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  • Volunteer Centres in Canada – Get Your Volunteer Hours!

    Volunteer Centres in Canada – Get Your Volunteer Hours!

    As you know, all high school students need to have 40 hours of community service in order to graduate. Use this information to discover where your 40 hours can best be used.

    Volunteering and Community Hours

    What is a Volunteer Centre?

    Volunteer Centres are non-profit organizations or groups dedicated to fostering and developing volunteerism in the community as a whole. While other organizations contribute to sustaining our national heritage of volunteering through their programs and outreach, Volunteer Centres serve the broadest membership. Volunteer Centres reach across the non-profit and public sectors to include organizations working in human and social services, health care, education, the arts and recreation – regardless of their source of funding.

    What if my community does not have a Volunteer Centre?

    Volunteer Centres reflect the needs of the community they serve. Volunteer Centres exist primarily to foster and develop volunteerism in the community as a whole. They engage in four general kinds of services and activities:

    1. Promoting volunteerism and raising awareness of the power of service
    2. Building capacity for effective local volunteering through management consulting on volunteer programs and training of managers of volunteer resources
    3. Providing leadership and advocacy on issues relating to volunteerism and volunteer programs
    4. Connecting people with opportunities to serve through recruitment and referral of volunteers to community agencies

    Four Main Reasons to Volunteer

    1. Make a contribution to society.
    2. Share your skills.
    3. Support a cause.
    4. Do something meaningful with your friends and colleagues.

    One of these reasons probably makes sense for you. You may already be working as a volunteer or are thinking about what you might want to do next. Whatever your reason, there are many different opportunities out there – and organizations that need your help.

  • Volunteer Centres in Canada

    Volunteer Centres in Canada

    As you know, all high school students need to have 40 hours of community service in order to graduate. Use this information to discover where your 40 hours can best be used.

    Volunteering and Community Hours

    What is a Volunteer Centre?

    Volunteer Centres are non-profit organizations or groups dedicated to fostering and developing volunteerism in the community as a whole. While other organizations contribute to sustaining our national heritage of volunteering through their programs and outreach, Volunteer Centres serve the broadest membership. Volunteer Centres reach across the non-profit and public sectors to include organizations working in human and social services, health care, education, the arts and recreation – regardless of their source of funding.

    What if my community does not have a Volunteer Centre?

    Volunteer Centres reflect the needs of the community they serve. Volunteer Centres exist primarily to foster and develop volunteerism in the community as a whole. They engage in four general kinds of services and activities:

    1. Promoting volunteerism and raising awareness of the power of service
    2. Building capacity for effective local volunteering through management consulting on volunteer programs and training of managers of volunteer resources
    3. Providing leadership and advocacy on issues relating to volunteerism and volunteer programs
    4. Connecting people with opportunities to serve through recruitment and referral of volunteers to community agencies

    Four Main Reasons to Volunteer

    1. Make a contribution to society.
    2. Share your skills.
    3. Support a cause.
    4. Do something meaningful with your friends and colleagues.

    One of these reasons probably makes sense for you. You may already be working as a volunteer or are thinking about what you might want to do next. Whatever your reason, there are many different opportunities out there – and organizations that need your help.

  • Getting Your Volunteer Hours the Old-Fashioned Way

    Getting Your Volunteer Hours the Old-Fashioned Way

    In order to graduate high school, students must complete 40 hours of volunteer work. Rather than dragging it out over the course of an entire high school career, why not get them all done at once? And for that matter, even learn something while you are at it? If you’re interested thus far, you should look into volunteering with your local history museum.

    You will often find that any city’s museum would welcome student volunteers, especially those who have a vested interest in history or plans to continue historical studies into university.

    Maja Bannerman, Public Programmer for the Niagara Falls History Museum said that the museum accepts volunteers aged 10 to 80. Bannerman commented that their graveyard tour program in specific attracts many student volunteers, “a lot of the high school students are doing their hours and getting beyond what they need,” she added.

