Hello all,
I'm one of the regular volunteers at The Velocity Bicycle Cooperative in Alexandria, Virginia. I'm reaching out on behalf of our Coop to see what kind of training programs other bicycle coops may have available to share. We're evaluating all training program options so anything you have to get us started would be really beneficial. Thank you!
Bayley Velocity Bicycle Coop 2111 Mt. Vernon Ave, Alexandria http://velocitycoop.org/
---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Bayley Vanderpoel bayley.vanderpoel@velocitycoop.org Date: Fri, Aug 23, 2013 at 9:18 AM Subject: Velocity Bicycle Mechanic Training Program To: John Patterson john.patterson@velocitycoop.org
John,
I think one of Velocity's challenges with volunteer recruitment & retention is keeping the beginners engaged and feeling productive, particularly when things are slow in the shop. I often see beginner volunteers standing around uncertain of what to do without significant amounts of supervision. I think that even more would-be volunteers are interested in volunteering but they're discouraged with their lack of a maintenance skills.
I'd like to propose organizing a bicycle mechanic training program, the main objectives being to keep volunteers engaged & self sufficient, ensuring a well rounded education, and useful support of our activities. It would be great if this program could be checklist & guidebook focused and not instructor led so the burden wouldn't fall so heavy on any current volunteers. Perhaps there's many levels of bicycle mechanic and you have to complete a checklist of activities to get to the next level. i.e., each level getting more complex then the last. I think a program like this would be particularly beneficial in the winter when volunteers will have plenty of time for bike builds.
If you're interested in an idea like this, is it ok if I reach out to the ThinkTank distribution list and ask what sort of training programs are already out there that we could potentially evaluate adopting, or would you prefer someone from the board to email them? If you're ok with me asking on behalf of Velocity, then I'll follow up with you to show you what I've found and what I think can be beneficial for helping recruit, educate, and retain volunteers.
Bayley