Volunteer Spotlight: Karissa Vandenberg

Author: JA Lincoln
Community Involvement
Published: Wednesday, 07 Oct 2020

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School might look different this year, but JA of Lincoln volunteers are still making an impact in classrooms!

For the last month, community volunteers have been visiting classrooms via Zoom, delivering the JA curriculum and interacting with students in three 15 minute sessions. Although the sessions are shorter than in previous years, teachers are reporting that students are enjoying the lessons and the normalcy provided by the JA volunteers and activities. In addition to the time spent on Zoom with the community volunteers, students also complete hands-on JA activities in class with their teachers.

For an inside perspective on how the new virtual volunteer system is working, we reached out to JA Classroom Volunteer Karissa Vandenberg. Here’s what she had to say about the experience!

Volunteer Spotlight: Karissa Vandenberg

How long have you been volunteering for Junior Achievement?

This is my first year.

What do you enjoy most about volunteering for Junior Achievement?

I enjoy seeing how excited the students are to learn about the topics and how much they like to interact with the questions.

What is your favorite JA classroom memory from your virtual volunteer experience?

I volunteered with second graders. The question was what job they would be good at with the skills they have. One student answered "an ice cream taster" and one answered "a race car driver because I'm good at driving".

Why should people be a virtual volunteer with JA?

The time commitment with virtual volunteering is minimal but the impact on the students is significant. Even through Zoom I could see each day how excited they were for our sessions.

What advice would you give someone who is going to be a virtual volunteer in a JA classroom?

Meet with the teacher prior to the sessions. Since volunteers aren't able to be in the classroom to learn the students' names and call on them ourselves, collaborating with the teacher is even more important to have successful, interactive sessions!

Ready to volunteer? We need you! To sign up to become a virtual JA volunteer, visit bit.ly/JALNKEngage