    The graveyard tour has students dress up in period clothing and imitate those buried in the Lundy’s Lane Battle of 1814 graveyard. These students put on three shows per night, every Friday and Saturday for the last three weeks in October. Beyond the official shows, there are numerous dress rehearsals and technical rehearsals throughout September in preparation for the show. Though it is a large time commitment, you could easily complete your volunteer hours by the end of October, and you’d have some great stories to tell from the experience.

    Though the Graveyard Tour is only one program at one museum, it is a fine example of an unconventional way to complete your volunteer hours quickly. Beyond getting your required volunteering done, there is enormous opportunity to learn something new about the place you live.

    However, your involvement does not have to stop there. By volunteering to the best of your abilities, you can show yourself to be a very useful asset to the museum. If you are particularly talented, it is possible to turn your volunteer position into a future job or career.

    “There have been students in the past who have attained paid positions here,” Bannerman said. Making such connections through volunteering can lead to a job, a career, or even just an excellent reference for your resume. It is very important to begin making connections like this while you are still in high school, as they will carry you through your college or university years and into the real world.

  • Volunteering with Work in Mind

    Volunteering with Work in Mind

    Volunteering thoughtfully is the way to break free from the “no work experience” trap. In high school, students do community service hours and they learn that volunteering is something we have to do selflessly to help contribute to the community we call home.

    While I think it is important to give back to your community, there are many ways to give back outside of the strict volunteer setting – some ways you don’t even intend as giving but your actions simply benefit others as a by-product (look up Adam Smith’s concept of “invisible hand” if this interests you). Formal volunteering, then, you should frame as an exchange. Your time and skills are valuable – try to match them to a job where you will be appreciated and where you can truly give a lot. In other words, chose a volunteering position that works with your schedule and lines up with your skills. Remember, it’s an exchange.

    When choosing a volunteer position, consider how you will grow, learn and gain experience in each position, not just how the company or organization will benefit. This is not selfish and it doesn’t contradict the meaning of volunteering. Think of the actions you want to take in your life and your career: most likely you want to do something that will benefit others and you. Anything else is not sustaining; you would burn out from a lack of fulfilment or a lack of caring for yourself. So, volunteering is giving back to your community and planet in a regenerative way for both you and the receiver.

    Here are some often overlooked ways that volunteering can benefit you: First, think about this position and its impact on potential job interviews. A surprising piece of information is that most job interviews now are example-based. In an interview, you can say that you are “reliable and punctual” but this will mean little to your interviewer until you pull out an example of your previous volunteer position in which you arrived at the fair-trade shop at 7am every Sunday morning to assist your supervisor in opening the shop.

    Next, get a letter of recommendation from your volunteering supervisor. One or two of these and all of a sudden you’re not the only one rooting for your great work habits and abilities in an interview. Letters of recommendation make an employer much more likely to believe all the positive things you say about yourself, because they have a second or third opinion. If you are volunteering for a set duration, ask for a letter near the end of the term. Give your supervisor at least a week’s notice before you need the letter, and she or he will likely be glad to write it for you. If you’ve already completed a volunteering term you can certainly still contact your supervisor now and ask for a letter of recommendation.

    Finally, don’t feel obliged to stay in one volunteer position if it isn’t working for you. The main asset of volunteering is that you get to explore many different career routes without the commitment and stress of a paid job. If your position isn’t giving you anything back – joy or experience or knowledge — give a fair week’s notice of your departure and leave politely, thanking them very much for the opportunity.

    Volunteering is practice for your career, so go out and get the best combination of helping others and benefiting you that is possible!

  • Stay Productive this Summer!

    Stay Productive this Summer!

    As soon as school is over, it’s very tempting to launch straight into “summer mode.” The school year is highly structured – you need to be in class at a certain time each day, which means you have to go to bed and get up at a certain time. When summer starts, that’s all out the window. Suddenly you have lots of free time and you’re going to want to use some of this time to recharge and relax. But taking a little bit of time each day (or even each week) can help to keep you in the habit of being productive and get you ahead not only in school but in life.

    Start Small
    As soon as summer vacation starts, set aside a little bit of time each day to do something productive. This can vary from person to person – it might involve going through your school notebooks and reviewing the ones you think will be useful in the next year, or it might mean spending some time learning Spanish online if that’s something you’ve always meant to do. Setting aside even 30 minutes each day will help you to establish some kind of routine. This will make it much easier to stay in the habit of getting work done.

