Volunteers in the Forest Service
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
R ev iew D ra ft United States Department of Agriculture Volunteers in the Forest Service Forest Service: Technology & Development Program A Coordinator’s 6700–Safety and Health 2300–Recreation Desk Guide February 2009 0967–2814–MTDC OF TR NT AN E SP M O T R R T A A P T E I O D N U N I T A E C I D R S E TA M T E S O F A The History of This Desk Guide n 1990, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service’s Missoula Technology and Development Center (MTDC) produced the training video “Supervisor and the Work Crew” (Driessen 1990) for IIfirst-line supervisors of field crews. In 1995 and 1996, MTDC produced another training video “Making a Crew” (MTDC Staff 1995 and 1996). This video focused on the workers, not the supervisors. While interviewing Forest Service employees during the production of this program, the project leader noted that numerous changes had occurred in the Forest Service’s work culture. This insight led to the white paper, “A Changing Forest Service Work Culture: Training New Leaders” (MTDC Staff 1997). The white paper had two purposes: to present some of the changes taking place in the Forest Service’s work culture and to discuss some sociological reflections on the training of Forest Service crew leaders. The paper concluded by recommending that the training program for supervisors of field crews be updated. A project to update the supervisor training program began in January 2000. The project team found that traditional seasonal crews had become almost extinct in the Forest Service. In their place, new types of workgroups had emerged, including volunteers and hosted program participants. Along with these changes came a new set of safety and liability concerns. Some problems included constant training of volunteers, lack of direct supervision, lack of knowledge of Forest Service safety standards, and inappropriate work expectations. In December 2001, the team presented these finding to the Forest Service’s Washington Office of Safety and Occupational Health in the report “Problems Faced by Forest Service Coordinators of Volunteer and Hosted Program Workgroups” (Lamphier and Driessen 2001). The team recommended a guidebook and possibly a video be developed to help train Forest Service employees to coordinate and organize these new kinds of workers. The Washington Office of Safety and Occupational and Health decided to sponsor a new project on the safety of volunteers. The Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation also contributed to the sponsorship. The project was assigned to MTDC. This guidebook is the result of that project. The development work for this guidebook included interviews with 49 volunteer coordinators and volunteers and a review of existing volunteer reference material, guidebooks, and Forest Service regulations. On the Cover Young volunteers help pick up garbage from the A young volunteer helps out at Herp Survey Days for the Flathead Tallaseehatchee Creek watershed as part of the fisheries National Forest wildlife program. Courtesy of Steve Anderson, program for Clean-up Day. Courtesy of Art Henderson, Flathead National Forest Talladega National Forest A 7-year-old made a fold-out poster of dangerous spiders, snakes, and summer insects and collected some specimens last summer specifically for presenting with a wildlife biologist at preschools. A volunteer sorts litter. Courtesy of Elizabeth (Liza) Hernandez, Courtesy of Mary Lynn Mentz, wildlife biologist and volunteer’s Forest Service, International Institute of Tropical Forestry mother, Ouachita National Forest Monkey Creek F-Troop involved more than 90 people to replace Volunteers of the South Yuba River citizens league use the Monkey Creek Bridge with an 80-foot free-span bridge, the soy-based solvent to clean the spray paint graffiti at largest free-span bridge constructed by the volunteers of this Scotchman Creek, Tahoe National Forest. Courtesy of association. Courtesy of Linda Patton, Florida Trail Wendy Thompson, river monitoring program coordinator Association Oregon Trash Dogs. Courtesy of Ginger Hamilton, Forest The Sierra Club annually provides workers for 7 days to do Service, Northern Region trail repairs and enhancements. The Shasta Trinity unit of the Backcountry Horsemen of California provided all the logistical support for the Swift Creek, Trinity Alps project. Volunteers working on the Forks Mt. Area Trail System, one of the premier Courtesy of Larry Shuman, Shasta Trinity unit mountain bike trails in the Southeast. Courtesy of Elizabeth Meadows, Francis Marion and Sumter National Forests Volunteers in the Forest Service: A Coordinator’s Desk Guide Lisa Outka-Perkins Project Leader Bob Beckley Public Affairs Specialist USDA Forest Service Technology and Development Program Missoula, MT 2E22H52 Training Program for Hosted Programs February 2009 The Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), has developed this information for the guidance of its employees, its contractors, and its cooperating Federal and State agencies, and is not responsible for the interpretation or use of this information by anyone except its own employees. The use of trade, fi rm, or corporation names in this document is for the information and convenience of the reader, and does not constitute an endorsement by the Department of any product or service to the exclusion of others that may be suitable. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To fi le a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Offi ce of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. i Contents Acknowledgments ________________________________________________________________ viii Introduction _______________________________________________________________________1 The Beginning of the Forest Service ___________________________________________________3 I Volunteer Because… _______________________________________________________________4 Volunteers in the National Forests Program _____________________________________________5 Volunteers in the National Forests Act _____________________________________________________ 5 Civil Rights Responsibilities ______________________________________________________________5 USDA Nondiscrimination Statement _____________________________________________________________ 6 The Volunteers in the National Forests Program Directives ____________________________________ 6 It Takes Time and People ____________________________________________________________7 Investing in Your Program _______________________________________________________________ 7 The Importance of the Volunteer Coordinator _______________________________________________ 7 Getting Started ____________________________________________________________________9 Learning About Other Volunteer Programs _________________________________________________ 9 Liability Concerns ______________________________________________________________________ 9 Money ________________________________________________________________________________ 9 Partnerships__________________________________________________________________________ 10 What Can Volunteers Do? __________________________________________________________11 Can Volunteers Serve as Collection Offi cers? _______________________________________________ 11 Ideas for Volunteer Jobs and Projects _____________________________________________________ 11 Selecting Work and Projects for Volunteers ________________________________________________ 12 Who Do You Want To Volunteer? ____________________________________________________15 Recruiting Volunteers __________________________________________________________________ 15 Preparing an Advertisement for Volunteers ________________________________________________ 17 The Forest Service Volunteer Brochure ____________________________________________________ 17 Evaluating Volunteers ______________________________________________________________18 Who Is Eligible To Volunteer? ___________________________________________________________ 18 Federal Employees __________________________________________________________________________ 18 ii Contents Terminated Temporary Employees _____________________________________________________________ 18 Community Service Workers __________________________________________________________________ 19 Relatives of Employees ______________________________________________________________________ 19 International Visitors ________________________________________________________________________ 19 The Volunteer Application: Matching Volunteers to Work ________________________________22 The Interview ________________________________________________________________________ 22 Background Checks ___________________________________________________________________ 23 Volunteers