Service Agreement

2008 -2009 Service Agreement

The following is a preview of the service agreement all teachers must accept before applying for a school service.

Since 1972, Environmental Volunteers (EV) has been bringing hands-on natural science education into Bay Area classrooms. As a non-profit organization, we depend on volunteers and private donors to continue our mission, helping to bring environmental science into your classroom.

Before applying for a service, we ask that you read and acknowledge the following in order to make the process consistent for all teachers applying for a service.

Application for Service:

Each year, the EV receives significantly more Service Requests than we can possibly provide. Every effort is made to serve the maximum number of classrooms each year.

However, due to the finite number of volunteers and teaching materials, only a limited number of services can be provided in each subject monthly. We suggest that teachers applying for a service be flexible in their choices of both months and types of services requested. This will increase your chances of being served in the coming school year.

We have two ways to apply:

Individual Teacher Application.- Only one application per teacher will be considered each year. The only exceptions are those teachers who serve as science teachers for multiple classrooms or across grade levels.

Whole Grade Level Application.- One teacher can apply on behalf of all the teachers at a grade level at a particular school. The program requested needs to be the same for all teachers.

Please contact Anita Rodriguez for special circumstances.

Once you have completed your application you will be automatically brought to a confirmation page. We strongly recommend you print out that confirmation page for your records.

Notification:

No later than June 15th 2008, teachers who have requested a service will be sent an email informing them whether they have been accepted for a service or placed on our waiting list.

If you do not receive a notification by June 15th please contact Anita Rodriguez.

Fees:

For the 2008-2009 school year, our service fees will remain the same as this past year. They are:

$130 for classrooms of 24 students or less  ($215 with field trip)
$160 for classrooms of over 24 students and no more than 32 students ($260 with field trip)

These fees represent about half of our actual cost of providing our services. The remainder of these costs is subsidized by our organization through the generosity of our donors.

Scholarships:

Requests for scholarship must be made at the time of the request for service.

We have a two-tiered scholarship system. Schools with at least 50% of their students qualifying for the Federal Free/Reduced Lunch Program can request a scholarship that can reduce their classroom service to $40 ($80 with field trip). Schools with 30% - 50% of their students qualifying for the Federal Free/Reduced Lunch Program should also request a scholarship that can reduce their classroom service to $85 ($170 with field trip).

It is our intent to make our services affordable to all schools.  Every year we provide about 30% of our services to financially challenged schools via scholarships.

Class Size:

For classes of up to 24 students, the EV provides three learning stations and three volunteers. For class sizes over 24, four learning stations and four volunteers are required. Due to the related increased expenses, class sizes over 24 students are assessed a higher fee.  Please see fee details above under “Fees.”

Because our teaching model is built on each child having his or her own "hands-on" adventure, we strive to keep the docent-to-child ratio low. We do, however, often provide service to more than one classroom on the same day, as a matter of convenience for both teachers and volunteers. We also allow multiple classes to go on field trips simultaneously in order to take advantage of bus occupancy.

Discipline:

Environmental Volunteers docents are in the classroom to teach, not to administer discipline to children.

California Law requires teachers to remain in the classroom to provide supervision during all classroom presentations.

On field trips, each class is divided into small groups of 8 children or less. Each group requires an adult chaperone provided by the school to assist with supervision. Please advise all adults to dress appropriately for any outdoor activities. They will be expected to fully participate with their group.

Transportation:

Environmental Volunteers provides no transportation to field trip sites. Our docents will meet you at the field trip site.

Arrangements for buses or carpools for children, teachers and parents are the sole responsibility of the teachers.

Please note that field trips to Jasper Ridge require the use of buses; carpools are no longer allowed at this site.

Invoices:

Invoices are sent at the end of the month in which the service is provided. Payment is due 30 days from the date of invoice.

Non-payment or late payment could affect your chances of receiving services in subsequent years.

Payment:

Although we gladly accept payment from any source (school district, school board, parents' association or other group) it is ultimately the teacher's responsibility to ensure that our fees are paid in a timely manner. If you submit your invoice for payment to another source, please follow up to make sure that your invoice is paid.

Questions:

Our docents are volunteers who graciously donate their time and expertise to educate and inspire your students. Although our docents do participate in finalizing the scheduling of services, all other administrative aspects of our services, including billing, are handled by our office staff.

If you have any question regarding any of the above information, please contact Anita Rodriguez.

In Closing:

We hope that the information provided here clarifies our procedures.