Volunteer!

Charlottesville Kiwanis clean books

Healthy communities depend on volunteers – people who will share their skills with an organization because they care about their community. We need the help of people like you! Volunteering your time and talents is a powerful way to help influence the service of the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library system.

You are invited to join our volunteers and help us promote the joy of reading and lifelong learning. The library system promotes the free flow of knowledge and ideas by providing materials, services and programs for our region’s diverse population. Volunteers can make a big difference in the quality of service by working behind the scenes on long term or short term projects.

See below for a description of some of the volunteer opportunities available in the library, then fill out the form below. Please read carefully and if you have any questions call our Volunteer Coordinator, Linda Smoke at 979-7151 ext 4 or email her at lsmoke@jmrl.org.

Those of us who are lucky to work at the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library have the satisfaction of helping patrons enhance their lives. We know that you'll find the same kind of satisfaction by joining the JMRL volunteer family. Thank you for your willingness to volunteer!

Volunteer Opportunities

CENTRAL:

Central Children’s and Young Adult Services:

Teen volunteers: must be at least a rising 7th grade student and must complete a special application form upon being contacted to volunteer. Teen volunteers work out of the Central Children’s Room and are supervised either by Children’s or Young Adult Services staff. There are two types of teen volunteers: school year and summer.

School year volunteers typically work for a limited number of hours just to complete a requirement. They do whatever needs to be done during the time they volunteer. Typical tasks may include: photocopying, cutting paper, cleaning books, straightening shelves, or shelving. Schedules are worked out on an individual basis, but each individual shift is no longer than 2 hours. Weekdays work best because more staff are available to supervise.

Summer volunteers are part of a 7-8 week program that takes place during the time of the annual Summer Reading Program. All summer volunteers are required to attend a training session at the beginning of the summer to learn their jobs and responsibilities. Typical tasks may include: registering kids and teens for the Summer Reading Program, helping to prepare crafts and materials for children’s programs, assisting with setting up and cleaning up the program room on program days, photocopying, cutting paper, cleaning books, straightening shelves, or shelving. Schedules are worked out on an individual basis and may be worked around vacations and other commitments. Shifts will be no more than 2 hours a week. Weekdays work best because more staff are available to supervise. At the end of the summer there is an appreciation party for all teen summer volunteers.

Collection Management:

Repair and recover books. We have an endless inventory of books needing attention. Our wonderful volunteer, Melissa Dickens, can train you to do this important job.

CROZET:

Teen Volunteers: The Crozet Library maintains a small, dedicated group of teen volunteers, ages 12-17. To be considered for a position, teens should fill out an application and schedule a meeting with the volunteer coordinator. We ask that teens commit to a year of volunteering, or at least a summer. Shifts are limited to 1-2 hours per scheduled day.

Our teen volunteers play a crucial role in the Crozet Library. They help us create displays and booklists, shelve materials, tend our garden or indoor plants, assist with children's programs, set up activities, photocopy important library forms, help with our Summer Reading Program and much more. This is a great opportunity to learn valuable job-related skills, help out within your community, gain work experience, promote literacy, and meet new people.

If you are interested in volunteering, please call the Crozet Library for more information, or stop in and pick up an application.

Adult Volunteers: Due to limited space, we are not seeking additional adult volunteers at the moment.

GORDON:

Adult Volunteers: "Adopt a Shelf" by pledging to visit the library once or twice a month to help maintain a specific section of shelving. This involves placing items in order, checking for items needing repair, and providing general maintenance. Volunteers also help maintain our garden areas, and - with special training - repair books. Occasionally, volunteers can help with special events and projects.

Teen Volunteers: must be at least 13 years old, and also must complete a special application form and meet with the library volunteer coordinator or branch manager to discuss duties and prepare a schedule. Typical tasks may include: photocopying, cutting paper, helping to create displays, assisting with setting up and cleaning up the program room, cleaning books, straightening shelves, and shelving. Schedules are worked out on an individual basis, but each individual shift is no longer than 1 hour.

GREENE:

Shelvers: Volunteers shelve in all areas of the collection daily. We have 1-2 volunteers each day who come in for shelving.

Gardeners: Volunteers “adopt” one of the many garden beds in front of the library, or in the library reading garden, and spend 10-20 minutes per week, keeping it weeded and looking good.

Film Series Volunteer: Set up the chairs and help with set up of refreshments for the film series monthly on the second Friday evening of the month, at 6 p.m. And/Or help with taking down the set up and refreshments, and clean up after the Friday film series.

Dusters: Volunteers dust the book shelves in the library on a regular basis, and may provide assistance with other special cleaning or straightening projects.

Book Cleaners: Volunteers clean the covers of juvenile books, which are heavily used and tend to get a little grimy over time.

