Managing Your Volunteer Profile

Created by Brittany Crow, Modified on Mon, Jul 10, 2023 at 10:10 AM by Brittany Crow

❖ Heads up! This article is intended for volunteers. If you're a site manager looking for information about managing communication preferences, click here.

Once you've registered an account on a site, you can update your profile whenever, as necessary. Your profile page contains, at minimum, your basic contact information. Each site requires different pieces of information. The information you provide on your profile can help match you to volunteer Needs. Here, we cover:

Your Profile Menu
Updating preferences
Sharing your accomplishments
How to edit your profile

ⓘ So you know:

You can find links for managing other areas of your profile, like My Teams, Qualifications, and Need Responses..
Some organizations have requested language overrides for their site. For example, some say agencies while others say programs. Some might say Needs, and others might say Opportunities.

Your profile menu is located in the top right-hand corner—where your initials or profile image are. Click your initials or profile picture to open the menu options. This menu is only available for logged-in volunteers:

The profile menu may have the following selections, as applicable (for example, the User Groups selection only appears if you belong to a user group):

Menu Item	Description
View Profile	The View Profile page includes your join date, total logged hours, volunteer resume, preferred causes and interests, fanned agencies, and activity feed. From here you can: Click any Need or event listed in the activity feed to view it. Edit your causes, interests, and fanned agencies.
Edit Profile	Select Edit Profile to edit your profile picture, basic information, password, and disaster settings. You can also opt-out of system emails or deactivate your account on this page.
Edit Disaster Profile	(ReDI sites only) This area houses your disaster-profile information, such as emergency contacts, blood type, and disaster skills and services you can provide.
Track Hours	Click this area to submit hours for volunteer work you've completed. You can also view your submitted hours on this page, as well as their statuses (pending, approved, denied, etc.). You can use the table filter to add or hide table columns.
Volunteer Schedule	View your scheduled volunteer Needs. Only the Needs associated with a particular date appear in the calendar.
Qualifications	View or edit any pending qualifications questions you have answered, or any documents you have uploaded, to show that you’re qualified to access or respond to certain Needs. You can also view eSign waivers and other eSign documents that are available on your site.
My Files	Use this storage area to upload and store files such as PDFs, Word documents, or image files. Site managers can also upload a file to your profile. You can see that it has been added and the date it was added.
Need Responses	This area shows all of your past Need responses and any associated user groups. Use this area to edit your responses, add hours, re-visit the Need posting, check into/out of a Need, or view the agency profile page of the agency that posted the Need. Expired (past) Needs are shown in faded text. You can also see what Needs you're on a waitlist for.
My Teams	If you’re a team leader, the My Teams area is where you manage those teams. If you’re a member of a team but not the leader, you can use this area to email your team leader directly.
My User Groups	Use this area to view your user groups. You can see what needs or opportunities have been assigned to your user group, generate a user group report, and leave a group from this page. Click here to learn more about user groups. To learn more about user group leaders, click here. You can use the table filter to add or hide table columns.
SLM Hours Overview	(Service Learning sites only) This area shows a student's progress toward service-learning requirements.
SLM Leader Portal	(Service Learning sites only) Course leaders use this area to manage their students' service-learning requirements.
Inbox	Select Inbox to view your in-app messages. In-app messages may include system notifications and mail blasts from your site's manager. You can also view your in-app messages by clicking the bell icon to the left of the profile menu.
Logout	Click to log out of your Connect site.

✏️ Quick tip: To use a table filter:

1. Click Table Filter, located just above the far right-hand column of a table.

2. Mark the boxes for the columns you wish to see and clear the boxes for the columns you wish to hide.

Updating preferences

A site recommends volunteer Needs based on your favorite causes, volunteer interests, and community organizations. It does this in several ways:

It recommends Needs for you in the "Suggested Needs" area of your volunteer dashboard.
It recommends agencies for you on your volunteer dashboard.
It sends a weekly email with information about new Needs you may be interested in—based on your selections—that were posted in the past week.
On some sites, you may also receive a special email updating you on your fanned agencies' new Needs and events.

To enter or update your causes, interests, or fanned agencies:

1. From your profile menu, select View Profile.
2. Click the applicable Manage button—e.g., Manage Causes, Manage Interests, or Add Agencies—on the My Profile page. 3. On the page that follows, click on an item to select it.

Once you've made a selection, a border with a heart icon appears around the selection.

