Selected Excerpts from Articles and Additional Sources on Volunteerism
GCC English 101 Common Final Assignment for Spring 2007
														
“Volunteer work offers an opportunity for individuals and communities to engage in activities that affect the common good of society. For young people, volunteer work provides a way to gain a variety of useful skills, to understand the community in which they live, and to enhance community life. The community, in turn, fosters the development of a citizenry that is involved in creating a better democracy.
“Elementary and secondary schools have devised a variety of ways to integrate volunteerism into their schools and community. In some cases, students are left to their own motivations to engage in service to the community through acts of volunteerism. These volunteer experiences can take the form of a onetime involvement in a community agency or event, or can result in a sustained relationship over a period of time with a particular service organization in the community.
“Some schools have made service a requirement for graduation, though there is debate regarding the merits of requiring service of all students. Some believe that schools should encourage service, but not make it a requirement and that required service is a contradiction in terms. Others argue that service is a responsibility, a debt due to society, and that it is every citizen's civic duty to contribute to the community. Volunteer service requirements vary from having students enroll in a service class in addition to spending a certain amount of hours in a service activity, while other schools require only the service commitment” (Shields and Gray).
Source Citation:  Shields, Sharon, and Brad Gray. "Volunteer Work." Encyclopedia of Education. Ed. James W. Guthrie. Vol. 7. 2nd ed. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2002. 2656-2658. 8 vols. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Thomson Gale. Glendale Community College Library Media Center, Glendale AZ. 9 Apr. 2007   [This electronic resource is available through GCC’s library catalog. Use the Books & Media link.]
														
”Teens who volunteer increase their knowledge of the world and the problems that face it. Volunteering affords teens both an opportunity to shape their communities and to receive lifelong personal benefits. Furthermore, formal and informal volunteer experiences during teen years increase the possibility of continued volunteering in adulthood. Teen volunteering provides positive experiences for youth, benefits society, and establishes a foundation for lifelong civic duty. 
“Several factors appear to encourage volunteering as a habit: the age when young people start to volunteer; the exposure to volunteering opportunities through religious, educational, or other institutions; and the role of positive self-images and role models. 
“Volunteering is an opportunity for teens to both give and receive. Teenagers reported both societal and personal benefits from their volunteering. Teens also identified volunteering as an opportunity to fulfill their own need to give. 
“Teen volunteering impacts the young person and society. Volunteering promotes helping others, affords opportunities to achieve success as a member of a group that serves the community, broadens one's experience, and increases a teen's understanding of self and society”  (“Youths Should Be Encouraged to Volunteer”).
Source Citation:  Excerpted from "Youths Should Be Encouraged to Volunteer." America's Youth. Ed. Roman Espejo. Opposing Viewpoints®. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2003. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Thomson Gale. Glendale Community College Library Media Center, Glendale AZ. 9 Apr. 2007 	

“While the origins of the service-learning movement can be found in volunteerism, community service, citizenship training, character education, youth service, and experiential learning, it is safe to say that the words service learning have come into common usage only since the 1980s in the United States, and even later internationally. The Commission on National and Community Service (1993) provides perhaps the most widely accepted definition, and includes the following components.
•	the need for active participation 
•	thoughtful organization 
•	the meeting of actual community needs 
•	collaboration between school and community 
•	integration with the students' academic curriculum 
•	structured time for reflection 
•	opportunities to use newly acquired skills in real-life situations 
•	extension of learning beyond the classroom 
•	the fostering a sense of caring for others
Involvement of Students
“The most comprehensive attempt at discovering the extent of community service and service-learning programs in the schools was conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) of the U.S. Department of Education (1999). According to that survey, more than 64 percent of all public schools and 83 percent of all public high schools organized some form of community service for their students. The percentage of high schools involved in some form of community service rose from 27 percent in 1984 to 83 percent in 1999. Nearly a third of the schools and half of the public high schools provide service-learning programs in which service is linked to the curriculum. This translates into 14,063,000 students involved in community service with 57 percent of those students involved in some form of service learning. Due in large part to the influence of the national Campus Compact, an association of college presidents, and the student led Campus Outreach Opportunity League (COOL), community service and service learning can now be found on a large majority of college campuses throughout the United States, involving thousands of classes in all disciplines, and hundreds of thousands of postsecondary students.
As a Requirement for Graduation
“The issue of requiring community service for graduation or service learning as a course requirement is a contentious one that has led to more than one lawsuit in the United States. Proponents claim that service learning is a pedagogical tool to enhance student learning, while opponents claim it is a form of "mandatory volunteerism." Given the separation of the schools from their communities and the traditional academic nature of most schooling, it is likely that this will continue to be an issue in the future. There appears, however, to be strong community support for service learning. A Roper Starch survey (2000) found that while 61 percent of Americans were unfamiliar with the term service learning, over 90 percent endorse the concept when it is explained to them. Americans see it is a teaching strategy that will help students transform their academic learning into success after graduation.
Effect on Student Participants
“ . . . the effects of service learning on students can be divided into personal, social, learning outcomes, and career development. On a personal level it appears to have a positive effect on students' personal efficacy, personal identity, spiritual growth, moral development, interpersonal development, the ability to work well with others, leadership, and communication skills . . . found that students involved in service-learning programs appear to have reduced levels of alienation and behavioral problems . . . found them less likely to engage in behaviors that lead to pregnancy or arrest . . .  researchers have also found a greater acceptance of cultural diversity by service-learning students.
“Learning outcomes research indicates that service-learning has a positive impact on students' academic learning, improves their ability to apply what they have learned in the "real world," may positively affect academic learning as measured by grades or GPA, and impacts such academic outcomes as demonstrated complexity of understanding, problem analysis, critical thinking, and cognitive development” (Kraft and Eyler).
Source Citation: Kraft, Richard J., and Janet Eyler. "Service Learning." Encyclopedia of Education. Ed. James W. Guthrie. Vol. 6. 2nd ed. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2002. 2202-2210. 8 vols. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Thomson Gale. Glendale Community College Library Media Center, Glendale AZ. 9 Apr. 2007   [This electronic resource is available through GCC’s library catalog.  Use the Books & Media link] 
														
