Potential Volunteer Characteristics and Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites a volunteer candidate must possess prior to beginning the Phone Volunteer Training. Most skills that a Phone Counselor needs to provide excellent crisis intervention are taught, discussed, and practiced during training.

Prior to training, a volunteer candidate must fall within the following guidelines:

• Minimum age 20 preferred
• Within six months prior to beginning the training process, it is preferred that trainee have not made a suicide attempt, had a major crisis in their life or been a client of the Crisis Center
• Have a genuine desire and willingness to help people who are in need
• Does not require a high school diploma, college degrees, or special certification
• Be located in Alachua County, or north-central Florida

Regardless of education and experience, a person seeking crisis intervention training should have the following characteristics:

• A desire to help people and the potential to empathically understand others
• A desire to engage with callers who may be in extreme emotional distress
• The ability to think logically and to demonstrate mature judgment
• The ability to cooperate with co-workers and work as part of the Crisis Center team
• A willingness to spend the time required for pre-service training, in-service training, and providing crisis intervention once trained
• An ability to be discrete and an absence of the need to proselytize while functioning as a crisis worker
• An appreciation for the complexity of human dilemmas and avoidance of pat, simplistic solutions
• An ability to accept supervision and support
• A stable personality with a balance of optimism and realism