Volunteer Spotlight: Tara Hunsberger, President, River Valley Educational Foundation, Lakeside, CA
River Valley Educational Foundation (RVEF) supports River Valley Charter School (RVCS) through fundraising, grant writing, and annual campaign funding.
The mission of River Valley Educational Foundation is to support student achievement by fostering a well-rounded educational experience emphasizing academics, the arts, and physical activity.
Today, our Volunteer Spotlight shines on Tara Hunsberger, who uses VolunteerSpot's online sign up sheets to organize parent volunteers throughout the school year.
---
Tell us about your role as a parent volunteer leader.
River Valley Charter School is a very family-focused school. The school operates as a hybrid home school model where students attend school twice a week and work at home on the other three days. Most of our students have one parent who stays at home. Volunteerism at RV has waxed and waned over the years, and we're currently in a period of regeneration. Parents are asked to donate 10 hours of their time per year. Some donate money instead. I began helping with volunteer leadership about two years ago when I founded the River Valley Educational Foundation. I had been working at the school for 4 years and one day during a strategic planning session, the Principal said, "we need a foundation!" Shortly after, RVEF was born.
All Foundation board members are volunteers, and we ask parents and students to volunteer at various fundraising events. There are other groups on campus that hold fundraisers and events, such as the Family Association (it's like a PTA) and the Athletics Department. Recently we have been cooperating to create a fundraising calendar so we're not stepping on each other's toes. Running the Foundation has been a steep learning curve where I had to learn everything from doing taxes to the Brown Act. It's challenging at times but very rewarding.
How do you use VolunteerSpot to coordinate your parent volunteers?
I most recently used VolunteerSpot to organize volunteers for the El Cajon Oktoberfest. Every year, River Valley high school ASB runs the Kids Zone, where kids can play games and do crafts. We even have a bounce house and dunk tank donated by the Lakeside Optimist Club. The event is a lot of work, but the revenue is high and usually pays for ASB events and dances for the rest of the school year. All of our games are home made (with the exception of the bounce house and dunk tank), and the most popular booth is the craft booth, which requires a lot of small pieces, instructions, and supervision. Oktoberfest runs for 2 weekends, from Friday at 4 to Sunday at 8. We break up the days into 5 hour shifts, and hope to get about 20 to 30 volunteers per shift - parents and students.
We have had many years where volunteerism was lacking during certain shifts, such as Sunday morning. This year was different. I created an event on VolunteerSpot, included the URL in our Principal's weekly communication, and sent out a couple email blasts myself. I also had "sign up days" during lunch where I would sit at my desk and sign up students for shifts. (Unfortunately, I couldn't use your iPad app because we don't have a guest wifi network on campus. I would have loved that!) The sign up process was so easy that we had more than enough volunteers this year. I even had to put a cap on some shifts because we were getting too many!
We're thinking about using VolunteerSpot in the future as our Parent Volunteer log. Presently, we have a paper log in a binder in the office. By using VolunteerSpot, we would be able to print out a report with volunteer names and save time when doing invitations to the Volunteer Brunch at the end of the school year. Their email addresses are already in the report! Easy!
What other activities are you involved in as a volunteer?
Since I work at River Valley and also run the foundation, I seem to have my hands in every pot. I work with volunteer leaders from all groups on campus. Occasionally I volunteer in the community. In fact, that's how I heard about VolunteerSpot - I used it to sign up to be a gala volunteer at a winery in North San Diego County.
What’s one piece of advice you have for parent volunteers out there?
Time, treasure, or talent - we all have it, and there are so many organizations doing good out there that can use it. Also, it just makes you feel good!
Why did you decide to use VolunteerSpot?
I like the smooth user interface and the ability to manipulate the data through reports. I love how people can click on a URL and sign up in the comfort of their own home. Plus, it's just better than having paper sign-up sheets scattered all over my desk!
Anything else you’d like our readers to know?
River Valley has the greatest students and parents in the world! They love learning and supporting their school. As far as volunteering goes - if we all just give a little bit of ourselves, we really can make the world a better place.
To learn more, visit www.rvef.net, or facebook.com/RVEdFoundation, @RVEdFoundation
---
We salute Tara and all the other parent volunteer leaders out there making a difference. If you're using VolunteerSpot, write and tell us about what you're doing and give us a chance to shine our Volunteer Spotlight on you!! Just email us at [email protected].