    Stay Current
    Reading the newspaper, listening to the radio, reading blogs and staying up on current events is a great habit to get into. Knowing what’s going on in the world from a young age will serve you very well by the time you’re finished high school. If your family subscribes to a newspaper, that’s a great way to start. Otherwise, the library carries more newspapers than you could hope to read, and every major newspaper has an online publication and even a Twitter feed.

    Work or Volunteer
    This is especially useful if you think you’ve chosen your future career. For example, if you know that you’d like to go into medicine, you might want to look for volunteer opportunities at local hospitals or clinics. If you want to work in architecture, you could look for a job handling reception for an architectural office. The Ontario government also has a great resource for students looking for job, co-op, or internship opportunities: http://www.gojobs.gov.on.ca/JumpStart.asp

    Here’s wishing you a happy and productive summer 2013!

  • Volunteer Centres in Canada

    Volunteer Centres in Canada

    As you know, all high school students need to have 40 hours of community service in order to graduate. Use this information to discover where your 40 hours can best be used.

    Volunteering and Community Hours

    What is a Volunteer Centre?

    Volunteer Centres are non-profit organizations or groups dedicated to fostering and developing volunteerism in the community as a whole. While other organizations contribute to sustaining our national heritage of volunteering through their programs and outreach, Volunteer Centres serve the broadest membership. Volunteer Centres reach across the non-profit and public sectors to include organizations working in human and social services, health care, education, the arts and recreation – regardless of their source of funding.

    What if my community does not have a Volunteer Centre?

    Volunteer Centres reflect the needs of the community they serve. Volunteer Centres exist primarily to foster and develop volunteerism in the community as a whole. They engage in four general kinds of services and activities:

    1. Promoting volunteerism and raising awareness of the power of service
    2. Building capacity for effective local volunteering through management consulting on volunteer programs and training of managers of volunteer resources
    3. Providing leadership and advocacy on issues relating to volunteerism and volunteer programs
    4. Connecting people with opportunities to serve through recruitment and referral of volunteers to community agencies

    Four Main Reasons to Volunteer

    1. Make a contribution to society.
    2. Share your skills.
    3. Support a cause.
    4. Do something meaningful with your friends and colleagues.

    One of these reasons probably makes sense for you. You may already be working as a volunteer or are thinking about what you might want to do next. Whatever your reason, there are many different opportunities out there – and organizations that need your help.

  • Rotary Clubs Sponsor Exchange Students

    Rotary Clubs Sponsor Exchange Students

    Very few clubs can claim to span the entire planet Earth, with members from Iceland to Antarctica. Few non-governmental organizations can hold a seat in the United Nations, too. So which club does? Which club is commonly recognized as having the impact and value of an entire nation while spanning nearly all?

    Rotary International (RI) is the world’s first service club organization, with more than 1.2 million members in 33,000 clubs worldwide. Rotary members are “volunteers and humanitarians who work locally, regionally, and internationally to combat hunger, improve health and sanitation, provide education and job training, and promote peace,” according to RI President John Kenny. Some of their main focuses include eradicating the Polio virus, promoting literacy, and engaging youth through exchange programs and educational opportunities. Sounds awesome! Want to join?

    As students, we’re actually too young to be Rotarians. However, for us, Rotary offers something even better.

    RI funds Rotaract clubs. Rotaract has the same values and goals as Rotary but is meant for students and young professionals between the ages of 18 and 30. It also partners with Interact clubs, Rotary for high school students, and RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Award) programs. Rotaract, Interact and RYLA are all fantastic ways to get involved in your community and your world. If you haven’t looked into these clubs yet, now is the time.

    Until this year, RI had four official avenues of service: club, vocational, community, and international. This year, for the first time in a century, Rotary announced a fifth avenue of service: “New Generations”. Rotarians are sponsoring youth on more frequent, new exchange trips, and focusing their community efforts toward our futures and well-being. They’re all about us now, so let’s take full advantage and give back as much as we can.

