REACHING RECRUITMENT GOALS THROUGH UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS Susan Totty Executive Director

1. REACHING RECRUITMENT GOALS THROUGH UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS Susan Totty Executive Director Big Brothers Big Sisters Harrisonburg-Rockingham County January 31, 2014

2. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Harrisonburg-Rockingham County (BBBSHR) Our Mission: To provide children facing adversity with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one relationships that change their lives for the better, forever.

3. BBBSHR Service Area • Rockingham Co. VA, approximately 120,000 people Staffing (2012) • 7 FTE and 6 Part-time Budget (2012) • $580,000

4. BBBSHR Our Youth 752 Youth served in 2012 • 44% white • 40% Hispanic • 14% African American • 85% live at 125% of poverty level or below Our Volunteers 752 Volunteer Mentors– 70% (529) were James Madison University (JMU) Students

5. BBBSHR Our Programs: School/Site Based • Matches meet at a school once a week for an hour Community Based • Matches meet once a week in the community for 2-4 hours • Commitment: • At least one hour each week • One year (community members) • Three semesters (college students)

6. OJJDP Grant with JMU • Partnership with James Madison University, Political Science Department in 2011 which funded a two year research study • Objective: Testing the impact of mentor training and peer support on the quality of mentor-mentee relationships and outcomes for at-risk youth. • Random control study with 3 treatment groups and a control group. • Requirements: • 450 new matches within 14 months • In 2011, BBBSHR had 208 new matches

7. OJJDP Grant with JMU Grant Support for BBBSHR Funding for 2 new FTE Program Staff • Enrollment Specialist • Match Support Specialist Funding for .50 FTE Graduate Assistant to assist with Volunteer Recruitment

8. Developing University Partnerships BBBSHR has had an established relationship with JMU for over a decade. To meet recruitment goals, BBBSHR needed to identify new partners and strategies to reach potential student volunteers.

9. Identifying New University Partners Determine University Departments that closely align with your mission • Education • Social Work • Criminal Justice • Political Science/Public Administration Identify key contacts within each Department Develop the case for support and request

10. Identifying New University Partners Identify partners for student recruitment outside of the classroom • Fraternities and Sororities • Student organizations • Focused in areas that align with the mission (ie. JMU Kids Club) • Athletic Departments/Teams

11. Identify Recruitment Strategies Class and Student Organization Presentations • BBBSHR Information Sheets • Student Reply Cards Information Tables in dining halls, student center and outside on the quad. • Student Reply Cards Feature stories in the student newspaper Recruitment ads on electronic billboards in Student Center

12. Components of the Recruitment Process Meetings with Key Department Contacts • Estimate the potential # of class presentations per department Classroom Presentations • Develop a schedule of presentations • Estimate # of students in each class Reply Cards Collected at each Presentation • Enter information into the Agency Information Management System for follow-up contact

13. Components of Recruitment Online Inquiry • Follow-up and scheduling interviews Enrollment Process • Applications, interviews/home visits Match Process • Review child and volunteer applications to recommend a match

14. Creating a Dashboard to Track Recruitment Goals # of Presentations and # of students • Track the completed # of presentations and students • Track the scheduled presentations and estimated # of students # of Reply Cards per Presentation • Based on trend analysis, we estimated 32% of students would completed a Reply Card

15. Creating a Dashboard to Track Recruitment Goals Inquiry Process • Assumed 25% of students who completed the Reply Card would consider the Inquiry Process • Assumed 60% would actually complete the Inquiry Process and schedule an interview • Track current Inquiries Enrollment Process • Students schedule an interview and complete application • Track # of scheduled interviews/per Match Support Specialist • Assumed all students in the Enrollment Process would become a Mentor

16. Creating a Dashboard to Track Recruitment Goals Match Process • Volunteer has completed enrollment process and is waiting to be matched with a child Track # of volunteers waiting to be matched • Track # of volunteers that have been matched

17. Internal Communication Plan to Report Progress Research Oversight Team • JMU Research Team and BBBSHR Management Team • Weekly meetings to review results and strategize to address concerns. BBBSHR Program Staff • Biweekly meetings to review progress and concerns • Monthly meetings with Management Team to celebrate successes and strategize solutions for problems Recruitment Board in Main Entry • Monthly recruitment goals and achievements

18. Summary Teamwork Planning Tracking and Reporting Results Communication A Formula For Achieving Big Goals

19. Contact information: Susan Totty, Executive Director Big Brothers Big Sisters of Harrisonburg-Rockingham County susan@bbbshr.org Phone: 540-433-8886