Bureau of Services for Blind Persons
Michigan Career & Technical Institute
Michigan High-Speed Internet Office
Michigan Rehabilitation Services
Workers' Disability Compensation Agency
Black Leadership Advisory Council
Michigan Community Service Commission
Executive Order 2020-107 established Michigan Workforce Development Board
MiSTEM convenes a statewide network of leaders in education, business and local communities to empower the next generation of innovators.
Unemployment Insurance Appeals Commission
formerly MI Compensation Appellate Commission
Search is currently unavailable. Please try again later.
The web Browser you are currently using is unsupported, and some features of this site may not work as intended. Please update to a modern browser such as Chrome, Firefox or Edge to experience all features Michigan.gov has to offer.
MI Community Service Commission offering Free Volunteer Management Trainings
Join the Michigan Community Service Commission (MCSC) and Resilience Partners for free trainings. The MCSC is proud to offer training centered around volunteer management and nonprofit support. Along with partners, the MCSC offers trainings each month and a free network session by an expert on each topic. These resources are made possible through the Volunteer Generation Fund from AmeriCorps the Agency. The goal of the Volunteer Generation Fund is to increase the capacity of nonprofits to expand volunteerism throughout Michigan.
The training provided by the Volunteer Generation Fund include volunteer management and capacity building training for nonprofits. This year, the MCSC will provide several tracks of training to support all Michigan nonprofits. We encourage nonprofit leaders, program and front-line employees to attend all the sessions in each track. Preregistration is required.
The Michigan Community Service Commission provides free volunteer management trainings. For 2024, we have an exciting list of topics and our sessions through July are now available. The following trainings are ideal for new and experienced Volunteer Management Leaders and for any size organization that utilizes volunteers. Sessions are all virtual and preregistration is required.
July 9, 12-1 pm Volunteer Onboarding
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcqce2uqTIsHNVCYBgc3eWLm0ca_DlD2Man
When you onboard a volunteer, you are entering into what you hope is a long-term relationship. That relationship is with you, your fellow employees, volunteers and with the clients and wider public the organization serves. With that in mind, it’s wise to have a solid approach to onboarding so that the relationship gets off on the right foot. This training will provide guidance on how to keep your onboard process efficient and straightforward.
July 16, 12-1 pm Storytelling
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYlf-irqDIsG9W6uacTLgqzCKjaki5awJ_i
This session will provide tips and tricks to develop your skills on telling an impactful story about volunteerism that can be adapted to many uses. Sharing an impactful story can be part of an elevator pitch, grant application, or can be used for fund development and recruitment of future volunteers.
July 30, 12-1 pm Offering a Service opportunity for 9/11 National Day of Service
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIkdeChpzwuG9znsPY6Aeu2IcM7b00p9Gef
Many Michigan residents would be honored to spend 9/11 in service to their community, but they need a community leader, like your organization, to offer a way for them to serve. Join us and we will explore project ideas, ways to make the date memorable for participants and how you can receive a grant to support your project from the MCSC.
August 15 12-1 pm Preventing Burnout
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAlc-mrrj8pHdJ0Q5Jh8YTK_ZvYSB01OIrd
This session is on self-care and positive communications that build a supportive culture in your organization to prevent burnout. This session will help leaders set the tone for positive work-life balance for employees and volunteers. We’ll explore wellness options and tips to identify burn out as well as what to do about it.
August 27- 12-1 pm Project Management Intro
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcpc-uppzgrHtTFAuZOUWiUTT5ipT7PSN7-
Project management is a skill every nonprofit professional needs. Come join us for an introduction to project management and we’ll give you some tools to help keep projects on track and moving forward in the right direction.
September 17, 12-1 pm Strategic Planning Intro
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZArdeivpzgtHNE5vL10xsToPbKsz22MXgNU
Prerecorded. This session will introduce the Strategic Planning tools necessary to build the capacity of a nonprofit and provide the focus and ability to plan for the future.
September 24 12-1 Generations of Volunteers and what they need in a service role
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUlcuGsrDIjG9DJL-wQaNhls-SsPRkPa6QJ
Right now five generations of volunteers are available to serve. Each has a different set of needs, expectations and things they want to get out of service. How does one volunteer management leader meet all those needs? Join us to learn how to adapt your recruitment message and volunteer management practices to meet each group’s needs.
October 8, 12-1 Customer Service and Your Volunteer Team
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwscO-qrjwvHdwOOSWir1Z4Hfy-raJW3x2y
Volunteers are often the first representatives your clients meet in your organization. How have you prepared them to meet people who may be stressed, scared, embarrassed or experiencing preconceived ideas about those you are serving, and providing the communication skills and tools to respond appropriately are key to ensuring that your volunteers are well perceived by the public. Join us to learn some ideas on how to create behavior standards, quick training tools to share with volunteers and how to help connection passion and empathy to service.
October 22, 12-1 How to build a strong culture of service within your volunteer team
Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAsd-6grj0tG9QXFsK8ZT8dw0pUJafhIxeY
This session will provide a road map for looking at your Mission, Vision and Values and helping volunteers connect the dots with their service. When volunteers translate the MVV into concepts that relate to their service, it can deepen the impact to the organization.