4. Click the Update button at the bottom of the page to save your changes.

ⓘ So you know:

Some sites do not include causes.
When clicking on a new agency to fan, you'll be taken to the agency's profile page to fan the agency.

If your site uses benchmarks and awards badges based on your submitted volunteer hours, that information appears on the My Profile page, under a Benchmarks heading. While you can't edit your benchmarks, you can share them on social media. To do so, click on a benchmark, and then select to share on Facebook or Twitter.

Once Facebook or Twitter opens, follow the instructions provided to share your accomplishment!

How to edit your profile

To edit your other profile information, click Edit Profile from your profile menu. If you're already in your profile, you can click the Edit Profile heading. From here, you can edit the following types of information:

Your profile picture
Your password
Your basic information—e.g., contact information, personal information, and favorite agency
Your availability—i.e., days and times of day you're available to volunteer
Your disaster profile—if applicable

In addition, you can use this area for the following tasks:

Opt out of automated notifications
Indicate that you'd like to be contacted in the event of a disaster
Deactivate your account

ⓘ So you know: Site managers can remove certain profile fields for all volunteers. This means you may not see all of the items listed.

means your profile page may not feature all of the items listed.

How to update your profile picture

To upload your picture (or replace a current picture), go to the Edit Profile area and click Upload Photo.

After selecting the photo, choose one of two options:
- Crop the photo—if needed—and click Save Profile Photo.
- If the photo doesn’t need to be cropped—i.e., if you want the photo displayed as is—click Skip Crop and Save.

To remove an uploaded photo, click Remove.
- A popup appears asking you to confirm your selection.

ⓘ So you know:

Only images files—e.g., .jpg, .png, or .gif—are accepted.
The image should be at least 540 x 540px.
- If it's larger, the site adjusts the image to fit the space.

How to update your password

1. Go to your Edit Profile area.

2. Complete the fields under the Change Password heading, entering your current password once and your new password twice.

3. Click Update Password.

ⓘ So you know:

Passwords must be at least eight characters long and aren’t case-sensitive.
It's a good idea to use a password that combines lowercase and uppercase letters with numbers and other symbols—though it's not required.
Forget your password? Just click Forgot Password on the login page!
- Enter the email address you registered your account with when prompted and you'll receive a password reset link to that email.
- Please note, if you enter the wrong password in five times, then you receive an error message and won't be able to try again for five minutes.
- Still having issues? Reach out to your agency manager or site manager for assistance.

How to update your contact information

1. Go to your Edit Profile area.

2. Under the Basic Information heading, edit the applicable fields.

Most fields aren’t required by default, though your site manager may opt to require fields as needed.

3. Click Update Basic Information.

ⓘ So you know: Depending on how a site manager has set up their site, you may see more or less fields under Basic Information.

How to add a favorite agency

If your employer participates in a Dollars for Doers type of program, where your employer donates money to a nonprofit for each hour you volunteer there, select the nonprofit you wish to benefit. Please keep in mind:

Adding a favorite agency isn’t the same thing as fanning an agency.
If you wish to receive notifications about an agency's latest needs and events, you should fan the agency as explained here.

To add an agency to your Agencies Fanned list:

1. Go to View Profile.

2. Click Add Agencies.

3. You can either select the agency to be taken to its profile page or click Become A Fan.

If you went to the agency's profile page, you can click Become A Fan when you're ready.

✏️ Quick tip: Want to remove a fanned agency? No worries! Click the agency you want to remove from your Agencies Fanned list and then click Fanned to remove it. You no longer receive updates about that agency once you remove it.

How to update your availability

Your availability information appears in the email that is sent to an agency when you respond to one of its Needs. This data is helpful to agencies if you've responded to an ongoing Need, or if they would like to reach out to volunteers who are available for a certain day. If you include your availability in your profile, you may be contacted by your site's manager if there are upcoming Needs and shifts scheduled for your available times. This may happen if not enough volunteers signed up for the shift.

To indicate your availability:

1. Click on your initials or image in the menu bar and select Edit Profile.

2. Scroll to the Availability area and check the boxes for the days and times that you're available to volunteer.

3. Click Update Availability to save your changes.

Check Morning if you're available for Needs starting between 6 a.m. and noon.
Check Afternoon for Needs starting between noon and 6 p.m.
Check Evening for Needs that start after 6 p.m.
Check Don’t schedule me for days that you aren’t available.

ⓘ So you know: If you know your schedule changes frequently, be sure to update your volunteer availability accordingly.