    Last summer, Rotary hosted their 101st Annual International Convention Meeting in Montreal, Quebec, and I am one of over 20,000 members who attended. They had meetings, workshops, guest speakers, social events, and special performances for all the Rotarians and Rotaractors. We were given speeches on global awareness by Queen Noor of Jordan, current Nobel Peace Prize nominee Greg Mortenson, country music star Dolly Parton, and more. We were also part of a mass volunteer effort that cleaned up some of Montreal’s most beautiful agricultural areas and donated both time and pocket-change to support many charitable initiatives.

    The convention provided great opportunities both professionally and personally. Professionally, Rotary is a great way to build networks of contacts and build leadership skills that can help you reach your school and work-related goals. On a personal level, you can enjoy friendships with hundreds of people from around the world.

    Kelly Mills, a neuroscience major from Alberta’s Lethbridge University, said that Rotary was a great way to bring people together. “It’s a connection,” she explained, “you can go up to anyone and everyone. Just smile and you’re friends.”

    If you want to get involved by finding a Rotaract or Interact club in your community, visit Rotaract.

    Contact your local Rotary club if you are interested in starting your own, and helping your city or high school add to the worldwide service network that is Rotary International.

  • The Gap Year: What to Do with Your Free Time

    The Gap Year: What to Do with Your Free Time

    Taking a year off from school before university or college might be one of the best decisions you’ll ever make. It could be a year filled with self-discovery and joy. All you have to do is seize the day — or “carpe diem” as they say in Latin. The following are a few ideas to help you make the most of your gap year.

    Learn a Hobby
    It’s never too late to learn a new skill, such as learning how to play the piano, mastering a new language, or trying out photography. Well, now’s the time to do it! During your gap year, when you have a break from school, you’ll probably have a lot more time on your hands — and you might not know what to do with it. As you try a new hobby and add more variety into your life, you might find a life-long passion that will bring you joy for years to come.

    Furthermore, we all need balance in our lives: a balance between work and leisure. During your final year of high school, you were probably busy studying, working, and preparing for university or college. Now it’s time to strike a balance and have more fun.

    Volunteer
    You may be only one person, and a young person at that, but you can make a positive difference in your community (as cliché as it sounds). There are so many not-for-profit organizations that would be happy to have your help. For example, if you love animals you could volunteer at a local animal shelter walking dogs. Although you won’t get paid, you will benefit great deal from the experience – helping others could give your life a deeper sense of meaning and fulfillment.

    If you’re thinking about pursuing a career, such as journalism, but you’re not sure if it’s the right career choice for you, try volunteering at your local newspaper. This will help you get your “feet wet” and decide if it’s your dream occupation, and you’ll receive further clarification about which university or college program you should apply for.

    Be an Intern
    Besides volunteering, taking an internship during your gap year is a great way to try out an occupation that you’re interested in. It’s also a fantastic way to experience the professional world, where you’ll learn all about office culture, proper etiquette, how to dress, etc. The experience could really help you mature into the professional young man or woman you’d like to be.

    Additionally, taking on an internship will help you network and gain professional contacts. If you’re lucky, someone will decide to take you under their wing and mentor you. Then you’ll have the perfect role model to follow — someone who could help lead you to your dream career.

    Spend Time with Your Family
    Enjoying your family’s company might not be on the top of your priority list. Yet, a few years from now when you’re off at university or college and living on your own, you might reminisce about the past and wish you had spent more quality time with your loved ones. So, savour and appreciate your family — go on short trips, play board games, watch movies together, etc. You’ll be glad you did!

