Dear _____________________________,





We're happy to hear of your interest in becoming a volunteer at Long Island Crisis Center. Volunteers are very important people - they are the life-blood of the agency; we couldn't operate without them. The purpose of this letter is to provide you with some basic information about our agency and about the role volunteers play in what we do.


Volunteer Opportunities

At this time, Long Island Crisis Center is seeking individuals interested in being trained to become crisis intervention counselors or counselor assistants.

Crisis Counselors answer the hotlines, counsel online via the Internet, and counsel any clients who choose to walk-in. Their job is essentially to help people under stress explore their feelings and problems. They also provide general information about problem areas, and when appropriate, offer referrals.

All volunteers train FIRST as Counselor Assistants. Counselor assistants help the counselors, answer the business phones or, if interested, can join our community outreach team. Counselor Assistant (C.A.) training consists of three sessions (two 3-hour sessions, and one 2-hour session) to familiarize new volunteers with agency policies and procedures. After that, new C.A.'s go to work in the crisis center, under the guidance of experienced volunteers. It is beneficial to be a C.A. for a period of time before going through Counselor Training in order to become acquainted with the agency. Counselor Assistant training is held every month. As part of their commitment, counselor assistants can also do outreach in the community. Volunteers interested in providing outreach to the community must have some daytime, weekday availability. They work at schools, health fairs and community events to educate youth and families about our services. We will provide full training and supervision. Time spent doing outreach work is considered as part of the 6-hour time commitment of Counselor Assistants. If this opportunity is of interest to you, please mention this at your interview.


Counselor Training

Counselors must be 18 by the time they complete Counselor Training. Counselor Training begins with two consecutive weekend sessions (9AM to 6PM Saturdays, Noon to 6PM Sundays), during which trainees learn the fundamentals of crisis counseling. Training groups are small, friendly and informal. The training consists of lectures by staff or outside agency, readings, group discussions, and experiential exercises (like role-plays). The weekend sessions are followed by 20 weekly, 3 hour information sessions devoted to the variety of topics about which clients call. Trainees must also participate in a weekly 3-hour observation shift with an experienced crisis counselor at a time convenient for them.

Our Counselor Training program, consisting of more than 250 hours, is generally regarded as the most extensive of its kind in the country. The communication and counseling skills that you learn at Long Island Crisis Center are skills you can utilize for a lifetime.


Support

Everyone at Long Island Crisis Center is sensitive to the demands of crisis counseling; as such, we go out of our way to support each other. For trainees, the training group is one source of such support. Each trainee is assigned a "mentor," an experienced counselor who serves as the trainee's personal tutor. Other counselors and administrative staff are available as well for advice and encouragement. The work of each counselor, in short, is made easier by an atmosphere of teamwork, caring and mutual support.


Time Commitments

Each volunteer is asked to commit him/herself to at least six hours each week. The six hours do not have to be done all at once. They can be spread over a one week period of time according to your availability. Because of the amount of time that goes into training, volunteers are expected to make a commitment to stay as a volunteer for at least six (6) months. Therefore, people who are looking to volunteer for a shorter time would not be appropriate for L.I.C.C. In addition, crisis counselors MUST promise to PAY BACK to the Agency the 200 hours of training in hotline shifts, which takes approximately eight months. This "pay back" starts once the volunteer has attained the status of "solo" counselor.


Field Placements & Internships

If you're planning to volunteer at Long Island Crisis Center for a Field Placement or Internship for your College or University, you must contact Linda or Theresa before scheduling an interview.


Training Schedule

Counselor Training is held approximately three times each year. The next counselor training session (marathon) is: Saturday, September 20, 2008 (9:30am - 5:30pm) and Sunday, September 21 (12:30pm - 5:30pm) and Saturday, September 27 (9:30am - 5:30pm) and Sunday, September 28 (12:30pm-5:30pm) . Information sessions will be held on Tuesdays from 7pm-10pm from September 30-January 27, 2009. It is beneficial to be a Counselor Assistant for at least one month, and those trainings are held monthly. So, you are welcome to begin volunteering as soon as you have the interview.

If you're interested in becoming a Crisis Center volunteer, please call our Administrative Assistant, Bettina, at 516-826-0244 to schedule an interview. The interview, which lasts about an hour, gives you a chance to tell us something about yourself and ask any questions you have about us. You will receive a letter within a week after your interview informing you of the result. We hope to hear from you soon!!!!