Project Leaders know and utilize the assistance they can receive from coalition-wide leaders

Coalition-wide leaders are experienced and ideally have former project leadership experience

Coalition-wide support functions for the projects- How it

works at CELTS

In CELTS, the coalition-wide student leaders are called the Student Leadership Team

These three students represent the three areas of CELTS programming: Student-led Service Programs, Bonner Scholars and Academic Service-Learning

All three of these students have previously served as a Student Coordinator in their particular program area

Student Leadership Team

Service-Learnin

gAssocia

te(Academic Service-

Learning)

CELTS Student Directo

r(Student-led

Service Programs)

Bonner Senior Intern

(Bonner Scholars Program)

Systematic training of project leaders- The Model

Project Leaders participate in a comprehensive training program which covers all the different areas of project management, including volunteer recruitment, funding, program development, community relations, reflection, etc.

Sometimes this training is also offered as an academic course

Systematic training of project leaders-

How it works at CELTS

•In CELTS all our student leaders meet once a week for a training session. These sessions vary from specific skill development to awareness events and guest speakers•Student Coordinators also attend a separate training each week in addition to the all student meeting above•Unfortunately, none of our training programs are offered as an academic course

Skill Trainings

Personal Skills

Decision makingOrganization

Active listening

PlanningBalance/boundaries

CommunicationReflection

Time managementGoal setting

Leadership Skills

Conflict resolutionDelegationPlanning

Public speakingRunning a meeting

TeamworkUnderstanding

civic engagementUnderstanding public policyWorking with

diverse groups

Professional SkillsBudgetingEvaluation/

researchEvent planning

FundraisingGrant writing

Marketing / public relations

MediationNetworking

Public education / advocacyVolunteer

management

Systematic exchange of challenges and best practices among projects-

The ModelRegular opportunities exist for

projects to share successful practices and challenges with each other

This helps to uncover innovative and effective approaches to different issues

Systematic exchange of

challenges and best practices

among projects- how it works in

CELTS•Student Coordinators are provided with an opportunity to share both best practices and challenges at a weekly meeting we call the Core Staff meeting•Specialized training for Student Coordinators also take place at this weekly meeting

Systematic quality improvement process- The Model

Some sort of qualitative program development occurs each year, which could include annual proposals and regular progress reports

An ideal system would include an outside funding board external to the program

Systematic quality improvement process- How it works in CELTS

Student Coordinators are required to submit program updates monthly and an annual end of the year report, used to evaluate each program

Each student worker (both Team Members and Student Coordinators) in CELTS receives a formal mid-term and end of year evaluation of their work and on-going informal

Recently, a quantitative study showed that both CELTS student workers and volunteers graduated at a significantly higher rate and had a significantly higher GPA than those who did not work for CELTS or volunteer with CELTS

The student-led programs of CELTS do not have an external funding board. All funding comes from Berea College, however, our Bonner Scholars Program is endowed by The Bonner Foundation

New Project Incubator- The Model

The umbrella organization should have a clear system for adding or developing new projects which includes criteria and expectations

Coalition staff should be able to articulate the value of joining the coalition

New Project Incubator-

How it works at CELTS

•In the last few years, several new projects and programs have been added to the student-led programs to address the needs of the community

•We are often approached by people wanting to start new programs and projects; however, it takes a lot of time and consideration before a program “officially” joins CELTS

Student Office space with a “hang out” quality- The Model

Office space should provide a sense of community and home base on campus

Students should be drawn to come back between classes and other activities

Informal conversations will help students strengthen the community

Each program should have its own identifiable space in the office, which includes a phone and an actual desk

Student Office space with

a “hang out” quality- How it works at CELTS•Each of our student-led programs has its own identifiable office space with a desk and phone. Each program is allowed to decorate their space in any way they choose

•Students are always in their office space, where informal conversations often lead to program collaborations

Want to learn more?

Check out the CELTS web page: www.berea.edu/celts

Give me a call or send me an email

Come visit us in Berea

Thanks for coming!Heather McNew Schill

CPO 2170Berea College

Berea, KY 40404(859) 985-3804

Heather_Schill@berea.edu