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Recruiting youth from diverse backgrounds

Reaching them where they are

Recruiting diverse youth--those not traditionally asked to serve--is essential. However you will need to consider how you will do this. For example, while you may be easily able to recruit youth already associated with your organization, this strategy will need to be respectfully re-thought when accessing other populations such as youth with disabilities or youth in the juvenile justice system. While you cannot always step into someone else's shoes, it is necessary to be sensitive and conscious in your multicultural and diversity efforts. Some avenues to engage and methods to try are:

• Establish name recognition for your program within the targeted community
• Have a well-conceived and articulated plan
• Collaborate with existing programs (like after-school clubs, music groups, and sports teams) that bring in youth from your target population and have name recognition in the community

Remember that many families have not been invited to volunteer, and may not understand the benefits. Extending a personal invitation and underscoring what volunteers have to gain—job skills, community connections, academic credit-can make a difference. See Engaging families in service for more details.

In addition, be prepared to respond to diversity in family structures and cultural norms. For example, a teenager may want to volunteer after school but may also have childcare responsibilities then. Consequently, the program would need to offer more flexible schedules for volunteering or find ways to incorporate youth of multiple ages.

Volunteers who have a positive experience are likely to volunteer again and tell their friends about it. Those friends, in turn, will be more inclined to volunteer. "A lot of youth involvement comes from kid-to-kid word-of-mouth," observes Maureen Byrne of the Kids Care Clubs Points of Light and Hands-On Network in Darien, Connecticut.

To make volunteering a positive experience, activities must:

• Be meaningful
• Be adequately structured
• Provide for youth ownership
• Be developmentally and age-appropriate

Remember, recruitment is not a one-time thing! Your organization should continually let your community know who you are, what you're doing, and how they can take part in your good work!

Next »

• What role does cultural competence play?
• How do you form community partnerships?
• How can you engage families?
• What's key to sustaining service programs?
• Why is it important to reflect and celebrate?