Can Students Do This Work? What Makes NSP Volunteers Qualified for Client Service? How Can We Partner?

NSP is proud to compliment the efforts of hundreds of established social service organizations in 12 communities across the country. By establishing mutual referral relationships, we work together to strengthen the safety net by filling gaps in services and promoting community collaboration. There are countless ways NSP and its community partners work together to meet the needs of community members and to strengthen our neighborhoods.

NSP and Social Service Providers: Helping You Serve Your Clients Better
One Partnership at a Time

You work hard for your clients, and at the end of the day, you may not have the time you would like to give them the individualized attention they need in finding a job, or housing, or child care. Imagine having somebody available to walk your clients through the process…from helping them to write a resume, to finding jobs that best suit their interests and abilities, to coaching them in interviewing skills and job retention. Imagine having someone to go with your clients to help them find housing or to make phone calls to find education or training programs, child care, or other services. This person is supportive and knowledgeable…and is a student volunteer. This person is available in your community right now and wants to work with you to help your clients reach their goals.

Can Students Do This Work?
Yes! Clients can uniquely benefit from working with NSP student volunteers in many ways. To begin, clients are assured that volunteers are there because they want to be, the same way volunteers know clients are not mandated to see them. This makes it easier for the client and volunteer to trust each other and get right to work. Secondly, student volunteers often have more time to spend one-on-one with clients by having very low “caseloads” enabling them to provide very individualized attention to each of their clients. Thirdly, NSP volunteers are thoroughly trained at national conferences and trainings to provide their clients with caring and comprehensive services. Finally, being new at client service, students have a lot of energy and enthusiasm for what’s possible and feel optimistic and creative about how they can help their clients reach their goals. The relaxed environment of an NSP office creates a unique balance between professionalism and informality that fosters meaningful relationships between the students and clients that keeps them both coming back. NSP has proven that the skills and spirit of service students possess can make lasting impacts on the lives of the clients and communities we serve.

What Makes NSP Volunteers Qualified for Client Service?
NSP student volunteers are supervised on-site by a full-time Americorps*National Direct Site Coordinator, as well as Local Directors who are student leaders within the organization. NSP Site Coordinators have graduated from college and have proven themselves as leaders on their campuses and in their communities. NSP's National Office, based in Washington, DC, provides Local Offices with the full-time management resources, tools, and skills they need to provide consistent, high-quality client service. In addition, the National Office helps Local Offices recruit and train dedicated, dependable student volunteers. With assistance from the National Office, the Local Directors and Site Coordinators have designed a comprehensive training to prepare student volunteers to serve clients with the creativity and care NSP is known for.

The National Office staff includes Tony Brunswick, a nationally certified, Masters-level therapist/counselor (M.S., NCC). Tony is NSP’s national Director of Programs and has over 10 years experience in the non-profit community in the areas of social work, counseling, and working with marginalized populations. Tony is continually monitoring and assessing the quality of services provided by the local offices. Tony, along with the Program Team he manages, oversees and provides both on-site and off-site training and technical assistance to each of NSP’s 12 Local Offices. He and his staff are available by phone for on-the-spot consultation to students anytime. NSP volunteers understand their boundaries, what services they can and cannot provide, and routinely seek guidance from the National Office, community partners, and colleagues in order to provide the best client service possible.

How Can We Partner?
NSP was founded on the principle of partnership. We partner with students to provide the services, with clients to do our work together, with businesses to help our clients find employment, and with service providers to strengthen the network of services in the community. There are a variety of ways that we can partner together, based on the level of involvement you are interested in:

• Refer your clients to NSP. You have services that will benefit our clients, and we have services that can benefit yours. Simply give us a call or send your clients to us and tell us about your program so that we might make appropriate referrals to your services.
• Tell your colleagues about NSP. Encourage other agencies you work with to refer clients to us. Our students are always looking to meet with potential partners about how we can work together.
• Help us train our volunteers. The NSP leadership in the Local Offices is continually looking for social service providers in the community willing to share their expertise by serving as guest speakers at volunteer trainings or mentors to consult on a range of client and community service topics.
• Become a Local Advisory Board member. NSP will ask particularly committed community partners to join the Local Advisory Board, which meets periodically throughout the year to help guide and advise the NSP office. Your experience, ideas, and connections will help us ensure that NSP continues to provide a valuable service to the community.

For more information about becoming an NSP community partner, please contact your NSP Local Office!