Interages Volunteer Portal

Welcome, Interages Volunteers!

Below, you will find a running list of volunteer opportunities. You are required to complete the screening and training processes and your background check before signing up for a volunteer slot. If you don’t see a program that fits your schedule, please let Indira Dingledine know. We are always working on new offerings.

Thank you for volunteering with us!

We are pleased to report that the Interages volunteer corps has grown. We are implementing a new placement process to accommodate new volunteers into the programming. We have many exciting and fulfilling volunteer opportunities for you to choose from.  This new process gives volunteers more time to view opportunities.

Please let Indira Dingledine know which programs interest you. Contact Idingledine@accessjca.org or (301) 255 4239. We suggest that you check back periodically. We update this portal year-round. Programs listed in the tables below that have been finalized are highlighted in yellow . Additional opportunities are listed below the tables.

School Programs

Grandreaders

Volunteers are paired with a second or third grader and read with them, working on the child’s literacy. This takes place at school. Please note: areas in the school where the activity happens vary depending on each school’s available resources.

Readers Theater

Reader’s theater is a style of theater in which the readers gather in small groups to convey stories using vocal expression to help the audience understand it. Reader’s theater increases reading comprehension and reading motivation and helps develop fluency through repeated exposure to text.

Dialogues Across the Ages

These Dialogues circles are designed to foster mutual understanding and respect across the generations. Many curated topics are discussed.

Before-School and Afterschool Programs

Bridges Program

Art/Music/Movement

Sparking Dioalog Through Dance and Art

a collaboration between Interages and Clancyworks Dance Company

Kennedy High School
1901 Randolph Road
Wheaton-Glenmont, MD 20902

Seeking female volunteers, age 50+

Gentle Movement | Dance | Dialogue | Crafts | Icebreaker activities | Storytelling
Tailored movement to those participating. Seated movement options.

The mission of this program is to bring diverse ages and backgrounds together through dance and art forms to spark dialogue.

Mondays, 2:45 – 3:45, April 8 until June 10, plus June 6 and 7 (excluding Memorial Day and some days during spring break)

Volunteers go through a background check prior to participating.

If interested, please contact Indira Dingledine at idingledine@accessjca.org or 301-255-4239.

Youth volunteer opportunity

The JCA Heyman Interages Center invites volunteers ages 14 – 24 to join us this summer for an award-winning, evidence-based, intergenerational art-making program called Opening Minds Through Art (OMA). Volunteers partner with JCA’s Kensington Club members to help older adults with memory loss create
abstract art projects that engage the mind and break through cognitive barriers.

OMA is a failure-free program designed to provide older adults with opportunities for creative self-expression and social engagement. SSL hours are available.

Volunteer Training: June 21^st from 9 AM – 12 PM

Topics: Overview of dementia, OMA philosophy and methodology, effective communication, and creative facilitation skills

Art sessions: Fridays, from 9:45 AM – 12:15 PM. June 28, July 12, July 19, July 26, August 2

Art show and reception: March 8^th from 10 AM – 12 PM

Participants must attend volunteer training, all art sessions, and the art show.

Please have a parent or guardian fill in this permission form if you are under 18.

Location: JCA Kensington Club
12320 Parklawn Drive, Rockville, Md. 20852
For more information and to register, please email: rlanman@acessjca.org

Student participation in this service project is at the discretion of the student’s parent/guardian and must be completed outside of school hours. The nonprofit organization is responsible for maintaining student safety. Parents/guardians should contact the nonprofit directly with any questions and/or concerns.

Middle and Highschool Volunteering Opportunity

Quilting Connections Intergenerational Program for Middle and High School Students

with Arts for the Aging, JCA Heyman Interages Center, JCA Kensington Club and The Phillips Collection

Bridge the musical and visual arts in this three-week intergenerational and multidisciplinary arts workshop series led by Arts for the Aging teaching artists Peter Joshua Burroughs and Carlos César Rodríguez and featuring a field trip to The Phillips Collection.

Inspired by quilts and collages on view at the Phillips Collection, students will partner with older adults at the early stages of memory loss to arrange fabric of different sizes, shapes, and colors into patterns to develop melodic fragments. The patterns, like quilt squares, can be arranged and “sewn” into both musical compositions and visual works of art representing the stories that embody a community quilt. Make music, masterpieces, and friends across generations! SSL hours provided.

Tuesday, July 30th: 10 AM – 12 PM: Aging awareness training and first workshop

Tuesday, August 6th: 9 AM – 2 PM: Second workshop at The Phillips Collection (transportation provided from Kensington Club)

Tuesday, August 13th: 11 AM – 12 PM: Third workshop

Location is Kensington Club at Parklawn, 12320 Parklawn Drive, Rockville, MD 20852, unless otherwise specified.

Please email rlanman@accessjca.org for more information or to register.

SHARE

Interages is looking for volunteers to support our SHARE (Students Help and Reach Elders) program on Thursdays at either Sunrise of Rockville (every other week from 10 AM – 11:15 AM) or Kensington Park Senior Living (weekly from 3 PM – 4:20 PM). Volunteers will help Interages staff distribute materials and support the intergenerational connections between students and residents.

AmeriCorps Seniors Foster Grandparent Program

The AmeriCorps Seniors Foster Grandparent Program (FGP) provides social and academic support to elementary children to promote school readiness. Foster Grandparents work one-on-one with children in their classrooms at least 20 hours a week for an entire school year. Among other activities, Foster Grandparents provide and reinforce values to children in a smaller classroom group. At the moment, Foster Grandparents will provide support in local elementary schools and other host sites throughout Montgomery County.

Requirements:

• you are at least 55 years of age
• you are either a U.S. citizen or a green card holder
• you are at or below 200% income level of $30,120/yr per single adult. Those who meet certain income guidelines receive a stipend of $4/hour
• you can commit to at least 20 hours per week for a full school year of volunteering

All FGP volunteers receive training, accident and liability insurance, meals on duty, and transportation reimbursement.

See JCA’s Foster Grandparent Civil Rights and Non-harassment Policy.

Contact: 301-225-4238 or rjones@AccessJCA.org for more information.

You can apply to the Foster Grandparent Program online or by printing and completing the form linked below.

Monthly Reading Tutor Training Series

We hope you will join us on Zoom for our monthly Reading Tutor Training series. We are so grateful to presenter Megan Bainbridge, Reading Specialist of Captain James E. Daly Elementary School, who is providing the sessions. Each session focuses on a different Reading Tutor Training topic and lasts about an hour. Pre-registration online is required.

Please note, these sessions are providing broad tips and are not intended to be certification-level training.

Recorded Sessions