Storytime Substitutes: Storytime volunteers may occasionally substitute for the staff person who conducts pre-school storytime, or may visit storytime to provide a special treat like a puppet show, storytelling, craft, or music.

Teen Volunteers: Teens work mainly during the summer as volunteers and do various jobs including shelving, photocopying, stuffing summer reading bags, preliminary cutting and assembling for pre-school storytime crafts, and other projects for the library.

Community Service Volunteers: Greene County Library accepts volunteers who need to do community service for school or the court system on a case by case basis, as we have projects and space in our volunteer program.

LOUISA:

Adult volunteers: Adults are trained to shelve books.

Teen volunteers: Teens must be at least 13 years old. They fill out an application, and meet with the library volunteer coordinator to discuss duties and prepare a schedule. They work in the library for 2 to 3 hours per scheduled day. (See tasks below.)

Teen Volunteers for the Summer Reading Program:

Attend a training session
Assist at the registration sign-up table
Distribute the incentive prizes

Community Service workers: Louisa also accepts volunteer work from community service workers referred to the library from the County. A record is kept of the number of hours they work. They work in the library for 2 to 3 hours per scheduled day.

This is a list of some tasks for teens and community service workers:

Place magazines and newspapers in order; Shelve paperback exchange books; Clean books with book goo; Collect any books left on shelves; Dust book shelves; Cut left over paper for scrap paper; Get mail; Scrape stickers off books; Prepare items for children's programs; Staple handout papers for new patrons; Shelve JBB and JE books.

NELSON:

Adult volunteers: Shelve books and straighten shelves. Clean, recover and repair books.

NORTHSIDE:

Adult volunteers: volunteers are needed in only 2 areas -- book repair and the "Books Sandwiched In" committee. An application form must be completed prior to volunteering. No experience with library work is necessary.

Book repair volunteers mend hurt books so that they may circulate again. We provide the training and supplies. Typical tasks include: re-covering books, repairing broken spines, mending book jackets, and re-attaching loose pages. Because this work requires a long training period, we are interested in volunteers who wish to make a long-term commitment. The book repair volunteers meet at Northside and work together as a group.

“Books Sandwiched In” volunteers plan the book review program which is held on the 3rd Friday of the month at Northside, from September through May. The committee meets to review prospective books and to make final selections. Individual committee members find and schedule members of the community to present the review. On the day of the program, committee members set up the room, prepare refreshments, introduce the speaker, and host the event. Volunteers with an interest in currently-published books, a knowledge of the community, and a willingness to make contacts with potential speakers would be especially helpful.

Teen volunteers: must be at least 13 years old and must complete a special application form prior to volunteering. Volunteers are supervised either by the Young Adult Librarian or by another member of the Reference staff. There are two types of teen volunteers: school year and summer.

School year volunteers typically work for a limited number of hours to complete a requirement. They do whatever needs to be done during the time they volunteer. Typical tasks may include: photocopying, cutting paper, cleaning books, straightening shelves, and shelving. Schedules are worked out on an individual basis, but each individual shift is no longer than 2 hours. We prefer to schedule volunteers on weekdays, as more members of the staff are available to supervise than on weekends.

Summer volunteers are part of a 7-8 week program that takes place during the time of the annual Summer Reading Program. All summer volunteers are required to attend a training session at the beginning of the summer to learn their jobs and responsibilities. Typical tasks may include: registering kids and teens for the Summer Reading Program, helping to prepare crafts and materials for children's programs, assisting with setting up and cleaning up the program room on program days, photocopying, cutting paper, cleaning books, straightening shelves, and shelving. Schedules are worked out on an individual basis and may be worked around vacations and other commitments. Volunteers work between 4 and 9 hours a week, in either 2-hour or 3-hour shifts. At the end of the summer there is an appreciation party for all teen summer volunteers.

SCOTTSVILLE:

Beginner:
Sharpen pencils; Sort routing slips; Fold flyers and brochures; Empty book drop; Straighten book browser; Sort carts into fiction and non-fiction; Clean books; Dust, clean glass doors and windows in entry.

Intermediate:
Straighten shelves; Alphabetize books on carts; Shelve fiction, audio and video materials; Pull old magazines & remove barcodes; Pull old books (from New Books shelf) & remove stickers; Remove barcodes from deleted items and stamp withdrawn.

Advanced:
Sort non-fiction books on carts; Shelve fiction & non-fiction books; Retrieve items on the paging list; Assist with weeding; File marked material in the History file; Mend books; Change new book status in the computer.

Outside:
Pick up trash; Wash windows & screens; Paint windowsills and doors; Remove grass from sidewalk & weed; Sweep parking areas and sidewalks; Rake leaves; mulch; water; Shovel snow & apply salt or sand.