You can view past trainings on our YouTube Channel.
Below is a description and direct links to view individual past trainings.
Engaging Volunteers - This session will guide volunteer management professionals through the volunteer engagement cycle and will provide tips and tools to help create opportunities to meaningful and lasting engagement that will positively impact volunteer retention.
Volunteer Recognition - This session will cover a variety of recognition ideas that are aimed at building engagement and reinforce retention of volunteers. The presenter will discuss trends and sound practices in balancing traditional forms of recognition with innovative processes that touch on a volunteers recognition needs throughout their volunteer career.
Leveraging Your Story - This session teaches participants how to tell a story by highlighting the most impactful information a donor, supporter, volunteer might need to know to cause them to want to learn more and form a relationship with your organization. The presenter shared a number of insightful tips and examples to model the lessons from.
Grant Writing for Nonprofits - This session will cover where to find grant opportunities, how to read a grant application, defining your organization’s case for funding as well as understanding what funders need in a budget proposal. This session is ideal for new granters, those with intermediate and advance grant writing skills.
Grant Writing Basics - Grant Writing's Optimum Role in Your Organization ~ And the Process to Fully Realize This fast paced and interactive workshop will assist you in assessing grant writing's role in your overall fund development efforts and using your strategic planning process to guide your grant applications. We will review key policies and practices that every organization should deploy, how to get key players involved in the development process, and what makes a good application great.
Youth Engagement - This session is appropriate for organizations that are interested in engaging young people but feel ill-prepared as well as those who would like to strengthen their current youth engagement practices.
Comprehensive Volunteer Screening - This session is presented by MSU Extension leader Lisa Bottomley. The session will explore a variety of tools that can be used to screen potential volunteers. Participants will learn how to choose the right tools for their volunteer program based on volunteer roles.
Volunteer Recruitment - This session will cover different recruitment strategies and trends to help a developing volunteer management professional create a plan for their recruitment needs. Participants will leave with a much better understanding of the ideas and tools to help make recruitment easier to plan, track and implement to benefit their organization.
Communication Strategies for Thriving Teams - Ms. Reid has a long history of volunteer management and uses these experiences to help nonprofits increase their capacity to engage volunteers through strategies that enhance communication and the sense of belonging and empowerment. This session is ideal for new volunteer management leaders, those with intermediate and advance volunteer management skills.
Volunteer Interview and Placement Techniques - This session will cover background checks, interview practices and tips on how to handle red flag in potential volunteers. This session will also provide tips on how to successfully support individuals with disabilities in the volunteer workforce.
Volunteer Recruitment - This session will cover a variety of recruitment strategies and trends to help a developing volunteer management professional develop a plan to address recruitment for their organization. Participants will come away with several ideas and tools to help make recruitment easy to plan, track and implement to benefit their organization.
Asset Based Language - Join Tamela Spicer, a Senior Program Manager of the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy, as she discusses the importance of storytelling within an organization. It can be a challenging within any institution to find individuals who relate to your groups message and key values. By using certain language, diction, and communications methods your organization can see an increase in the number of individuals who connect with your group.
The Accidental Trainer: Facilitation Techniques to Elevate Your Organization's Learning Initiatives - This video breakdowns topics such as the motivation for why individuals serve and ways to implement the learner engagement model to create a deeper connection. Additionally, this webinar will also cover tips for virtual learning, as well as ways to combat zoom fatigue.
Build Back Better - Beth Steinhorn, President of Volunteer Strategies, joins the Michigan Community Service Commission to explore ways to turn obstacles brought on by the pandemic into opportunities. From understanding motivation for virtual volunteer engagement, to key insights from other organizations regarding tactics that worked best for them in 2021.
Building Rapport While Being Apart Mentoring in the Modern Age - In partnership with the City of Lansing, this volunteer training webinar focuses on how to engage young mentees during the pandemic. Not only from organizer perspectives, but from the perspective of students and young volunteers who are participating in these virtual mentorship programs.
Assessing Resources offered by MCSC - Please join the United Way of Genesee County and the Michigan Community Service Commission (MCSC) to learn how to develop a meaningful project that helps build your organization's volunteer corps and earns your organization a reputation for great service to the community. The MCSC will review the three National Days of Service and what resources we have available to help support projects.
Nonprofits Tapping Social Media to Recruit Volunteers and Raise Awareness - This session lead by communication and social media experts will help participants get the most out of social media. The session will cover the advantages of using social media to communicate with the public and how to craft message to recruit volunteer and donor support.
Getting the most out of hosting a National Day of Service Event - Our National Days of Service are important times for Michiganders to serve, reflect and pay respect. Please join the United Way of Genesee County and the Michigan Community Service Commission (MCSC) to learn how to develop a meaningful project that helps build your organization's volunteer corps and earns your organization a reputation for great service to the community.
Accessing resources offered by MCSC- Get Connected Training for Agencies - Learn more about Get Connected from the Michigan Community Service Commission.