Animal Welfare Professionals

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  • 1.  Online Volunteer Training

    Posted 09-23-2023 12:15 PM

    Hello! We are looking to switch to online volunteer training to make it easier for our volunteer coordinator, who is also a volunteer.  If anyone has recommendations for online training programs (including cost) or any advice, we would greatly appreciate it.  Thank you!


    #PeopleManagement(includingVolunteerIntegration)

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    Tanila Smith
    Executive Director
    It Takes A Village No-Kill Rescue
    IN
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  • 2.  RE: Online Volunteer Training

    Posted 09-25-2023 06:38 AM

    Hi Tanila! 

    We use TrakStar Learn to train our staff, and it could easily be used for volunteers. It has the ability to upload videos, documents, and other forms of media as learning materials. It also allows you to create modules/quizzes over the material to test the volunteer/staff member's knowledge. 

    I'm unsure what the price of this is, but I think it would be a great solution for you! 



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    Tiffany Ditto
    Director of Marketing and Communications
    Texas Coalition for Animal Protection
    TX
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Online Volunteer Training

    Posted 09-27-2023 09:15 AM

    Tiffany, did y'all create your own training videos or do you use pre-made videos?  I'm interested in hearing what training your employees do for safe animal handling.  



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    Ondrea Johnson
    Director
    Williamson County Animal Center
    Franklin TN
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Online Volunteer Training

    Posted 09-28-2023 11:18 AM

    We created our own videos and uploaded them to the platform. 



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    Tiffany Ditto
    Director of Marketing and Communications
    Texas Coalition for Animal Protection
    TX
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Online Volunteer Training

    Posted 09-28-2023 11:08 AM

    Hi, Tanila:

    Online volunteer training can be as simple as posting a video, followed by a link to a quiz created in Google Forms or any other platform, followed by a link to a questionnaire/sign up. There are lots of examples of this, but I just saw this one from AAWL for foster training/sign up: https://aawl.org/content/online-foster-orientation. I think purchasing a learning management system (LMS) would be overkill for most organizations, and it's better to keep it simple. Also, it eliminates the barrier of the volunteer having to log in to the LMS, which can pose a challenge for some learners. 

    Maddie's Fund also offers a free service of space on Maddie's University for shelters and foster-based orgs where you can place Maddie's training. This tends to be more useful for staff professional development than for volunteers, since the volunteer training tends to be very org-specific. But some orgs have used Maddie's U successfully for volunteers, especially for training to extend skills. For instance, we have a Dog Handling in the Shelter course that is popular, as well as a Feline Communication course. For fosters, we have courses such as Bringing a New Dog Home, Helping a New Dog Adjust, and Caring for Orphaned Kittens . 

    I wish you luck with building your online volunteer training! That is the way to go, for sure. The potential volunteer can complete anytime, and as you note, it takes a huge load off the volunteer coordinator. Onboarding time can be significantly reduced.

    For questions about free training sites on Maddie's University, anyone can email me at erika@maddiesfund.org.

    Best,

    Erika 



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    Erika Shaffer
    Maddie's Fund
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    Original Message


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