Building Work Skills through Volunteering. Ideas for Action in Education and Work [microform] / Marilyn Clark

A progress report on "Building Work Skills through Volunteering," a demonstration project designed to use the volunteer experience to develop and practice work skills, is presented. The initial section describes the participants, methods, and materials at each of four sites: a private corporation, a suburban school district, a voluntary youth-serving agency, and a community corrections department. Six characteristics of adult learners and models of adult career development, decision making/problem solving, and career change stages which were considered in the development of the program framework are discussed. A description of program elements and processes is presented including: (1) volunteer recruitment and publicity; (2) applications, screening, and selection; (3) a seven-unit career planning workshop; (4) agency recruitment and referral; (5) agency job description development; (6) progress monitoring; (7) skill-building placements for volunteers; and (8) achievement awards and letters. A discussion of key concerns which have emerged includes: release time, workshop scheduling, costs for workshop materials, costs for skill-building placement activities, project staffing, participant selection, and benefits for employers. (DC)