The QVS Board met recently and is enthusiastic about moving forward on a number of initiatives to remove road blocks to participation in QVS by more diverse groups. One of these roadblocks is the language of volunteering. The clear sense emerged that the word “Volunteer” may be a roadblock for those from less economic privilege to participate in the QVS year. That word may mean that some folks don’t read any further to discover that the year is actually a wonderful opportunity for professional development and one that is well supported in various ways. Therefore, QVS will be working to change our language of “Volunteer” to “Fellow.” Our participants will now be referred to as QVS Fellows, rather than QVS Volunteers. We know it may take some time to make this shift in language, but we wanted to be sure to let you know that we will be working to make this happen and to try to avoid any confusion.
*We will be updating our website and literature over the next couple of months, so bear with us as we transition into this new language. Thank you!