• Must be at least 18 years of age for all positions except the Event Volunteer position. People under 18 wishing to volunteer will need to have a parent or guardian who is able to sign a liability release on their behalf.

• All positions must complete a Volunteer Orientation before beginning to take shifts. Some additional trainings may be required depending on the position.

• Most positions require that you complete Community Advocate Training (CAT) before starting your shifts.

  • CAT is a 20-hour training offered through Steps three times a year. It is spread over three days and includes 5 hours of self-paced pre-work. There is no cost to volunteers wanting to participate in this training.

  • Once complete, CAT grants you VT Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege, which allows you to hold crisis information confidential under most circumstances.

  • When you submit a volunteer application, you will automatically be added to the notification list for when the next round of CAT registration begins. While there are some limited ways to get involved before completing CAT, you will not be able to volunteer in a direct service capacity (i.e. on Hotline or with our Children’s Program) before you have completed this training. Please keep in mind that this means there may be a 3-4 month wait before you are able to engage in direct service.

Our next CAT will be held during the last week of April 2024. Registration is now live. Please click this link for more information and to register for the training, or email steps@stepsvt.org.

1. Review the open positions below.

2. Submit a Volunteer Application. Please note that the application lists a variety of volunteer positions, some of which we may not be actively recruiting for if we are at capacity for that program. Refer to the list below for our most up-to-date volunteer needs!

3. The Volunteer Coordinator will reach out to you with any questions or to schedule next steps, including CAT and a volunteer orientation.

This position staffs our 24/7 hotline and provides direct service to those affected by Intimate Partner Violence by providing emotional support, safety planning, and connection to services such as our emergency housing, housing retention, legal, or youth programs.

Responsibilities:

• Answer hotline, chatline, and emails: provide information, advocacy, support and referrals, and crisis management and intervention as needed.

• Maintain call records and record services provided in our electronic database.

• Foster a supportive community in the shelter by maintaining confidentiality and professionalism.

Training Requirements:

• Complete our 20-hour Community Advocate Training to obtain Vermont Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege before answering any hotline calls/chats/emails.

• Complete at least two shadow shifts and two reverse shadow shifts as well as training on our electronic database before taking a solo shift.

• Complete 3-hour mandated reporter training before answering any hotline calls/chats/emails. (NOTE: If you are already a documented Mandated Reporter in the state of Vermont, you do not need to repeat the training).

Time Commitment:

• 2 hotline shifts/month; 3-month minimum commitment.

• Shifts are available Monday-Friday between 9:00am and 5:00pm. Each shift is typically 4.5 hours long; however, if you are only able to do 2.5-3.5 hour shifts we still encourage you to reach out!

This position is designed to provide drop-in supervision for service users who have meetings, appointments, or interviews to which they can’t bring their children. Being able to access childcare during these times makes it easier for people who are impacted by domestic violence to obtain the services they need to transition into an environment that is safe and stable in the long term. This is a drop-in/on-call position, so while you would commit to being in the building for a certain amount of time, there would be other projects within the Youth Program to work on if no service users needed childcare during that time.

Responsibilities:

• Provide supervision of service users’ children on a drop-in basis in the playroom or lounge at our shelter.

• Interact compassionately and empathetically with children of all ages from a variety of backgrounds.

• During a shift when childcare is not needed, work with the Youth Program Coordinator and Youth Advocate on other projects to assist the Youth Program.

• Commit to making the Youth Program a safe and welcoming space by maintaining service user confidentiality.

Training Requirements:

• Complete our 20-hour Community Advocate Training to obtain VT Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege.

• Complete 3-hour Mandated Reporter Training. If you have documentation that you are already a mandated reporter in the state of Vermont, you do not need to go through the training again!

• Shadow at least one group with the Youth Program to get familiar with our residents, their children, and Youth Program protocols before taking a childcare shift.

Time Commitment:

• Shifts are available Monday-Friday from 9-5.

• We ask that you are able to commit to at least a 2 hour shift.

• We encourage you to commit to at least 2 shifts a month.

