NCJ Number
162039
Date Published
1994
Length
57 pages
Annotation
This study considers volunteer recruitment and screening practices at Big Brothers/Big Sisters (BB/BS) sites, and offers suggestions to assist mentoring programs as they consider which procedures to implement for screening mentors.
Abstract
The Volunteer Intake Process requires prospective volunteers to complete an application, attend an orientation, pass a criminal records check, submit names and addresses of several references, participate in a one- to two-hour personal interview, undergo a home assessment, and attend a training session. The primary goal of the personal interview is to determine whether applicants might pose a safety risk to the child or be unlikely to honor their commitment. Volunteers who fail to meet any of the BB/BS criteria are immediately rejected. The authors recommend that mentoring programs consider the following: (1) continue efforts to develop targeted recruitment strategies; (2) carefully monitor all interactions between staff and volunteers during the screening process; (3) the differential in the likelihood that college-educated and noncollege-educated persons will reach the interview stage merits further study; and (4) monitor the time it takes to resolve volunteer applications. Footnotes, tables, figures, references, appendix