Volunteer Opportunities

In collaboration with our community partners, Build It offers ongoing opportunities for volunteers to work and learn in schools and nonprofit organizations in Northside Richmond neighborhoods. These long-term service experiences, combined with opportunities for study and reflection, facilitate the sustained personal relationships that are the foundation of the Build It initiative. As individuals from different ends of Richmond’s geographic – and at times, economic – spectrum learn more about life on the other side, they begin to consider the underlying causes behind their differences and similarities. This type of reflective dialogue can help a diverse community work together to spur social change in Richmond and beyond.

In order to receive a placement at a Build It site during fall 2008 or spring 2009, all volunteers must commit to working at their site for at least one hour per week for at one semester, and preferably for the entire year. New volunteers must attend an orientation session, where they will receive a registration form. Returning volunteers must complete a new registration form each academic year. Individuals who submit their registration to the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement (Tyler Haynes Commons, 201) according to the timeline indicated on the registration form will be placed on the volunteer schedule. Please see the calendar for orientation sessions and volunteer start dates.

Brief descriptions of current Build It volunteer opportunities are provided below. For more information about the partner organizations, please visit the Build It partners page or click on the organization name to link to their Web site.

For additional information about Build It, or to find out more about how you, your class, or organization can can get involved, please contact the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement (CCE) at (804) 484-1600 or engage@richmond.edu.

Volunteers are asked to submit a semester-end evaluation of their Build It experience. Such feedback helps the CCE steadily improve Build It.

Boaz & Ruth
3030 Meadowbridge Rd., Richmond, VA 23222
Phone: (804) 329-4900

Boaz & Ruth is a nonprofit organization in Highland Park with a threefold mission: the successful re-entry of ex-offenders into society, achieved in part by providing job and life-skills training as well as caring and coaching relationships for ex-offenders; neighborhood revitalization, achieved through renovating properties and starting new neighborhood businesses; and interracial and cross-cultural dialogue. Build It volunteers have served in a number of ways, including offering ex-offenders one-on-one tutoring in computer skills (email, Web search, Word, and Excel), writing skills, and elementary math. Others have taken on administrative duties or assisted in building renovations in support of long-term Boaz & Ruth projects.

Volunteer shifts available Monday – Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Driving directions and contact information

Chandler Middle School
201 E. Brookland Park Blvd., Richmond, VA 23222
Phone: (804) 780-4332

Fax: (804) 780-4423

Chandler is a Richmond public middle school (grades 6-8) located in Highland Park. Build It volunteers serve as classroom aides during the school day and offer tutoring and homework assistance after school. In addition, Build It volunteers may participate in the mentoring program AMP! Metro Richmond. Amp! mentors and mentees meet on a one-on-one basis on Fridays during lunch between noon and 1:00 p.m., beginning Friday, September 19, with the aim of creating self-confidence, stimulating learning, and encouraging career discovery for at-risk youth. AMP! mentors must attend one of two orientation sessions: 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. on Friday, September 12, or 10 a.m. - 1 p.m., Tuesday, September 16. All volunteers serving at Chandler--whether as classroom aides, AMP! mentors, or after-school tutors--must register with the Keep N Track system and log into the Keep N Track console located in the school's front office every time they volunteer.

Volunteer shifts available Monday – Friday between 8:10 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

Driving directions and contact information

Hotchkiss Field Community Center
701 E. Brookland Park Blvd., Richmond, VA 23222
Phone: (804) 646-4466

The Hotchkiss Field Community Center in Highland Park provides after-school programs and athletic activities for youth and serves a hot meal at its Kids Cafe each evening from approximately 4 p.m. - 5 p.m. Most Build It volunteers help coach sports teams from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. and work at the Kids Café. Football and cheerleading season runs from early August through late November; basketball season from early December through early March; baseball, softball, and soccer season from mid-March to early June; and track and field season from mid-March to late July. In addition to coaching sports teams, a few UR volunteers are needed to lead Fitness Fun, a noncompetitive fitness program.

Volunteer shifts available Monday – Friday between 3:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Driving directions and contact information

Overby-Sheppard Elementary School
2300 First Ave., Richmond, VA 23222
Phone: (804) 329-2515

Fax: (804) 780-4321

Overby-Sheppard, a Highland Park elementary school serving children in kindergarten through fifth grade, is part of the Richmond Public School (RPS) system. Build It volunteers assist with the Voyager reading program (K - 2), serve as aides in science and history classrooms (3 - 5), read to children in the cafeteria during their lunch period (10:30 a.m.-12:55 p.m.), and offer tutoring assistance and lead enrichment activities in two after-school programs, the Bumblebee Academy (3:00-4:30 p.m., Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, beginning in early October) and the Department of Parks and Recreation's After School Program (2:40-5:30 p.m., Monday - Friday). All volunteers serving at Overby-Sheppard must register with the RPS Keep N Track system and log into the Keep N Track computer console located in the school office every time they volunteer. Anyone wishing to volunteer during the school day (8:10 a.m. - 2:40 p.m.) should contact Overby-Sheppard principal Susan Stokes (329-2525, sstokes2@richmond.k12.va.us). Volunteers working with the Bumblebee Academy should contact volunteer coordinator Lillian Mayo (329-2515, lmayo@richmond.k12.va.us). In addition to recruiting tutors, Ms. Mayo is currently seeking volunteers to lead a chess club, a cheerleading team, and a step team. She would also like to find a UR student to set up a database to analyze OS students' academic progress by tracking their test scores. Volunteers working with the Parks and Rec-sponsored After School Program should contact volunteer coordinator Flo Grigg (646-1624, Florence.Grigg@richmondgov.com) to schedule an orientation meeting; they will also need to provide documentation of a current (within the last two years) TB screening either from their family doctor or from the University’s health clinic.

Volunteer shifts available Monday – Friday between 8:10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.

Driving directions and contact information

Reach Out and Read Virginia
Dr. Carolyn Boone's Office, 505 W. Leigh St., Richmond, VA 23220

Phone at ROR administrative office: (804) 521-0425

Fax at ROR administrative office: (804) 282-7835

Phone at Dr. Boone's office: (804) 783-8788

Reach Out and Read Virginia works within pediatric primary-care facilities in Northside and Church Hill neighborhoods to offer books and literacy education to families with young children. Build It volunteers read to children and families in the doctors’ waiting rooms and coordinate book drives for the programs.

Volunteer shifts are available at Dr. Carolyn Boone's office at 505 W. Leigh St. as follows: Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and Wednesdays and Fridays 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

Driving directions and contact information for Dr. Boone's office

Youth Life Foundation of Richmond

Highland Park Learning Center

3076 Meadowbridge Rd., Richmond, VA 23222

Phone: (804) 321-1381

Fax: (804) 321-1382

The Youth Life Foundation of Richmond (YLFR) will open its Highland Park Learning Center, located in the Northside Outreach Center at 3076 Meadowbridge Rd., on September 8, 2008, with an after-school program. Initially the learning center will serve 15 children in kindergarten through fifth grade. Mentors work with the same one or two children every time, helping them with character development and academics. YLFR differs from many other tutoring/mentoring programs in its level of intensity (the children are tutored one-on-one by adult mentors every day after school) and its duration (the children are encouraged to remain in the program through their senior year in high school). The YLFR lead teacher provides mentors with a detailed lesson plan to follow for every session. Children who have behaved well throughout the week may participate in Fun Friday activities, which include field trips and guest speakers. Although YLFR is a Christian-based organization, children and volunteers participating in the program do not have to be Christian.  

Volunteer shifts available Monday – Friday between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., beginning the week of September 8, 2008. 

Driving directions and contact information