Volunteer Job Descriptions

Volunteers assist in all aspects of the VRCBVI program. The following are the most frequently needed volunteer assignments. If interested in volunteering at VRCBVI, complete a Volunteer Application (Word Document).

Keyboarding Aide

To provide assistance to Keyboarding Instructor working with adults with visual impairments.

Duties:

Prepare instructional materials for use by students in Keyboarding.

Assist instructor with setup of workstations for students at beginning of class.

Assist with instruction in keyboard familiarity, touch typing, and basic formatting.

Substitute in Keyboarding class when instructor is absent (lesson plans will be provided).

Prerequisites:

Basic computer literacy skills, including familiarity with MS Word. Touch typing skill (knowledge of correct key reaches).
The ability to work with adults who vary in their educational backgrounds, physical abilities and visual functioning.
The ability to volunteer one morning per week between the hours of 9 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Grounds Beautification Volunteer

To plant, cultivate, and prune flowers, plants, shrubs, and trees on VRCBVI grounds.

Duties:

Maintain the plants in the Sunken Garden located in the Dorm area.

Plant and maintain plants in the Courtyard located in the center of the Classroom and Administration Building.

Maintain the plants in the area around the fountain on the east side of the Classroom and Administration Building.

Clean, paint, varnish, and otherwise renew outdoor structures such as tables, benches, fountains, etc.

Media/Photo/Video Volunteer

To photograph and/or videotape individual students, classes, special events, and special training programs.

Duties:

Photograph and/or videotape individual students or students in a group setting upon beginning or exiting the training program.
Photograph and/or videotape daily classes or activities in the training program.
Photograph and/or videotape special events such as talent shows, drama presentations, picnics, etc.
Photograph and/or videotape a special training program such as Customer Service Representative, Vending Facility operation, Independent Living, Computer Exploration, etc.

Reader

To read materials either directly to a blind VRCBVI staff member or student with a visual impairment or to record materials on cassette tape for later use by staff and/or students.

Duties:

Read materials-correspondence, manuals, documents, and other work-related materials-to staff members with visual impairments.

Read materials-brochures, documents, articles, books, correspondence, and other appropriate materials-to students.

Record onto cassette documents, articles, books, etc. for later use by staff and/or students.

Copy and label cassette tape materials.

Instructional Aide

To prepare instructional materials in large print, tactile, and/or auditory media for instructors, work evaluators, counselors, and other VRCBVl staff.

Duties:

Enlarge regular print materials to larger print using a standard copy machine with enlargement capabilities.

Scan print materials into a computer using an optical character recognition (OCR) scanner.

Key into a P.C. printed materials for instruction use.

Draw charts, graphs, and maps in large or bold print.

Prepare tactile charts, graphs, maps, and labels.

Read print materials to a staff member or student with a visual impairment when other alternative reading sources are not available or are not efficient.

Read print materials onto cassette tape.

Print materials in Braille from a computer disk using a translation program and a Braille printer.

Duplicate cassette tapes using a high-speed tape duplicator.

Recreation Aide

To assist in the recreation instructional areas of crafts, bowling, swimming and physical conditioning as well as to act as a sighted guide on recreational activities in the community.

Duties:

Assist recreation instructor in teaching specific craft projects to encourage learning adaptive techniques and to help with the development of manual dexterity.

Assist recreation instructor with physical conditioning activities to include weight training, aerobics, walking and jogging.

Assist recreation instructor with bowling classes to include helping students locate equipment, keeping score and teaching students adaptive techniques.

Assist recreation instructor with swimming classes by helping students dress for class, acting as sighted guide in pool area, helping with swimming techniques and helping with water aerobics.

Assist recreation instructor in teaching and organizing table games.

Serve as a sighted guide on recreational activities in the community.

Assist recreational instructor in planning special events. Duties may include decorating areas, setting up equipment and games, acting as a sighted guide and motivating students.

Hostess

To greet and assist in orientation of new students to VRCBVl each Monday and provide assistance to staff as needed.

Duties:

Greet and welcome new students as they arrive at the Center each Monday.

Provide sighted guide and/or orientation assistance to new students to bathrooms, nurse's station, classes, water fountains, mail boxes, and the cafeteria.

Help new students understand their schedules, the roles of primary staff, and how the evaluation process will be carried out.

Alert staff to any unexpected needs of new students ina timely manner.

VRCBVI Volunteer Council

The Council, incorporated as a nonprofit organization in 1989, was established to provide support for the Virginia Rehabilitation Center for the Blind and those citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia receiving services through the Center.

The Council consists of Virginia Rehabilitation Center for the Blind volunteers, representatives from business, civic and community organizations, church groups, service-oriented sororities and fraternities, former clients of VRCB, Center staff and other interested individuals.

The role of the Council is to support the Virginia Rehabilitation Center for the Blind. The VRCB's primary objective is to help visually impaired and blind individuals overcome the barriers imposed by loss of vision and regain their independence.

The Council assists with public information, fund raising and volunteer recruiting. Their website is http://www.lions24b.org/VRCBVC