Incoming Interns Attend a Volunteer Training at Perspectives Inc

Each year in August, Perspectives Inc brings on six new practicum students in our mental health program.  They are students working on their masters degree hoping to get some real therapeautic experience at our agency. They work in our Parenting time program and our Supportive housing program. 

This last Saturday, July 24th, 2010 Perspectives held a volunteer training.  Our new St. Mary's  & St. Cloud students are quite eager to learn about our families and the challenging work ahead of them.  Some of the topics that we discuss in the training are as follows: 

Blood Bourne Pathogens
Safety
Expectations of Interns/Volunteers
Communication
Conflict Management
Poverty
Homelessness
Mulitculural Issues
Chemical Health
Mandated Reporting
Values
Behavior Management

Perspectives Inc has a volunteer management team that makes this training happen twice a year.  We could not do it without them.  The members of the volunteer committe are:

Dan Tobias-Kotyk- Chef for our Kids Connection/Summer Explorers program
Georgia Rowland- Senior director of Internal Operations
Jazi Foreman- Director of Supportive Housing
Laura Arne- Director of Volunteers
Linda Domholt- Vice President of Marketing & Development

The experience and skill these volunteer management members have, is truly a gift to Perspectives Inc. 

Comments from our staff on the training and what it does to provide skilled volunteers:

Jazi Foreman- (Director of Supportive Housing)-" It gives the new incoming students our vision and the passion we have around serving our clients.  Their role helps us manifest the vision."

Dan Tobias-Kotyk- ( Full Time Chef for Children's Program)- "I have had many great volunteers throughout the years, many without the amount of training we offer now. The difference between great volunteers from then and now, is that now they get it. They get it kind of like the way we get it. I guess it completes them as volunteers."

Georgia Rowland- (Senior Director of Internal Operations)-" The enthusiasm for the work and the investment in the agency’s mission is evident in the volunteers after they complete training.
The training sets the stage for the type of work that we do and why we do it, and the powerful impact volunteers can have in their community."

Laura Rogers Arne- (Director of Volunteers)- " I see our new incoming volunteers leave our training with confidence.  I remember how nervous I was when I attended the training at perspectives in the early 90's . I was involved in working one on one with our clients in person and on the phone as a crisis counselor.   I also remember feeling the confidence that Perspectives Inc gave me in how to handle the challenging but very impactful work we would be providing. The supervison was top notch and that is what we provide to this day.  Quality volunteer training, quality service, quality culture.  Our families are in very good hands. "