by : Tan Sri Datuk Seri Utama Arshad Ayub Inaugural Conference on Student Affairs Governance : Issues, Challenges and Opportunities

AL-ZALZALAH – AYAT 7-8 So whoever does an atom's weight of good will see it, And whoever does an atom's weight of evil will see it.

DEFINITION Volunteer: “ any person who freely provides goods or services to any agency or instrumentality of government without financial gain.” (state law in South Carolina ) Volunteerism: “a work without a pay” (Shweiki & Mauck, 1993) “Any activity that drives to help others and not for profit making” (Knauft, 1992)

WHY Volunteer?

Benefits for the specific targets - This includes the local organizations and the clientele of those organizations -Volunteers help cut down costs of organizations, and makes services available to a larger audience

Benefits for the immediate & larger community - Volunteers make social services available to more people in the community - Volunteerism promotes a sense of empowerment and connection to the community among youth -Youth who volunteer are more likely to stay in or return to their communities -Volunteerism contributes to economic vitality – youth contribute over $35 billion per year in volunteer hours -In other words, both directly and indirectly, youth volunteers contribute to community vitality

Benefits for the volunteers - Volunteer work provides an opportunity to learn new skills and valuable work experience (enhancing marketability both for work and college acceptance) -Volunteer experience is a context for developing significant relationships with like-minded peers and others -The experience of volunteerism can help develop many social competencies – identity development, compassion, sense of agency (ability to make a difference), leadership, confidence and self-esteem. Volunteerism contributes to positive youth development!

Volunteer Drop Out Factors

No longer fun/enjoyable/eng aging

Not developmentally appropriate

No rewards (whether compensation, grades, praise, or appreciation)

Not a good match – for instance, youth does not enjoy solitary activities, and the volunteer work is mainly solitary

No clear direction or leadership – activities might not be clearly set up, the goals might not be clear, and volunteers might not be given enough guidance on what to do

What should we do?

More Attractive Campaigns

Designing High Impact Programme

Government Initiative - National Interest

Scaling volunteerism on the Based Level Education

Volunteerism begins at Home