A lot! For starters, you make our free programs possible. We have a variety of programs in which you, as a volunteer, can participate. Volunteers have the opportunity to publish students’ books at morning field trips, assist with our yearly Young Authors’ Book Project, and tutor students after school or in the evenings. You also have the opportunity to help students with writing projects in public schools around Los Angeles (including personal statements), as well as teach creative writing workshops or work with aspiring young journalists in our writing lab.

Nope! 826LA volunteers come from a wide variety of backgrounds and experience. As long as you have a willingness to learn and explore alongside our students, you’ll be fine. We can also pair you up with a seasoned volunteer the first few times you come. And don’t worry, we’re here to support you every step of the way.

We don’t insist that you commit to a certain number of volunteer hours. We realize getting to our centers or to the schools we serve is not always easy. That said, we certainly want to encourage you to give us as much time as you can. We know that the free programs we offer are most effective and have the most impact on the lives of students when we are consistent. Students need to trust volunteers, and that takes time and effort. In the end, what really helps the young people we serve is one-on-one attention from volunteers, and the more you can provide, the more they (and you) get. When you’re starting out, see if you can carve out time to volunteer for one session a week!

You’re not making things up—at least not right at this moment. We do in fact have five locations: two brick and mortar (one in Mar Vista and one in Echo Park,) a Writers’ Room at Manual Arts High School in South LA, one at Roosevelt High School in Boyle Heights, and one at Venice High School in Venice. To learn more about volunteering at our Writing Labs and Writers’ Rooms, check out our program overview page.

Generally, Volunteer Orientations take place on Wednesdays, Thursdays, or Saturdays virtually and in-person at Echo Park or Mar Vista. Currently the time varies, but often they will be held from 10am-12pm or 4pm-6pm. Once you’re ready to get trained, please sign up for an upcoming orientation here.

Regardless of whether you attend a Volunteer Orientation at Mar Vista or Echo Park, you can volunteer at both sites or stick to one.

First, you’ll need to

RSVP for a Volunteer Orientation

Believe us, many tutoring methods exist. We’re all about consistency at 826LA, and we want all our volunteers to be on the same page. In addition to providing you with tutoring tips, Volunteer Orientation is also the time when you’ll be filling out important paperwork that we need.

Thanks for wanting to volunteer and being so eager to do so! We definitely want you on board as soon as possible, but we do really need a background check from you. To learn more about becoming a volunteer and our Live Scan background check process, just email volunteerteam@826la.org!

Unfortunately, we are not allowed to accept (or share) Live Scan results from other agencies or organizations, otherwise we will lose our license. You’ll need to have another Live Scan processed for 826LA.

At 826LA, Live Scan background checks will be free to all volunteers when completed in our centers. For more comprehensive information about our background check process, please visit our Live Scan instructions here.

Great question! As soon as you’re an official 826LA volunteer, we will add you to our volunteer-only email list. Once a week, we send out a Volunteer Newsletter that lists our highest-need upcoming projects, and has other special and important announcements. We also send out program-specific emails as needed.

Once you’re officially a volunteer, you’ll receive access to our volunteer-only projects calendar. Please check the calendar as often as you like and sign up for projects online. When you sign up for the project, you’ll receive a reminder email about the project the day before. Isn’t that convenient? And easy?

Possibly. First, volunteers must be at least 16 years old. More importantly, the volunteer opportunities available at 826LA are very different from those at other organizations. We want to make sure that we’re a good fit for you, and vice versa. Please get in touch with us first about the nature of your court-appointed community service; we will not sign off on hours without prior approval from 826LA staff. Email the Volunteer Team at

volunteerteam@826la.org

Possibly. First, volunteers must be at least 16 years old, and high schoolers can only volunteer with After-School Tutoring and our summer camp. More importantly, the volunteer opportunities available at 826LA are very different from those at other organizations. We want to make sure that we’re a good fit for you, and vice versa. Please get in touch with us first about the nature of the community service program at your school; we will not sign off on hours without prior approval from 826LA staff.

The truth is, it depends! Reach out to us directly at

volunteerteam@826la.org

Please email us at

volunteerteam@826la.org