Long-term Citizen Volunteers:
The VIGOR office has long-term volunteer opportunities within departments as well as for special events. Long-term volunteers typically work along side City Hall staffers at a minimum of 10 hours per month although many commit to much more. Volunteers have served in a variety of departments from the City Council to the Recreation Department.

Special Event Volunteers:
Special events hosted by the City and the Mayor’s Office always call for volunteers. Citizens volunteer at annual events like Mardi Gras and Jazz Fest as well as one-time events like Super Bowls and national conventions.

Hurricane Evacuation Volunteers:
Two-hundred citizens will be needed to help in the evacuation in the event of a Category 3 or higher storm. Duties may include distributing water, food, or first-aid to evacuees, as well as assisting with crowd control, children, elderly citizens, and those with special needs. Volunteers will guide evacuees to registration areas and direct them to transportation. Volunteers will also provide information to CAEP evacuees who may have questions.

Volunteers will work one or more shifts between 60 hours before landfall and 24 hours before landfall.
 
Click here to become a Hurricane Volunteer

Volunteer Police Officers:
The New Orleans Police department also sponsors two programs for citizens to participate with the NOPD. The NOPD Crisis Unit Technicians is a group of volunteers who work a minimum of 12 hours a month on the streets assisting officers with calls than involve a person having a mental health crisis. These volunteers will attend the scene, assess the situation and provide the appropriate intervention that will help in alleviating the crisis. Volunteers put in over 1800 hours of service to the department per quarter. Volunteers go through an intensive training process before being able to patrol.

The NOPD reserve unit typically has about 100 active volunteer police officers who patrol the streets. Many of these are retired police officers who like to remain engaged in the City, but a percentage are every-day citizens who go through the police academy like any other cadet. Reserve unit members, once through the academy, must serve a minimum number of hours per month to remain active.

Volunteer EMS technicians:
The EMS department sponsors EMS technicians who are licensed and looking for avenues to participate wit the City. EMS volunteers often supplement the staff during special events and accompany EMS crews on daily street routes.

Click here for more detailed information

Internships:
University interns come from all around the country. A student may apply by submitting a resume and a cover letter explaining his or her interest in interning with the City of New Orleans. Application deadlines are as follows:

• Fall Semester:
  Priority Deadline is September 1
  Final Deadline is September 15
  
• Spring Semester:
  Priority Deadline is December 15
  Final Deadline is January 15
   
• Summer Semester:
  Summer 2009 Internship Opportunities
  Priority Deadline May 1
  Final Deadline May 15

Download the Volunteer/Intern Registration Form
Email all documents to Robert X. Fogarty, rxfogarty@cityofno.com

Where do interns work?
Over the past year 104 interns have worked in a variety of roles and capacities in the Mayor’s Office, the City Council, the City Finance department, the Department of Parks and Parkways, the Chief Administrative Office, the Recreation Department, the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority, the Office of Recovery and Development, City Planning and the City Attorney’s Office.

Time Commitments:
Interns typically work 10 hours per week during the academic school year. During the summer, if unfunded, interns work a minimum of 20 hours per week.

Funding:
Funding for internships is unavailable at this time. Often, interns have submitted proposals via their respective universities to be funded to work in with the City of New Orleans.

Special projects:
The VIGOR office receives calls from out-of-state volunteer groups quite often. Several departments have the ability to handle out-of-state groups including the Parks and Parkways department, the New Orleans Recreation Department, the Mosquito and Rodent Control board. Volunteers have come from around the country and internationally to help the recovery. VIGOR also serves as a clearing house and referral center for out-of-state volunteer groups who are looking to work with good non-profit organizations.