Volunteer Settings

Quick Answer: Volunteer Settings

Configure your volunteer program: activity types for hour logging, color-coded event categories, and setup checklists for new volunteers.

Configure Your Volunteer Program

Volunteer Settings is where you set up and customize the building blocks of your volunteer program. Think of it as the control panel for how volunteer hours are categorized, how events are organized, and what new volunteers need to complete when they join.

Activity Types

Activity types define the categories volunteers choose from when they log their hours. Set these up to match how your organization works:

• Create Activity Types: Add categories like "Food Bank," "Tutoring," "Office Help," "Event Setup," or anything that fits your programs

• Edit or Remove: Rename or retire activity types as your programs evolve

• Used Everywhere: These categories appear when volunteers submit hours through the portal, when staff log hours manually, and in your Volunteer Hours Report

Event Categories

Event categories are color-coded labels for volunteer events on the scheduler calendar. They help your team see at a glance what types of events are coming up:

• Color Coding: Each category gets its own color, so your calendar is easy to scan (e.g., green for food bank shifts, blue for training sessions)

• Examples: Service, Training, Orientation, Social, Fundraiser, Board Meeting

• Calendar Integration: Events tagged with a category show up in that color on the Volunteer Scheduler calendar

New Volunteer Checklist

Set up the steps new volunteers need to complete before they're fully active. This keeps setup consistent and makes sure nothing gets missed:

• Custom Steps: Add items like "Complete orientation," "Sign liability waiver," "Submit background check," or "Read volunteer handbook"

• Track Progress: See which steps each volunteer has completed and what's still pending

• Flexible: Add, remove, or reorder steps as your process changes

Good to Know

Changes here affect every future hour log and calendar color, not past records. Plus plan and above include volunteer applications and scheduler tools that read these settings.

Open People → Volunteer Settings for tabs covering activity types, event categories, and new volunteer checklists. Review settings at the start of each program year.

Related Guides

• Volunteer Management
• Volunteer Scheduler