VolunteerMatch has paired organizations with volunteers for about two decades. But its website — on which nonprofits post volunteer needs and users seek opportunities that fit their interests — has never seen the type of traffic it has gotten since the election of Donald Trump.
It set a single-day record with more than 72,355 unique visitors on January 24, four days after the new president was inaugurated. VolunteerMatch’s second busiest day was November 10, two days after the election, with 69,318 visitors. January 25 and November 15 ranked third and fourth in web traffic.
“What jumped into my mind is that there must have been some mention on CNN, that I would be able to track it down,” said Greg Baldwin, president of VolunteerMatch.
He has yet to identify a single source for the web traffic — it appears it came from Google searches — and his San Francisco-based staff and the mission of VolunteerMatch are well removed from Washington politics. But there is no doubt that people in every state are seeking out volunteer opportunities in increased numbers, Mr. Baldwin said, and that nonprofits would be smart to keep listings and communications about their volunteer positions up-to-date.
“Right now there is clearly a lot of energy around people looking to get more involved and make a commitment to the things they care about,” Mr. Baldwin said.
During the past two months, Taproot Foundation has had a 20 percent increase in individuals looking for volunteer work compared with the same period a year ago, according to Elizabeth Schwan-Rosenwald, chief external relationships officer. The organization helps skilled professionals and businesses connect with pro bono opportunities at nonprofits.
“What we are hearing is people are very eager to volunteer, and what they are trying to figure out is how,” Ms. Schwan-Rosenwald said, adding that she and her colleagues are hustling to direct professionals to groups they know can effectively manage pro bono volunteers.
Liza Dyer, program coordinator for volunteer services at the Multnomah County Library system in Portland, Ore., said that an upcoming volunteer training session for an adult literacy program already has double the number of sign-ups it would typically see. She declined to talk politics but said volunteering is something people turn to when they want to live out their values.
“Any time we see changes in our community impact people, we see increases in volunteerism,” Ms. Dyer said. “I think that people are becoming more aware of issues affecting their communities, and when people become more aware, then they look for things that they can do.”
‘Unprecedented’ Inquiries
Across the country, organizations and agencies of all sizes are reporting increases in inquiries and interest in volunteering since the November election.
The surge appears to cut across causes. On VolunteerMatch’s record-setting day last month, for example, the nonprofits that saw the most activity were Crisis Text Line, Nature Abounds, UF Health Jacksonville, Citizens’ Climate Lobby, and National Court Appointed Special Advocates Association.
The ACLU, which has been at the center of a recent fight over a White House ban on travel from seven predominantly Muslim countries, is building a structured volunteer program in response to an “unprecedented” number of inquiries, according to a spokesman.
The wave of eagerness to get involved comes despite the fact that President Trump has said little about volunteering, civic engagement, or national service, breaking with decades of presidential history on the subject. One exception was in August when then-candidate Trump visited a community outside Baton Rouge, La., ravaged by floods and helped unload supplies from a truck.
In fact, nonprofits say, the increase in volunteerism probably is due mainly to opposition to the new president: People are feeling a need to do something to counter Trump’s policies.
Breaking Tradition
Recent presidents have been strong advocates for volunteering and national service. In his inauguration speech, for example, President Kennedy told citizens to ask themselves what they could do for their country. President George H.W. Bush talked of the patriotism in “taking part and pitching in,” the beginnings of his Thousand Points of Light volunteer effort.
In his 2002 State of the Union address President George W. Bush called on Americans to pledge 4,000 hours over their lifetimes “to the service of your neighbors and your nation.” The Obama family regularly participated in volunteer activities, for example on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Often, volunteering and service was something addressed even before one made it to the White House. In 2008, for example, then Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain spoke at length about volunteering and civic engagement at a New York forum put on by ServiceNation.
“Historically, we have expected our presidents to be exemplary citizens, to lead by example,” said Les Lenkowsky, who led the Corporation for National and Community Service under President George W. Bush. “We now have a president who seems content to defy that.”
