Launching new volunteer portal
WASHINGTON, DC—Volunteers are often considered the backbone of our agency. Beyond volunteers, the Forest Service also relies on work from those who contribute service activities—that is, those whom we reward either financially or otherwise, e.g., with educational credits. Tracking these contributions is vital—so we know who is contributing, how much they’re contributing and, for those contributing service, if they are eligible for any positions or special hiring events.
That’s why the Forest Service is unveiling an extension to its reporting system for volunteerism and service activities (VSReports) called the Portal. The Portal will aid in workforce development and job training for young people, returning veterans, and others who are unemployed or underemployed or interested in natural resources career paths.
Partners and staff with workforce development agreements that engage crews, students, and interns on paid and otherwise rewarded work experiences will be required to collect and enter information such as the type of work accomplished, number of hours, education and eligibility for special hiring authorities, where applicable.
The Portal will soft launch in April for FY 2022 reporting and open to all workforce development agreement holders in FY 2023.
The agency will hold two training events for the Portal: one for employees and another for partners.
- Employee training: April 7, 2 p.m. EDT
- Partner training: April 14, 2 p.m. EDT
- This second session will provide information about the application and how cooperators can gain access, what data will be requested, and how it will be used.
VSReports is a web-based application hosted at the Forest Service data center. It has served as a repository of volunteers and service performance data since 2012. Volunteer, community and national service partnerships and project activities, outcomes and accomplishments are entered by staffs across all deputy areas who work with partners and volunteers.