How to update a disaster profile

If your site includes the ReDI System (for disaster response), you can provide important information for disaster response. The disaster response fields are part of your Edit Profile page. To access it:

1. Go to your Edit Profile area.

2. Complete the fields under the Disaster Profile Information heading. Fields are listed below.

Field	Description
Emergency Contact Name	First and last name of an emergency contact
Emergency Contact Phone	Phone number of emergency contact
Blood Type	Select your blood type from the dropdown.
Notify By Text?	Select Yes to give permission to send you a text message regarding disaster-related needs. If you select yes, be sure that your profile includes your mobile phone number.
Willing to Travel?	Select Yes to indicate that you are willing to travel in response to disaster needs.
Edit Skills & Services (button)	Click the button to edit your skills and services. In the list of items provided, mark each one that applies.
Attending training?	If you select Yes, select the agency with which you attended training.

3. Click Update Disaster Information.

✏️ Quick tip: Want to indicate that you wish to be contacted in the event of a disaster? Scroll to Settings and turn on the option. Remember to always click an Update Settings button to save your changes.

How to opt out of emails and notifications

You can update your preferences anytime, right from your profile! To get started:

1. Click your profile image or initials from the top menu bar.

2. Select Edit Profile.

3. Scroll to the Data and Communication Settings section and click Manage My Preferences.

4. Enable or disable the communications you want to receive.

Want to turn off Volunteer Notifications? Toggle the button beside it to Off.
Want to select which Volunteer Notifications you receive? Check or uncheck your preferences!

5. Click Save My Preferences when you're done!

✏️ Quick tip: Want to stop receiving all communications and notifications? Click Unsubscribe From All Emails and Notifications.

Just note that clicking this means you want receive important notification reminders about volunteer opportunities you've signed up for.

What do these preferences mean?

Title	Description
Account Management	These are important notifications about your volunteer account and activity. Enable this to keep track of your contributions to the organization you're volunteering with.
Confirmations and Reminders	These are reminders and confirmations about volunteer opportunities you've signed up for! Enable this to keep track of your schedule and to get reminders about upcoming opportunities you're signed up for!
Email Blasts	Email Blasts are customized emails sent by volunteer leaders from the organization you have registered with. These are not automated notifications that are system-generated. Volunteer leaders may want to send out a custom email thanking you for your hard work, updates to site requirements or policies, or to share important news about exciting new opportunities!
News and Recommendations	These are recommendations for volunteer opportunities based on your personal preferences. Enable this to get recommendations to volunteer opportunities that align with your schedule or special skills!
Schedule Updates	These are important updates about changes to your schedule, updates about your spot on a waitlist, or important information about your teams! Want to know when you've been removed from a waitlist? Are you a member of a team? Enable these updates to receive important updates that matter to you!
Surveys and Thank Yous	These are friendly follow-ups and survey requests for activities you've participated in! Want to share feedback to help an organization improve or give kudos to volunteer leaders or organizations that you support? Enable this to share your experience with them!

ⓘ So you know:

You can also turn off notifications from your email. When you receive an automated notification, the email will include a link to unsubscribe.
Opting out of notifications doesn’t prevent you from receiving the password reset email, should you need to reset your password.
When you register for a site, you’ll be required to affirmatively accept Galaxy Digital’s privacy policy and will also be asked to opt-in or out of email notifications there.

❖ Heads up! If you're an agency manager, you shouldn't opt out of notifications unless there's another agency manager that's responsible for agency manager emails.

A manager on your site has the ability to schedule you for a shift if you’re available. If you don’t want a manager to schedule you for shifts on your behalf, you can opt-out of volunteer scheduling from Edit Profile > Data and Communication Settings area of your profile. Be sure to click Update Settings when you're done.

If you deactivate your profile, you’ll receive an email containing a link to your volunteer résumé so that you can have a record of your volunteer service. To deactivate your account:

1. Go to your Edit Profile area.

2. Scroll to the Deactivate Account heading.

3. Click Deactivate Account.

So you know:

You can contact your site manager if you wish to reactivate your account.
If you deactivate your account, the option to anonymize your account will appear:

Managing Your Volunteer Profile

Your Profile Menu

Updating preferences

Sharing your accomplishments

How to edit your profile

How to update your profile picture

How to update your password

How to update your contact information

How to add a favorite agency

How to update your availability

How to update a disaster profile

How to opt out of emails and notifications

What do these preferences mean?

How to opt out of volunteer scheduling

How to deactivate your account