Some nonprofit leaders and volunteer organizers note that President Trump has not been in office long and has many other pressing priorities. Susan Ellis, a consultant who specializes in helping nonprofits build volunteer programs, said she expects the new White House will eventually get around to talking about the value of volunteering.
“Do I think the rhetoric is going to change?” Ms. Ellis said. “No, I don’t think even Trump is stupid enough to say, ‘I don’t think volunteers are great.’ "
More, much of the volunteering that takes place around the country happens at a local level and is not influenced by the White House, according to many.
“I think clergy are far more effective than anything a president could do,” Ms. Ellis said.
While many nonprofit leaders and volunteer coordinators put presidential leadership on the issue in the “nice but not absolutely necessary” category, others argue that it sets an important tone. The Obama family set an excellent example by participating in volunteer work, said Jerry Pannozzo, who worked at nonprofits for more than 22 years, much of it in volunteer coordinating roles.
“It is walking the talk,” he said. “It is not just saying, ‘Oh, America should volunteer’ but actually volunteering. I think a family in the White House volunteering is inspiring.”
National Service
Where a lack of leadership from Trump on issues of volunteering and civic engagement could be important is when it comes to the Corporation for National and Community Service, which oversees AmeriCorps, among other national service programs. With Republicans looking to cut nonmilitary defense spending, the agency could be in their sites, some say.
“I think both CNCS and the Peace Corps are at risk of budget cuts,” said Mr. Lenkowsky. “This reflects longstanding opposition to these programs among large numbers of Republican congressmen more than Trump, who may or may not have given any thought to these programs.”
In the current fiscal year the federal government is spending $1.1 billion on the Corporation for National and Community Service, which supports about 87,000 AmeriCorps members, among other things. That is up from $1 billion in fiscal year 2016.
Representative Tom Cole, an Oklahoma Republican and chairman of the appropriations subcommittee that controls spending for the Corporation for National and Community Service, said that the agency and its programs have strong bipartisan support. The Trump administration has yet to put forth its first budget proposal, making it too early to know what may be in store.
“What the President proposes is going to have a powerful impact on what Republicans in the Senate and the House think,” Mr. Cole said. “It doesn’t mean we would automatically follow him slavishly.”
Mr. Cole said he will continue to support national service. A budget plan from the Heritage Foundation, which the White House and some Republican members are reportedly referring to as they form their spending plans, do not include slashing or eliminating the Corporation for National and Community Service or the Peace Corps. The Heritage Foundation plan does propose eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities and privatizing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
President Trump has not yet named a new head of the Corporation for National and Community Service or the Peace Corps.
“If they are thinking rationally, they should expand rather than cut,” Shirley Sagawa, head of Service Year Alliance, a nonprofit that works to increase participation in national service. “That said, you can’t take anything for granted.”
Past presidents have not only supported national service but made it a political priority, she said.
“The current president has sort of got a unique voice in this country,” Ms. Sagawa said. “What we are really hoping to see is that he will actually support the program in a powerful way through policy.”
AnnMaura Connolly, head of Voices for National Service, an advocacy coalition of pro-service organizations, said that using national service members and other types of volunteers is a cost-effective way for agencies and institutions to get things done, something that should appeal to budget-conscious lawmakers. It also helps connect young people with valuable work experience.
“So if you are thinking about issues of jobs and employment, national service can be a really powerful strategy for exposing people to work and giving them skills and experiences,” Ms. Connolly said.
Bill Mandicott, assistant vice president for student and community involvement at Frostburg State University in Maryland, was at the White House in 1994 when President Clinton swore in the inaugural class of AmeriCorps volunteers. Community service and civic engagement are fundamental American values, he said, something he hopes lawmakers in Washington continue to recognize.
“I do think in the end it will overcome the political waves of change,” he said. “Service is universal, and this country would go belly up without it. We would be in big trouble.”
Correction: A previous version of this article said that Frostburg State University was in Virginia instead of Maryland.