Volunteer Description

Volunteers play a very important role in the services that Centro Para Familias Hispanas provides. Volunteers work with poor and vulnerable families of all faith traditions, and with a significant portion being only Spanish-speaking. A volunteer can be trained to assist with our family support services. Responsibilities and opportunities include: conducting screening interviews to identify clients’ needs, assisting with resume writing and employment opportunities, and working in the childcare area. Other areas a volunteer could assist in include: filing, reception, entering data, and organizing.

Internship Opportunity Descriptions

Basic eligibility requirements for all internship applicants:

Bilingual (Spanish and English); conversational level fluency preferred in Spanish

Be a current and active student at a university or college

Flexible, adaptable and reliable

• Placement Hours: If a student has to fulfill placement hours as required for a course and do not have a preference, then they can choose any of the focus areas described below.

Focus areas include Spanish Language, Social Work, Child Development, Immigration, and Marketing/Development.

Spanish Language Focus

CPFH offers a great opportunity for Spanish majors or for those students who wish to better their Spanish-speaking proficiency. The Center offers this opportunity by way of direct client interviews in which the student interacts with a client through 5-10 minute interviews in which the student provides the client a referral for emergency assistance as well as assessing and addressing any other needs they may have. This includes information about the agency’s programs and services, referral to the Case Manager for in-depth case management, or information and referral to outside agencies and services. Student may be asked, on occasion, to assist with other programs and duties during the scheduled time. Open positions are available depending on the day and scheduled amount of interns/volunteers.  The hours of operation for this description are: Monday – Friday (Depending on availability), 10am – 1pm.

Social Work Focus

CPFH has a long-standing history working with universities to provide a hands on and qualifying internship for MSW students. The intern would shadow and assist the Case Management Coordinator in the various aspects of the agency. These include, but not limited to:

• Providing emergency assistance referrals through direct client interviews
• Assessing client needs and addressing them through either direct services or information and referral to external services and agencies.
• Database management and input. Learning and performing the recording of program and case data.
• Assisting the Case Manager in coordinating programs, services, cases, etc, as well as other staff members.
• Assistance in the agency’s other programs and services.
• Insight into counseling with LCSW counselors and homeless/at-risk support circle program.
• Assisting and attending trainings and/or workshops and meetings alongside staff.

The student would handle cases at the discretion of the Case Manager and will be responsible for maintaining follow-up with those cases and reporting to the Case Manager. The student will also sit down with the Case Manager and MSW Supervisor for weekly supervisions.

Child Development Focus

CPFH provides a dialogical reading program, Language is the Key, which seeks to teach parents of children, ages 0-5, effective strategies that promote language development and put young children on the pathway to literacy. The program is held in various locations across the county, including our office location, where we reach out to identified Hispanic communities. The student will assist the Parent Educator in administering the class, assuring that parents are registered, that the children are situated and, if needed, to administer the class themselves as the Parent Educator sees appropriate. Through this program, the student will also observe the developmental levels of the children and assist the Parent Educator in performing developmental screenings, as deemed appropriate. Through these screenings, the child can be referred to receive a developmental evaluation and receive needed services (speech, developmental, behavioral, etc.) The student will also assist in following up with these cases and making sure of communication between the parent and the evaluation agency.

• Monday – Friday (Days vary depending on number of sites for the quarter);
• Class: 9:30am – 11:00am; Case management, data input, and home visits would occur after the class and either in a home-visit setting or in the office location:  11:00am – 5:00pm.
• Hours of internship/placement can be adapted to the student; however, it would be minimally necessary to be from 9:30am – 1:00pm on days that the class is given.
• Transportation-wise, student would be riding with the Parent Educator to sites and/or home-visits, etc.

Immigration Focus

CPFH has bilingual personnel who is Accredited by the Department of Justice, and affiliated with Catholic Legal Immigration Center, Inc. (CLINIC) for legal support. Interns and volunteers would work under the supervision of the Accredited Representative by doing client’s intake, participate in case review, conduct client follow-ups and set appointments; act as an interpreter and translate documents. Volunteers can make copies of the applications and secure files in the proper cabinets, can assist in entering data into the database. Volunteers can assist in the organization of workshops and presentations. All training for interns and volunteers is provided by the DOJ Representative.

• Bilingual (English and Spanish) is preferred, but not necessary
• Perform client intake
• Contact of clients to schedule appointments or follow-ups
• Organization and filing of immigration cases
• Good organization and communication skills.