NO ISSUES

The down sides are minimal really--you get a lot for free from these wonderful folks.

STUDENT MISBEHAVIOR

Volunteers see students acting out, misbehaving .  Some parents use the library to watch their kids in school - “helicoptering”!

SHOOTING YOURSELF in the FOOT

The downside is the appearance to the community that you can do it all alone. I'll never have an aide.

Administrators who consider the library program to be an "extra" or a holding tank for students who are otherwise unoccupied see volunteers as a cheap alternative to employing a professional.

CONFIDENTIALITY / BOUNDARIES

I worry about student privacy when students and parents are working the circulation desk.

The only concern is access to student circulation records and personal information.

The downside is the volunteers know about the students' behavior during library classes and what they check out. I know some of my parents talk to other parents outside school. I try to remind them not to discuss things they see during class. I actually had to downsize the volunteer list during the past few years since some parents have their own agenda during library classes. Some will try to discuss things with teachers, the principal, or spy on what is happening in the school. I usually let my principal know who I am planning on inviting for volunteers and discuss why some parents will not be asked to volunteer. He is usually in agreement and supports my decision since my students come first with their library education.

Occasionally, a volunteer's motive for being in school is more to get dirt on teachers and students than to work in the library. I've had to revise training a few times to be sure all parents understand that what they see and hear in the LMC has to stay private. I also have learned to discourage any questions about specific teachers and trained other staff to only say postive things or that they don't know the answer to prying questions.

Some volunteers can see the library as an opportunity to get "inside" the school and find out what's really going on, for the purpose of reporting to people on the outside.

Some individuals use the time spent in the library as an opportunity to "buttonhole" teachers for info about their children.

Having volunteers do tasks once done by staff means they have access to library records containing information about students and staff they wouldn't otherwise have.  Common sense, courtesy, directly telling volunteers that personal information must be kept private, and then watchfulness, are our only tools for protecting our patrons. We are also able to restrict access to the database through password levels. They do not have access to everything.

As teachers, we understand the larger picture that volunteers may not be able to grasp when they just get snippets of information about students, staff, and school culture. This may lead to false perceptions and gossip.

Another problem can be the volunteer who wants to do a library make-over for you.  Maybe re-write your lost book letter, or change a procedure she's been asked to follow.  This requires a serious conversation about expectations. 

QUALITY OF WORK

Tasks are not always done professionally.  Errors are made.  I don't always have time for proper training.

Always there are some who are better than others at the tasks you give them.  I have had books badly mis-shelved on more than one occasion. 

It increases circulation errors, but we can usually sort those out.

LACK OF COMMITMENT/ NOT RELIABLE

I've spent time training volunteers who never show up again. When a volunteer is sick or off traveling there is no substitute available and things can get really backed up.

They are not very reliable. I have a list of about 6 parents who indicated their intent to volunteer but they are not willing to commit to regular times. And I don't like to nag.

The down side of using senior volunteers is that they have many health issues, which keeps their attendance irregular.  Also they don't come in when the weather is questionable. Overall volunteers need to be trained and retrained; they forget from week to week or job to job. 

The down side is that attendance is spotty.  When other things come up, they don't come.  Sometimes I know this ahead of time, sometimes I don't.  There are days when the books pile up and I have to wait until a day when a volunteer shows up.

Understandably, volunteers do not come in when other areas of their lives conflict with their weekly volunteer hours. We cannot, therefore, rely too heavily on their presence, lest we find ourselves suddenly burdened with duties we thought someone else would perform.

Volunteers are not expected to work when their children are sick.  At busy times, like the holidays, it is difficult for some to make their volunteer commitment.  This has an impact on the library.

IT TAKES TIME

Volunteers don't always remember all the policies and they have to ask me a fair number of clarifying questions.

The one thing that administrators seem to conveniently forget is that it takes staff time to train volunteers. 

There is a lot of training and supervision involved to insure that various jobs are done correctly and consistently.  Training volunteers is labor intensive and, unless a volunteer is prepared to give a long-term commitment, sometimes not cost-effective.

I have to remember when they are coming so I am prepared with things they can do.

Sometimes we have to "manufacture" things for them to do.
(This usually occurs shortly after the initial call for volunteers in early Fall.)
 A certain amount of time is taken up interacting/talking with volunteers, encouraging part of their feeling of belonging/being appreciated. This is actually pleasant, but it can be time-consuming.

Sometimes I wonder if the amount of time spent training/instructing the volunteer and checking (sometimes re-doing) their work is worth the effort.
The help we've gotten is unpredicatable in terms of scheduling.

Some volunteers need more training than I have time to give.

SOCIALIZING     

I sometimes find that parent volunteers want to socialize with either me or other teachers when they come in the school.

Some socialize too much with the teachers and or students - but it is  minor in my school.

EXPOSURE

Feeling "on display" to parents much more than any other staff member.

DIFFICULTY TO RECRUIT

It's also difficult to recruit them!

NEGATIVE BEHAVIOR

It would be politically harmful to ask a volunteer to stop coming in, but some volunteers can behave in ways that are not appropriate for school, such as cursing.

Rude behavior (talking on cell phone while I am working with students)

LIABILITY / STUDENT SUPERVISION

I'm concerned about the liability issue when a volunteer is left in charge of a group of students. 

They are legally not responsible to supervise the students and they don't want to.

Another problem is that they don't know the children and with all the special needs students we have, this can be a problem in knowing when to enforce particular rules.