This position helps supervise and facilitate the numerous groups that our Youth Program offers to our service users and their children! Ranging from movement group to arts and crafts to a group just for tiny tots, with offerings changing and expanding in response to need, having an extra set of eyes and hands for each group ensures that children who have been exposed to Intimate Partner Violence continue to have access to these spaces as they navigate a time of deep and often traumatic transition in their lives.

Responsibilities:

• Work with the youth program staff to set up for and co-facilitate children’s playgroups at the shelter.

• Interact kindly, compassionately, and professionally with children of various ages from a wide range of backgrounds.

• Maintain service user confidentiality and abide by Vermont mandated reporter requirements.

Training Requirements:

• Complete our 20-hour Community Advocate Training to obtain VT Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege.

• Complete 3-hour Mandated Reporter Training. If you have documentation that you are already a mandated reporter in the state of Vermont, you do not need to go through the training again!

• Shadow at least one group with the Youth Program to get familiar with our residents, their children, and Youth Program protocols. More shadow shifts may be required for those with no or minimal experience working with children.

Time Commitment:

• Multiple groups are held each week, Monday-Friday.

• We ask that you commit to helping with at least one group a month.

• We also welcome your own thought, creativity, and innovation. If you have an interest, skill, or expertise that would lend itself well to a new group, our Youth Program can work with you to start a new group and add to our current offerings!

• Most groups are held between the hours of 9 am and 5 pm, with the exceptions being groups that are held in the evening time to accommodate school and work schedules. These groups may involve dinner and are held less frequently. Most groups are held after school and the kids get off their buses by 3:40 pm. On days off from school, groups may change to accommodate those hours.

Are you an organizational whiz? Is putting things where they belong—and if they don’t belong anywhere, creating space for them to go—your superpower? We would love to have your eye for arrangement turned on our basement storage area! This position is responsible for making sure our stock of bedding, clothing, and other donations is ship-shape and ready to go for service users moving in and residents needing supplies.

Responsibilities:

• Run heat treat on incoming donations and resident belongings.

• Help keep shelter laundry running smoothly.

• Fold, sort, and put away clean laundry (bedding and clothes). Ensure that things are folded and stacked in a space-efficient, stable way.

• Make bedding and welcome kits to be ready for incoming shelter residents.

• Periodically assess the racks of hanging clothing; remove empty hangers and fill the space on racks from our back stock of clothing donations.

• Put your creativity and ingenuity to use in categorizing and organizing everything from donated toiletries to computer cables. As you get familiar with our organizational system and needs, we welcome your innovation when it comes to new and more efficient organization practices!

Training Requirements:

• Attend a volunteer orientation in order to get familiar with the shelter and general volunteer policies and protocols.

• Training on heat-treat, laundry, and organizational protocols conducted by either the Volunteer Coordinator or one of the Shelter Advocates – can be conducted as part of orientation or as a separate session, depending on schedule.

• Optional, but encouraged: attend our Community Advocate Training in order to gain a thorough understanding of our philosophy, foundational principles of anti-violence work, and to obtain VT Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege.

  • Note that this training is required of any volunteer who will be providing direct services to residents/service users.

Time Commitment:

• Shifts are available 7 days a week between 9:00 am and 8:00 pm.

• Shift length varies based on your schedule/desired level of commitment, but we ask that you plan to spend at least 1 hour per shift at the shelter.

• We ask that you commit to at least 2 shifts per month.

This position is designed to help spread the word about Steps and the services we offer! You will be tabling at outreach events, setting up for fundraisers, helping out with group clean up projects, and making sure our annual social runs smoothly!

Training Requirements:

• Attend a volunteer orientation in order to get familiar with the shelter, the services we provide, and general volunteer policies and protocols.

AS OF 4/10/2024 WE ARE RECRUITING FOLKS WHO WANT TO HELP WITH OUR ANNUAL SOCIAL ON FRIDAY, MAY 3RD. If you are able to help with this event, and particularly if you are able to help direct parking from 5:30-9:30 pm, please make a note on your application! Parking volunteers will get free admission to the event and a comped drink ticket for the night.

Visit our Kaleidoscope Social page for more information about the event.