Volunteer

Volunteers and interns are needed throughout The Door’s programs to help us meet the diverse needs of more than 11,000 young people every year. Here are just a few of the volunteer opportunities currently available:

Talent Search

Talent Search focuses on those students who require extra support and guidance as they make their way through high school or a GED program. These are young people who may not be aware that college is accessible or affordable, and/or who may not be able to compete for acceptances to competitive universities without the support of tutors, advisors and mentors.   Talent Search seeks to create a space where young people can use their skills and talents in order to achieve their goals and dreams. There are several different types of volunteer opportunities on the Talent Search Team, including:

• Tutors: Provide one-to-one or small group tutoring in a subject area of your strength.  We offer academic support in all of the following subject areas:  Math, English, US and World History, Science, Reading Comprehension, Writing, exam preparation (Regents/SAT/TOEFL/GED) to native- and non-native English speakers. Tutors do not need to be proficient in all areas — just one area will do.
• Administrative support: Provide support to our Talent Search staff by taking on responsibilities such as conducting intake interviews, creating and organizing student files, providing ongoing outreach to clients and providing administrative support to the Talent Search staff.
• Group leaders: Develop and facilitate workshops or small classes related to academic support (for example, book club, writing workshop, debate team, etc.) or college access (for example, college application workshop, financial aid/scholarship seminar, "Freshman Survival Skills" discussions.)

We ask that volunteers commit to a minimum of three hours per week, Monday-Friday, between the hours of 10:00 a.m. – 7:30 p.m.

To learn more about volunteering with Talent Search, contact Christian Cabrera, Academic Support Services Coordinator at 212-941-9090 ext. 3285 or ccabrera@door.org.

Member Services

The Member Services Department welcomes and orients new members and is responsible for providing a brief interview and intake assessment to all new members.  Appropriate referrals are made by Member Service intake counselors to The Door’s programs based on a young person’s needs and interests.

We offer intensive internships that are suited for students or volunteers who are interested in exploring direct practice social service work or who wish to use the modality of direct practice work to learn more about social problems, youth development models and/or specific youth populations.  These positions will enable students and volunteers to begin to hone interview and assessment skills and effective ways to engage underserved populations of young people. Additionally, students or volunteers who are interested in medicine, education, community organizing, social service programming and/or social welfare policy will have a unique opportunity to work in a multi service social service agency that serves young people with overlapping needs.

We ask that interns and volunteers commit to a minimum of two afternoon shifts per week Monday-Friday, between the hours of 2:00 – 6:30 p.m., and until 8:00 p.m. on Wednesdays.

Join the Member Services Team!  To learn more about volunteer opportunities in Member Services, contact Bailey Huguley at bhuguley@door.org.

For corporate group volunteer opportunities, please contact Sharon Kim, Development Associate, Volunteer Services at skim@door.org or 212-453-0257.