A Study of Volunteer Diversity

AFS-USA is a nonprofit organization working toward a more just and peaceful world by sending American high school students to live and study abroad, and receiving international students in homes and schools across the United States. AFS-USA relies heavily on volunteers in the U.S. to support its participants and on the American school system to provide educational opportunities. In its most recent strategic plan, AFS-USA declared increasing volunteer diversity as one of its primary initiatives and requested a Capstone team to explore methods to achieve this. The team evaluated the organization’s ideology, volunteer structure, and recruitment and marketing plans, focusing on diversity amongst non-host volunteers. This included analyzing volunteer demographics, researching best practices, and conducting interviews with staff and volunteers. The team then compiled its analysis to produce a report of findings and recommendations for AFS-USA to increase diversity amongst its volunteers.