• Never be alone in a room/setting with a student.
• Never touch or have physical contact of any kind with a student.
• Never use language or actions that could be considered sexist, discriminatory or suggestive.
• Remember that discipline is the responsibility of the teacher.
• Both during and outside of your volunteer experience do not discuss students, staff or school business that is personal, negative or confidential.
• Never socialize with students outside of the classroom context.
• Respect the privacy of the student, teachers and administration with whom you work. Do not discuss private or confidential information.

Providing a safe environment in which a student can have a trusting relationship with an adult mentor is a priceless gift. It may be valued for a lifetime. If you ever need help balancing caring with proper boundaries, consult with the school district coordinator.

Patience

One tends to think of technology as a cerebral topic that does not involve much emotion. However, for people trying to learn technology, especially those who are slow to pick it up, it can be a very trying subject that elicits feelings of inadequacy or incompetence. This is even true with people who may be very intelligent and extremely accomplished in other areas. Therefore, it is important that you remain patient and work at an appropriate pace for your client(s).

If you are providing instruction and you are working with a person that continually tries your patience, discuss the problem with your School District Coordinator, or someone else in your network to see if the situation can be resolved. In some cases, it may mean you and your client are just not a good match. In others, it may mean even mean that you are not suited for working on this type of project and the school may need to find a replacement project or client for you. Likewise, if you encounter similar problems working with a lot of different people you many need to evaluate whether instruction or mentoring are the right type of volunteering situations for you. There may be other ways you can work with TECH CORPS Illinois . It should be fun for everyone, including you!

Responsibility

Please arrive on time and avoid missing appointments. If you must miss one, notify the appropriate person(s) before the appointment and reschedule. Please maintain work areas and throw away refuse. Please leave any area that you use, including lunch or break areas, in the condition in which you find them.

Adhering to high standards will leave you in a strong position should you eventually want to use your volunteer experience as a resource for employment references, to network for a job in the community, or to secure peer evaluations or recommendations from others on your team.

Click here to download and print the volunteer handbook.