Get Involved: City of Boulder

National History Day is a competitive academic program that engages over half a million middle and high-school students around the world. Volunteers help middle- and high-school students in researching their National History Day topics. Volunteers work one-on-one with students in 30-minute online sessions to help them with research topics, identify sources, and execute other parts of their project.

Qualified volunteers must have skills in conducting historical research and be an active or retired librarian,  professional researcher, teacher, faculty member, historian, archivist, museum curator, history undergrad or graduate students, or PhD candidates of history.

Minimum of a one hour shift between Wednesday, January 20 and Saturday, January 23rd.

Boulder Teen Advisory Board (BTAB) attend weekly Zoom Teen Chat meetings on Wednesdays from 4:30 to 5:30 pm to share ideas and brainstorm about library programs designed for teens and tweens. BTAB members also participate in fun online activities with the teen librarians during the meetings, provide feedback about teens' library experiences, and even co-facilitate some activities! To be a BTAB member, you must be in grades 6-12 and be at least 12 years old.

BTAB members earn 1 hour of volunteer hour credit for each meeting they attend.

One hour per week on Wednesdays from 4:30 to 5:30 pm. We ask the BTAB members attend at least 2 meetings per month for a minimum for 4 months.

The COVID-19 Recovery Center (CRC) is set up to provide people experiencing homelessness with a place to recover and rest. People experiencing homelessness don’t have places to rest or isolate and, therefore, can’t follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and public health guidelines. The CRC fills that gap. People who are sick enough to require more intensive care will be referred to the hospital, just like any people who are acutely distressed. Read more and about training for the volunteer roles here. The two volunteer roles are:

• COVID-19 CRC volunteers: These volunteers assist at the site, provide food, laundry, direction and general support to clients. All shifts are at the East Boulder Rec Center located at 5660 Sioux Dr, Boulder, CO 80303 (the CRC location).

• Screeners at shelters: These volunteers help screen people for symptoms daily at the homeless shelters. Individuals who are symptomatic will be driven to the CRC by staff drivers each evening. 

Shifts are 8 hours at the CRC and 3.5 to 4.5 hours at the shelters (depends on the shelther).

The Natural Lands Outreach Volunteer Program is not currently accepting applications, but we will be back in the spring of 2021! Look for information in March.

Volunteers are required to volunteer for one shift in June and 2 shifts in June, July, August, and September. We are in most need of volunteers between 12 and 3PM on Saturday and Sunday and from 3 to 6PM on Wednesdays. Please let us know if the established shifts do not fit your schedule and we will be happy to create a shift that works for you. 

This program is not currently accepting applications. We will open the program back up in March, 2021. 

Park Champs should expect to work 3 or more hours a week at the park throughout the season (April to October).

Have a green thumb and experience germinating seeds? We’re looking for gardeners to support self-isolating older adults to grow native plants from seed using a kit provided to the seniors by Small Gardens, Big Change. These seedlings will be collected in the fall and planted by the community to expand pollinator habitat. Not only will you help support the transformation of Boulder into a pollinator haven, you will provide a connection to older adults during this time of uncertainty. All volunteering is done remotely to keep folks safe. Want to help out, but don’t feel like you’re an expert gardener? Don’t worry - horticulturists from Colorado State University and the Butterfly Pavilion will provide guidance throughout the process. 

Learn more about the Small Gardens, Big Change program. This is a pilot program and your experience will help to shape the expansion of this program to provide the plant materials needed to create pollinator pathways throughout the city. 

Mentors will check in with their partners for approximately 30 minutes weekly.  Mentors can work with up to ten seniors, depending on their availability.  

Monthly visits to the adopted area (weekly for RTD stops) are required.

Your visit could include a visual inspection of the area up to maintenance on the area that includes any of the following (if applicable):

• Remove trash, leaves, and debris a minimum of once a month (week for RTD stops).
• Weed (mechanical or manual means only – no herbicide/pesticide application) a minimum of every two weeks during growing season (April – October).
• In the fall, pruning any ornamental grasses, pick up and dispose of leaves, and mulch existing mulched areas (city to provide mulch).
• Edge trim where landscaped areas meet hardscape areas; clearance trim anywhere landscaping is conflicting with pedestrian or vehicle traffic.
• Report any observable problems with the irrigation system (i.e., leaks, misdirected spray, etc.) or any hazards (such as needles) to Transportation Maintenance 303-441-3200.

The City of Boulder is committed to multi-modal transportation, including year-round access to bus transit. The city’s new Shovel-a-Stop Program is an effort to increase the number of bus stops cleared after each snow event. The current budget supports contractors hired by the city to clear approximately 40 high-ridership stops after snowfalls resulting in at least 2-inches of accumulation. This program aims to bolster that number with community volunteer support. Clearing bus stops helps prevent slips and falls and increases safety and accessibility for bus riders of all ages and abilities.

This program is a great opportunity for individuals, families, neighborhood groups or community organizations. 

For more information and to apply to volunteer for this program, please click here. 

The time commitment will depend on the amount of snow that falls this winter, tools participants have available and size of the bus stop adopted. Typically, the annual snow season lasts from October to May. Program participants should plan to clear their adopted bus stop after each snow event with 2-inches of accumulation or more, within 24 hours after snow stops falling (view the NOAA tracker)