 “About 59 million people, or 27.6 percent of the civilian noninstitutional population, volunteered through or for an organization at some point from September 2001 to September 2002. Volunteers are a major source of labor in the
United States, performing a variety of important tasks and contributing considerable time and effort
to meeting the needs of their communities. The data in this article come from a special supplement to the
September 2002 Current Population Survey (CPS).1 The supplement collected information on the
incidence of volunteering, the number and type of organizations through or for which persons volunteered,
total hours spent volunteering, how people became involved in volunteering, and the kinds of work they performed as volunteers.

“Some population groups are more likely than others to volunteer. Parents, for example, are likely to be involved with school or youth-related groups. Older people, many of whom are in the early years of retirement, are more likely to volunteer than young adults. High school students are increasingly participating in volunteer activities in order to fulfill community service requirements. College students receive information on volunteer opportunities from service groups on campus and from community groups that target the campus as a source of volunteers. In addition, many universities actively promote volunteering among students.  During the September 2001–September 2002 reference period, women volunteered at a higher rate (31.1 percent) than did men (23.8 percent), a relationship that held across age groups, education levels, and other major demographic characteristics.
The gap between the volunteer rates of men and women tended to be greater among groups with relatively high rates, such as whites and the more highly educated. 

Boraas, Stephanie. “Volunteerism in the United States.”  Monthly Labor Review . Aug. 2003. 9 Apr. 2007       <http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2003/08/art1full.pdf
Volunteers by Selected Characteristics, 2005
Age, sex, 
race, and 
Hispanic origin	Percent of 
population 
volunteering	Median
annual 
hours	
Total, 16 years and over	28.8%	50	
16–24 years	24.4	36	
25–34 years	25.3	36	
35–44 years	34.5	48	
45–54 years	32.7	50	
55–64 years	30.2	56	
65 years and over	24.8	96	
Male	25.0	52	
Female	32.4	50	
White	30.4	50	
Black	22.1	52	
Asian	20.7	40	
Hispanic1	15.4	40	

Educational 
attainment and 
employment status	Percent of 
population 
volunteering	Median
annual 
hours	
Educational attainment2	
Less than high school graduate	10.0%	48	
High school graduate	21.2	48	
Some college	33.7	50	
4-year college degree	45.8	55	
 	 	 	
Employment status	
Civilian labor force	31.1	48	
 Employed	31.3	48	
 Full time	29.8	45	
 Part time	38.2	51	
 Unemployed	26.4	42	
Not in labor force	24.4	62	

Type of activity	Percent distribution
of volunteers3	
Civic, political, professional, or international	6.4%	
Educational or youth service	26.2	
Environmental or animal care	1.8	
Hospital or other health	7.7	
Public safety	1.3%	
Religious	34.8	
Social or community service	13.4	
Sport, hobby, cultural, or arts	3.3	
Other/Not determined	5.2	

1. Hispanic persons may be of any race.
2. Data refer to persons 25 years and over.
3. Distributed by the organization for which each volunteer worked the most hours during the year.
NOTE: Volunteers are persons who worked in some way to help others for no monetary pay during the previous year. Based on a sample survey covering September 2004 through September 2005, and subject to sampling variability. 
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.
"Volunteers by Selected Characteristics, 2005." Infoplease. © 2000–2007 Pearson Education, publishing as Infoplease. 09 Apr. 2007 <http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0764352.html>.

