Western Washington University

04/15/2025 | News release | Distributed by Public on 04/15/2025 15:36

Campus community invited to utilize W.A.V.E.S., WWU's new volunteer portal

Campus community invited to utilize W.A.V.E.S., WWU's new volunteer portal

April 15, 2025

All students, faculty, and staff are invited to use a new platform for volunteer opportunities on and off campus. The WWU Community Service Center is proud to introduce Western Action for Volunteer Engagement and Service, or W.A.V.E.S. , which is directly linked to the Volunteer Center of Whatcom County.

Simply sign in using your Western credentials, answer a few questions to set up your profile, then browse Needs and Events provided by agencies across the county. There are also highlighted opportunities and fundraising campaigns on campus of which to take notice.

Clubs, groups of individuals, and classes can also sign up for Needs as a Team! To find a Need that allows for Team sign-ups, use the Filter option and select Teams, then Accepting Teams. Click on a Need and choose Respond as a Team. This will prompt you to Build Your Team. You'll create a Team Name, add yourself, and add other volunteers (they can be from Western or family/friends from anywhere!). You'll also assign a Team Leader who will manage the team in WAVES. https://learn.getconnectedvolunteer.com/en/articles/10258488-team-leaders

For groups who want hours tracked (e.g. required hours for a sport club or class), the Community Service Center can set that up for you and provide assigned opportunities and tracking as needed. This is different than a Team. https://learn.getconnectedvolunteer.com/en/articles/10261381-user-groups

All departments and clubs can also become an "agency" in order to post volunteer needs! Look for "Click here to register your organization" and set up an account. Once approved, you'll log in with your WWU credentials and at the top right look for My Agencies drop down. The Agency Manager's Toolbox is a great resource to answer any questions you have but the Community Service Center can also help (email communityservice@wwu.edu). Go to the Needs tab to start creating your need which can be ongoing, one day, multiple days, and by using Shifts. The eliminates the need for other platforms such as Sign-Up Genius and Google Forms!

Note: while this does allow for "events," this does not replace the Western Involvement Network (WIN) for campus events. Events on this platform are things related to volunteering such fundraising, blood drives, and volunteer training and celebrations. You'll also find off-campus organizations posting events that don't require volunteer sign-ups or have a separate process.

Any questions about WAVES can be directed to the WWU Community Service Center or to Jenn Cook, associate director of Student Engagement.