United Way of the Plains wanted to learn about volunteering in rural and under-resourced communities, setting out with the goal of developing a framework for action in the community (which we are defining as Sumner County). We looked to expand our relatively new work in the county seat of Wellington. We had worked hard to be seen as a team player, non-threatening to the community's formal nonprofit and community leaders.
In 2004, United Way of the Plains extended its presence and its activities throughout the county, partnering with the Points of Light Foundation to examine volunteering in rural and under- resourced communities. The case study set out with five primary objectives:
• To investigate the nature of volunteering in rural and under-resourced communities performed by local citizens.
• To identify the unique challenges in engaging low-income volunteers in rural and under-resourced communities.
• To identify new or emerging effective strategies that are unique to mobilizing low-income volunteers in rural communities.
• To document the differences between volunteering in rural and urban under- resourced communities.
• To document how volunteering strengthens families and transforms neighborhoods.
Our "Community Experts"
In an effort to determine what volunteering in rural and under-resourced communities looked like and how United Way of the Plains could help foster volunteer engagement, we sought input from various sources, including:
• Formal community leaders
• Agency representatives and staff that work with volunteers
• Organizations (police departments; public and religious-based schools)
• Local residents of the Wellington and Conway Springs communities as a whole including:
- Informal community leaders - Persons active in the community - Current volunteers
- Potential volunteers with a particular focus on under-represented potential volunteers - Residents not currently represented by a church, service club, employer, etc.
The Questions We Asked
Our goal was to learn more about volunteering in rural and under-resourced communities, and that was addressed by directing the following questions to our community experts.
We asked formal leaders, agency representatives and volunteer coordinators:
• What means of acquiring volunteers are present in your community?
• What types of volunteer recruitment have you used?
• What has/hasn’t worked?
• What problems do you experience with your volunteers?
• How active are community members when it comes to volunteering?
• How can United Way of the Plains assist you in reaching potential volunteers?
• Are there any unique challenges in recruiting volunteers in a rural community?
• What are the differences, if any, between rural and urban volunteering?
We asked under-represented potential volunteers and the community as a whole:
• Why, when, were, for whom and how often do you formally/informally volunteer?
• If you volunteer, why do you?
• Have you volunteered in the past?
• What barriers to volunteering are present?
• What prevents you from volunteering, or volunteering more often?
• How did you become aware of the volunteer opportunity?
• Would receiving something in exchange for volunteer hours be beneficial? If so, what?
• What would make it easier for you to spend time volunteering?
Our Data Collection Method
To answer these questions, United Way of the Plains began with a literature review, drawing upon resources that were already available. In addition, we utilized data from the 2000 U.S.
Census (www.census.gov) and the 2003 Kansas Statistical Abstract, 38th Edition,
(www.ukans.edu/pri/ksdata/ksah/) to profile the characteristics of the Wellington and Conway Springs communities, as well as Sumner County and the State of Kansas.
We collected community input using a variety of methods, including:
• Personal interviews and phone interviews/conversations with formal community leaders
• Personal interviews with agency staff that work with volunteers
• Personal interviews with community residents
• Personal interviews with under-represented potential volunteers
• Observation of community dynamics at meetings, discussions and presentations
• Mail survey of formal leaders/organizations on behalf of the Points of Light Foundation
• Mail survey directed to a random sample of Conway Springs residents
• Follow-up contact with Conway Springs informal leaders identified as a result of mail survey
• Brief paper surveys directed to selected Wellington residents, delivered by agency representatives, targeting under-represented potential volunteers
Our learnings from each of these methodologies assisted us to better answer the questions of what volunteering looks like in rural and under-resourced communities and how United Way of the Plains can help foster volunteer engagement, allowing us to work towards our overall goal of increasing volunteering.
In smaller communities, privacy is extremely important. People contacted through agency information included parents of children receiving agency services; these parents tended to be lower income. One reason for choosing a survey methodology was to assure respondent anonymity, if desired.
Beyond the benefit of personal contact, one-on-one interviewing — whether in person or over the telephone — allowed follow-up to responses to assure understanding of the meaning of the answers. Questions could be adjusted as needed, based on responses given. In some cases, this method was preferable over surveys, but was not always possible due to cost, distance and time constraints.
By United Way's actions of discussing and questioning and learning more about volunteering in rural and under-resourced communities, we increased awareness of volunteering in these
communities. Our conducting the surveys — whether by mail, in person or by telephone — increased respondent awareness of volunteering and volunteer activities as well as United Way's interaction in and with the Wellington and Conway Springs communities. The increased
awareness enabled us to expand our questions to a wider circle of individuals and groups and use the information they provided to reach and impact even more community members.
Observation of the dynamics which occurred at meetings, discussions and presentations allowed United Way of the Plains staff to identify formal and informal community leaders as well as to identify proponents and opponents for various community initiatives. In addition, United Way could convene and facilitate follow-up meetings, accomplish follow-up actions such as
researching Conway Springs' proposed Neighborhood Watch initiative and offer input concerning "next steps" to be taken.
Part III. Plan and Activities