“Are you looking to start a career or to change jobs? Volunteering is a marvelous way to explore possible career options. It is relatively risk-free in that you can sample a work field or setting without making a long-term commitment to it. This allows you to discover whether or not you like the work or are good at it -- and if you discover it's not for you, you can move on without disrupting your resume or your cash flow. 
On the other hand, if you find the work exciting, you can increase your volunteer commitment so that you learn even more about this new job field and your talent for it. Eventually, volunteering can lead you to a paying job--by providing contacts, references, and something tangible to show on your resume. 
“For new graduates, volunteering can place you a notch above your fellow students who may only be able to show prospective employers that they studied in the classroom and held minimum-wage summer jobs. Your volunteer work will demonstrate that you have practical skills, can function in a work environment, and care about your community. 
“For those who are tired of their present job, volunteering is a welcome change of pace. It allows you to test yourself in new situations and to see what truly interests you. It gives you the luxury to fail -- the chance to risk doing something you've never done before and to learn from it even if it doesn't work out. Community service shows prospective employers that you not only want to make a change in your job, but that you have already made a change and now want to expand your "extracurricular" activities into a full-time career. 
“If you have been out of the work force while raising a family, or took a leave due to illness or bereavement, volunteering is a way back into the work place. It gives you the opportunity to develop self-confidence and prove that your skills are still alive (or lets you get back up to speed on new-fangled developments such as computers and faxes). 
“For the active retiree, volunteering is a second (or third or fourth) career -- the chance finally to do what you thought was closed off to you because of job choices you made long ago. Experiment with volunteering and keep your talents youthful” (Ellis). 
Ellis, Susan B. “ Volunteering to Explore Career Possibilities.” Energize, Inc. 9 Feb. 2004. 9 April 2007 <http://www.serviceleader.org/new/volunteers/articles/2003/04/000061print.php>.
														
 “The Ayn Rand Institute, predictably, is quick to denounce the community service craze as creeping state-enforced servitude. Lately, disagreements have heated up between conservatives and liberals about whether school-sponsored programs should, or shouldn't, promote political advocacy. (A recent study from the Carnegie Corporation and the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement notes with concern that even as youthful volunteerism rises, voting rates and citizen activism continue to drop; could it be that selfless gratification siphons off energy for public mobilization?)

“But the even trickier issue highlighted by servi-tourism is moral hypocrisy: Is there something wrong with the doing-well-by-doing-good attitude? Let's face it: If community service hadn't become a valued credential in the higher-ed hustle, there would surely be less of it happening. What would be truly phony would be to pretend that youthful community service is all about altruistic, spontaneous betterment of others when in fact individual growth has always been a central goal of its proponents. As service advocates from John Dewey on up emphasize, the "reflective" component of such activities is crucial” Hulbert).

Hulbert, Ann. “Servi-Tourism.” Washingtonpost. Newsweek Interactive Co. 25 May 2004. 9 April 2007 <http://www.slate.com/id/2101215/>.

Types of Volunteers – It About More Than Traditional Volunteering 
What Are People Doing Now?
A man in Arizona decides the Border Patrol needs help with preventing people from sneaking into the US. In one month he forms an organization called the Minutemen and is joined by almost 1000 volunteers. His concept spreads and is replicated in Washington State, along its northern land border and water border in the Straits of Juan de Fuca. Hundreds of volunteers sign on within a month. In Japan over 500,000 citizens volunteer to patrol the streets in cars with blue lights in order to control crime.	
A nurse in New York cannot get the Red Cross or other aid agencies to send her as a volunteer to Sri Lanka after the 2004 tsunami. She knows medical personnel are needed and eventually hooks up with others who want to go and cannot find a sponsor. She spends her vacation in a tent treating the sick. Now she is thinking of starting her own aid organization. 	
A young man in Ohio realizes that poor people can sure use computers, but can rarely afford them, and no organization is out there giving away computers to individuals. He gathers a group of "techie" friends and starts finding cast off computers, repairing them, and giving them to the impoverished.	
More volunteers are asking for assignments of their own design or that are short lived. Individuals willing to make long-term commitments are harder to find than hen's teeth. And the corps of traditional volunteers is aging in place.	
“A review of news stories, Internet resources, and the reports of managers of volunteer programs seems to suggest that there are three forms of volunteering that have emerged in greater numbers over the last several years: vigilante, serendipitous, and entrepreneurial. Their existence creates challenges for nonprofit organizations and volunteer programs. In many case activities are done outside the framework of existing nonprofit and voluntary organizations. And those who try to design their own volunteer positions within organizations can be discouraged or thwarted, depending on the organization's "risk tolerance."
“. . . But the emphasis in nonprofit organizations and volunteer programs has been on the traditional volunteers, so the vast majority of people who volunteered in formal ways did it in traditional modes. Today, volunteers are not content with only being allowed to volunteer in one way, so they are inventing new ways to behave altruistically. 
“Managers of volunteers need to recognize these new modes of giving, determine how best to include people with motivations and needs different from the traditional volunteer, and once the person begins to develop practical strategies to maintain oversight while the volunteer works . . . 
Definitions:
•	Vigilante Volunteers 
o	These volunteers take things into their own hands. They are change and action oriented. Conflict is not a problem for them, and can sometimes be a motivator. (Example, Minutemen project in Arizona and Washington State.) 
•	Serendipity or Occasional Volunteers 
o	Serendipity is associated with a spontaneous, impulsive action that often leads to an unexpected benefit. The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines serendipity as the phenomena of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for. These volunteers want to create, change, and/or interpret the world, with an emphasis on the qualitative ways in which the work is done. (Example, some home churching volunteers might fall in this category.) 
•	Entrepreneurial Volunteers 
o	Entrepreneurs organize, manage and assume the risks of a voluntary undertaking. They invent new programs or services. Their interest is in radical change from current practice. Quality of the change and its affect are crucial. (Example, the man rebuilding computers for the poor.) “
“Types of Volunteers – It [Is] About More Than Traditional Volunteering.”  VolunteerToday.com. April 2006. 9 April 2007 < http://www.volunteertoday.com/ARCHIVES2006/April06recruit.html>.

