Ten of the 25 Hillsdale GOAL programs are hiring new student leaders, the Community Health program is holding a blood drive on Nov. 12, and GOAL is hosting a Volunteer Appreciation Mixer.
GOAL director and senior Maya Kaniaupio said GOAL program leaders are liaisons between the community contact of the program and students. She said GOAL applications for “shadow leaders” are on Handshake until Nov. 12 at 5 p.m. Shadow leaders learn from the current program leader to prepare to lead the program on their own in the fall.
“Shadow leaders will be hired at the end of the semester, so that they have the entire spring 2022 semester to shadow the current leader before they graduate,” Kaniaupio said. “They’re in training to see how running the program works and what their normal responsibilities are. They’ll be hired officially with compensation in the fall semester of next school year.”
Junior Rachel Warren, GOAL leader of Private and Charter School Tutoring, said a good GOAL leader is “organized and comfortable with communication.”
“I spend most of my hours emailing tutors, teachers, and administrators at the schools just organizing schedules,” she said. “You have to make sure emails don’t get lost in your inbox because if they do and a teacher or parent was requesting a tutor, that’s a student that now has a huge delay on getting a tutor.”
Warren said her work is made easier by her passion for her program.
“You will be motivated to recruit volunteers if you believe in your program and want it to thrive,” she said.
She recommended applicants show they care deeply about a particular program.
“The role of the program leader is very different from the role of a volunteer, so focus more on showing passion for your program, and having examples of your good organization and communication skills,” Warren said. “Make sure you are very familiar with the aim of the program, and also have ideas of how you might like to improve it.”
Beth Potwardowski, leader of the Community Health program, agreed with Warren that applicants should look into volunteer opportunities that “align with their passions.”
“I knew going into Hillsdale that I was interested in ending up in a healthcare-related career,” she said. “I was able to get involved early on with one of the partnership programs that Hillsdale has with the medical care facility.”
Potwardowski planned Community Health’s annual blood drive in partnership with the Red Cross from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Nov. 12 in the Searle Center. She said there will be two additional blood drives in the spring semester.
Kaniaupio said GOAL is introducing a new Volunteer Appreciation Mixer on Friday, Nov. 12 from 6 to 8 p.m in the Mauck Solarium to award consistent volunteers. She said the event will include music and mocktails.
“We want to help people interact with other people who are volunteering on campus, and give them space to get to know other people who are volunteering in their program,” she said.