Volunteer Navigator Program
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Volunteer Navigator Training Program
Are you a trusted community member? Learn how to connect neighbors, friends and family to resources and help your community!
Join the Peer Workforce Volunteer Navigator Training Series. This 8 hour program provides participants with practical skills and knowledge about how to connect fellow community members to important public assistance programs and opportunities. $200 stipends are available for all volunteers who complete the training. Starts July 17.
Volunteer Navigator Training Program
Are you a trusted community member? Learn how to connect neighbors, friends and family to resources and help your community!
Join the Peer Workforce Volunteer Navigator Training Series. This 8 hour program provides participants with practical skills and knowledge about how to connect fellow community members to important public assistance programs and opportunities. $200 stipends are available for all volunteers who complete the training. Starts July 17.
What is a Volunteer Navigator?
We are recruiting 10-12 volunteer navigators from across the state of Maine.
Once volunteers complete the training, they will be able to better support community members applying for jobs and training, and public benefits like unemployment or food stamps. We know that Volunteer Navigators are already trusted resources for these kinds of questions, and hope this training will equip them with additional tools to help people get the resources they deserve and need. Volunteer Navigators will add valuable perspective and help PWN identify barriers to accessing resources, so we can advocate for systemic changes.
Program Details
Who can apply to be a Volunteer Navigator?
We welcome people from across Maine, of all identities and background to apply! This training program is a great fit for anyone who wants to learn more about helping their community, or for people who want to gain additional knowledge as they support friends and neighbors navigating social services and the workforce. This training is great for someone who might be active in their church or mosque, or who works with families in a school or day care, within a cultural association, or other community group. Social work students or people looking to build job skills are also welcome to apply. You do not need a valid work permit to participate in this opportunity.
Program Details & Information:
DATE: Training will begin in July 2023. Sessions will take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays between the weeks of July 17th - July 28th, for a total of 8 training hours. Time of day will depend on particiapnt schedules.
LOCATION: Training will occur mostly online, with the potential for some in-person opportunieis as well. TBD on location of participants.
Other details: Volunteers will receive a certificate after completion of the training program, as well as a $200 stipend for their time. We will be offering this first training series in English, but we encourage multi-lingual participants to apply. Our Peer Workforce Navigator team speaks multiple languages and we strive to make our materials available in as many languages as possible.
What is the Peer Workforce Navigator Project?
The Peer Workforce Navigator (PWN) Project is a collaboration across 5 community-based organizations throughout Maine: Food AND Medicine, Gateway Community Services Maine, Maine AFL-CIO, Maine Equal Justice and Prosperity Maine. Learn more here.
Each agency employs a Peer Workforce Navigator, who works directly with community members and in partnership with the Maine Department of Labor. Navigators collaborate one-on-one with community members to help them find good, supportive jobs and connect to government programs that can help meet their needs and goals.
PWN strives to not only to facilitate connections to community resources, but to document any trends and systemic barriers that community members may experience. Through our partnership with the Department of Labor, we are able to share these observations and work to co-create informed solutions to the best of our ability. We look forward to adding Volunteer Navigators to our team! Join us.