What Is Voluntourism?
“As the word implies, voluntourism combines vacation travel with volunteering at the destination visited.  Search the Web and you’ll find dozens of organizations – both nonprofits and travel businesses – deeply involved in organizing volunteering vacations.  It’s also spawned a new vocabulary: voluntourist, ethical holidays, travel philanthropy, and more.   Voluntourism is aligned with the more established concept of “sustainable tourism,” defined by Sustainable Travel International as “lessening the toll that travel and tourism takes on the environment and local cultures.”  Their motto is: Leave the world a better place™.  (www.sustainabletravelinternational.org/
documents/op_tp_voluntourism.html), 
“In general, the biggest gripe about volunteer vacations is that they simply expand the trend of episodic volunteering, in which feel-good bursts of service give the volunteer pleasure but do not result in much useful help for the recipients or the complex cause.  It is also often noted that problems away from home can be more appealing to support than those close to home” (Ellis, “Voluntourism—Pros, Cons, and Possibilities”) .  
Ellis, Susan B. “Voluntourism – Pros, Cons, and Possibilities.” Energize, Inc. Feb. 2007. 9 April 2007 < http://www.energizeinc.com/hot/2007/07feb.html>.
														
 “Those that oppose the use of volunteers in for-profit settings take the position that volunteers should only be asked to donate their time to organizations benefiting the public good, not to add to the profit of stockholders. They believe involving volunteers in a business is a form of exploitation. 

“There is quite a bit of precedent for volunteer involvement in businesses that have a purely commercial purpose. For example, companies of all types routinely provide placements for student interns. The "exchange" of experience for the student's work is considered legitimate (but non-cash) compensation. And let’s not forget volunteer programs designed expressly to recruit volunteers to help businesses succeed, such as the Small Business Administration's SCORE (Senior Corps of Retired Executives), which provides volunteers with business expertise to work with new and minority business owners. If volunteers can be asked to increase the profit-making potential of manufacturing, sales, and service companies, why is it far-fetched to recruit volunteers to participate in businesses providing human services?

"Exploitation" is in the eye of the beholder. Is it evil to knowingly and willingly barter time and effort in exchange for learning and the sense of contribution? Is it wrong to place a higher value on the needs of the recipient of service than on who owns the setting? Who is to judge? 
The key to avoiding the ethical pitfalls of misusing donated time is to be thoughtful about why, when and how volunteers are recruited to help an organization. It is not necessarily wrong to ask someone to support a for-profit setting and it is not invariably right to ask someone to do anything at all for a nonprofit setting. It is important that any recruits be informed about the type of organization inviting their help. But, in the last analysis, the choice should always belong to the volunteer” (Ellis, “Volunteering in For-Profit Settings”).

Ellis, Susan B. “Volunteering in For-Profit Settings: Exploitation or Value Added?” Energize, Inc. Feb. 2000. 9 April 2007 <http://www.energizeinc.com/hot/feb00.html>.

Additional resources:

“What Can Volunteering Do for You?” TimeBank. 9 April 2007 <http://www.timebank.org.uk/cgi-bin/parser.pl/www.timebank.org.uk/aboutgiving/benefits_vol.htm>.