VISTA Monthly Meeting

1. VISTA Monthly Meeting 11/27/2012

2. Thoughts or Concerns Please feel free to let us know anything that may be on your mind or bothering you that you would like to discuss. If you feel the need to talk at a different time more privately, please do so.

3. New VISTA Leader/Site Split

4. Monthly Reports • Now due: Friday, December 7th • Data Updates: • Please try to be as accurate as possible. • From yesterday’s meeting: we will try to make appropriate changes so that you can more accurately reflect numbers, until then don’t stress and just try your best • Examples: • If a student is a volunteer count one for each section • Cash resources: grants, scholarship that can have a dollar amount placed on them • Non cash resources: you were able to obtain a speaker for an event that normally charges $300 for an appearance. • If an indicator is not in your VAD, leave the response as “n/a” • i.e., If fund development is not a part of your VAD and you are not expected to raise any funds, leave the indicator as “n/a”

5. Monthly Reports • Project completion • Basic update of what has been completed specifically related to your VAD • i.e., “I finished translating the new patient resource referral sheet and brochure into Spanish, which is a part of the new patient orientation piece of my VAD.”

6. Monthly Reports • Narratives: you are taking many of the “Data Updates” and putting them into words. You are only expected to complete the sections that apply to you for that month. • “I had difficulty training volunteers but found that exercising patience and taking a step back allowed them to solve problems on their own.” Challenges section: give an idea as to what task(s) have been difficult to complete at your site, if you were able to overcome them, and what you did to overcome them. This can also include personal difficulties involved with being an AmeriCorps VISTA member. i.e., housing, food stamp issues, living on the stipend, health care, etc. *If sharing any personal information on this report makes you feel uncomfortable, that is not a problem. Please feel free to e-mail one of us or speak in private anytime if you do wish to discuss something. *Note: the reports may be viewed by Stacey, Stan, and Jackie (AS220 VISTA director) at AS220* • Recruitment section: If you are responsible for recruiting volunteers, this section is for you to let us know how you are making progress. • Question: “How are you keeping track of the recruited individuals?” • I have created an Excel Spreadsheet where I keep track of individuals I have recruited, their start date, their duty at the organization, and if they have left the org. yet or not.

7. Monthly Reports • Training/Technical assistance: • Let us know any potential training or other assistance opportunities that might benefit you during your service year. We will do our best to help find opportunities for you. • We do have limited funds available for training. • Seminars • Lynda.com trainings • VISTA Campus • Other VISTAs

8. Monthly Reports • Partnership/Collaboration Development • Who are you talking to? Who are you sharing ideas with? • i.e., “The AmeriCorps State/National member and I have begun to share ideas on how to best help individuals apply for prescription assistance programs.”

9. Monthly Reports • Resource Development: (We can change the word “resource” if there is any confusion between this and “fund development”) • i.e., “I have developed a new patient orientation brochure and resource referral sheet to be handed out when new patients come in to the clinic for registration.”

10. Monthly Reports • Sustainability: What are you doing to make sure your legacy remains intact! • i.e., “When good feedback is provided or I personally think of a good change, I will continue to modify the PowerPoint training manual for volunteers when necessary”. • Example of something you have implemented in order to help maintain sustainability

11. Monthly Reports • Financial Resources • “Performed any fundraisers” can mean I volunteered for the organization’s annual golf outing fundraiser for example.

12. Monthly Reports Stories: doesn’t have to be super long, just something that you can briefly tell concerning a project or activity “I verified with an outside nonprofit that assists Seniors that a patient of ours does have Medicare health coverage. Because of this, he can no longer be a patient at our clinic. The patient has a mental disability and receives Social Security disability benefits. He comes in to the clinic often and comes from about 40 minutes away, which is significantly longer than most patients. I tried to learn as much as I could to help the patient with any information concerning his Medicare coverage and joining the prescription drug coverage portion of Medicare, since in the long run we will no longer be able to assist him with his medications through the Prescription Assistance Program. I contacted the patient and informed him of the information that I found and also gave him numbers of doctors that accepted Medicare located much closer to his home. The patient was able to obtain a new medical provider successfully.”

13. Monthly Reports • Attachments and Links • Blogs, websites that you may update or create, social media, brochures, pamphlets, etc. • You are not required to attach anything, but please feel free to do so.

14. Monthly Reports • When you are finished, hand in to your supervisor to allow him/her to make comments • E-mail to Stacey, vistaleader@as220.org • Any other questions/comments • Thoughts on next meeting • Board game night • Poker night • Snow shoe trekking • Awesome PowerPoint