Dear _____________________________,
We're happy to hear of your interest in becoming a volunteer at Long Island Crisis Center. Volunteers are very important people - they are the life-blood of the agency; we couldn't operate without them. The purpose of this letter is to provide you with some basic information about our agency and about the role volunteers play in what we do.
Volunteer Opportunities
You must be at least 16 years old to volunteer at Long Island Crisis Center. At this time, Long Island Crisis Center is only seeking individuals interested in being trained to become crisis intervention counselors. Counselor training is held approximately 3 times a year.
Crisis Counselors answer the hotlines and counsel walk-in clients. Their job is to help people under stress explore their feelings and problems. They also provide general information and offer referrals for clients when appropriate. The time commitment for counselors is six hours a week.
All volunteers train FIRST as Counselor Assistants (CAs). CAs assist the Counselors and administrative staff and answer the agency’s business phones. CA training consists of three three-hour sessions to familiarize new volunteers with agency policies and procedures. After that, new CAs work 3-4 hours a week in the crisis center. It is beneficial to be a CA for at least a month or two before going through Counselor Training in order to become acquainted with the agency. The time commitment for CAs is three – four hours a week and Counselor Assistant training is held every month.
Youth volunteers (high school students 16 and over) serve a special purpose at L.I.C.C. In addition to working as Counselor Assistants for 3 hours a week, youth volunteers must participate in monthly meetings and help publicize L.I.C.C. in their high school. The meetings count towards your 3 hour/week commitment. If you are a high school student and would like more information about the requirements please go to our website at www.longislandcrisiscenter.org and click on Youth Volunteer Policy for more details.
Counselor Training
Our Counselor Training program is generally regarded as the most extensive of its kind in the country. It consists of over 250 hours of training and takes approximately nine months to complete. The communication and counseling skills that you will learn at Long Island Crisis Center are skills you utilize for a lifetime.
Counselors must be 18 by the time they complete Counselor Training. Counselor Training begins with two consecutive weekend sessions (9:30AM to 6:30PM Saturdays, Noon to 5PM Sundays), during which trainees learn the fundamentals of crisis counseling. The weekend sessions are followed by 18 weekly, 3 hour information sessions devoted to the variety of topics that clients call about. Trainees must also do a three hour observation shift each week with an experienced crisis counselor at a time of their convenience. Training groups are friendly and informal. The time commitment for a counselor-in-training is six hours a week.Support
Everyone at Long Island Crisis Center is sensitive to the demands of crisis counseling, and we go out of our way to support each other. For trainees, the training group is one source of such support. Each trainee is assigned a "mentor," an experienced counselor who serves as the trainee's personal tutor. Other counselors and administrative staff are available as well for advice and encouragement. The work of each counselor, in short, is made easier by an atmosphere of teamwork, caring and mutual support.
Time Commitments
Counselor Assistants make a commitment to do 3-4 hours peer week. Counselors-in-training and Counselors make a commitment to do 6 hours a week. The hours do not have to be done all at once and can be spread over a one-week period of time according to your availability. Because of the amount of time that goes into training, volunteers are expected to make a commitment to stay as a volunteer for at least six months. Therefore, people who are looking to volunteer for a shorter length of time would not be appropriate for L.I.C.C. In addition, after going through our Counselor Training, counselors MUST promise to PAY BACK the Agency the 200 hours of training in hotline shifts, which takes approximately eight months. This "pay back" starts once the volunteer has attained the status of "solo" counselor (once all the training is complete).
Field Placements & Internships
If you're planning to volunteer at Long Island Crisis Center for a Field Placement or Internship for your College or University, you must contact Linda or Theresa before scheduling an interview.
Training Schedule
Counselor Assistant training is held every month on varying evenings. Counselor Training is held approximately three times each year. The next Counselor Training session is: Saturday January 24th, 2009, Sunday January 25th, Saturday January 31st, and Sunday February 1st with Wednesday night information sessions.
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If you're interested in becoming a Crisis Center volunteer, please call 516-826-0244 and ask for Bettina to schedule an interview. The interview lasts about 45 minutes and gives you a chance to tell us something about yourself and ask any questions you have about us. We hope to hear from you soon!!!!
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Volunteer at Long Island Crisis Center
Where Giving is Getting
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