  • The Benefits of Volunteering in High School

    The Benefits of Volunteering in High School

    High school students, it’s time to get motivated! Volunteering while still in high school provides you with the framework for your future career path, as well as instills in you the importance of giving back to others. It may seem difficult to fit in volunteer hours with such a busy schedule of classes, studying and extracurricular activities, but with a little planning you can achieve your volunteer goals. Many not-for-profit organizations only require a few hours a week of your time. For example, the Ottawa Humane Society has a dog walking program that requires a commitment of 2 hours per week. If you love dogs, that is a very easy commitment to make! Even though you may not be reimbursed financially for your time, volunteering is something that can be put on your resume that will help impress future employers and university admissions officials alike. Below, a list of just some of the benefits that volunteerism can provide you:

    Impress Admissions Officials
    You’ve got the great GPA and amazing standardized test scores. But what makes you stand out from students with similar grades? The answer is what you do in your spare time. Volunteer hours and part-time jobs listed on your application will really make you shine. Volunteerism is a great way to show admissions officials that you not only care about the community, but are able to manage your time well enough to balance a volunteer job with your other commitments. By all means, don’t spend every spare minute working on your volunteer hours – you need to balance volunteerism with your personal life, too. But a sustained commitment to one particular cause over a year or two shows that you are willing to stick to something that you care about. This will be very impressive to admissions officials and work in your favour.

    Get Involved Outside of School
    Volunteering allows you to meet people you may not have had the opportunity to meet otherwise, especially if you are volunteering outside of school. If you have heard the term “networking”, that is essentially what you will be doing! You are forming a network of contacts that can help you get to where you want to be. If you already have a good idea of what you want to study in college or university, you can volunteer your time in that field. For example, if you want to study psychology, why not volunteer your time with the Canadian Mental Health Association? You can find volunteer opportunities for almost anything that interests you, so spread your wings outside of your school and gain immeasurable benefits!

    Earn Academic Credit and Scholarships
    Some high schools require you to put in volunteer hours in order to graduate. Others offer extra credits or scholarship opportunities if you do volunteer your time. Check with your high school’s administration office to see if any of these opportunities are available to you. If they are, take advantage of them! A scholarship will help you to cut down on your student loans when you reach university, and extra credits will look great on your transcript to help you land the university placement of your dreams. Check out studentawards.ca to find all of the different community service scholarships that are available – your volunteerism won’t only impress your university of choice, but also the officials who will be deciding whether or not you obtain your scholarship!

    Above are the curricular advantages to volunteerism. But let’s not forget the personal advantages that come from it, too. Giving back to your community and contributing positive energy to the world will do wonders for your self-esteem and self-worth. Volunteering is the way to go!

  • Child Labour: Working For A Living

    Child Labour: Working For A Living

    Do you usually have a lot of chores to do at home when you return from school? Do you have to help cook supper, walk the dog, mow the lawn, or shovel the driveway? If you’re like most Canadians, you probably have to do at least some of that kind of work. You might even have a paid job like delivering flyers or babysitting after school. Does it ever feel that you have to work too much? Many children around the world have to do much more. That’s why people in many countries have been working to end child labour by the year 2016.

    When people talk about child labour, they don’t mean the times when parents tell their children to set the table for supper or to help wash the dishes. They mean work that prevents children from receiving an education or that damages their growth in any way. Sometimes the work even kills them. Young children sometimes work all day in factories or other unhealthy or dangerous places instead of going to school and getting an education.

    Canada has laws that require parents to send their children to school, and most people follow the rules. From the age of twelve, children are allowed to have jobs that don’t interfere with their education or harm them in other ways. In countries like Canada and the United States, rules about child labour usually work fairly well, although there are still many cases of children working long hours in dangerous conditions. Sometimes, the children even die on the job. The official estimate of child labour in wealthy countries is about one percent.

    In poorer countries, however, the situation is worse. Parents have many children to feed and often also have to support their own parents or other relatives. Even with long hours of work, parents might still not make enough money to survive. In some cases, they might not be able to find any work at all. They might need the income their children bring into the family. Also, sending children to school can often be too expensive for them to afford. The highest level of child labour is in Asia, where about sixty percent of children work.

    According to the International Labour Organization, in 2008 about 215 million children around the world had jobs which kept them from going to school or playing. That number was down slightly from 2004, but it actually increased among some groups of children. The problem will continue until people do something about the causes.

    How can you help solve the problem of child labour? You can encourage people in government to make better laws, but a more effective way to end the worst kinds of child labour is to get involved personally in helping the families. Even if the child labourers live in another country, you can donate money to help raise the family income or you can tell your friends and family about the issue. Every bit of help can make a difference!