ONDA volunteers are an important part of the guest experience and the wider community. Regardless of role, every volunteer is expected to represent ONDA positively through their attitude, reliability, communication, and day-to-day behavior. Volunteers are expected to respect ONDA’s rules, values, house rules, and community standards at all times. These standards apply fully to the Social Butterfly role and to volunteer behavior across the ONDA program.

Purpose

This lesson defines the general expectations that apply to all ONDA volunteers, regardless of their specific role or schedule.

Core standard

All volunteers are expected to be:

• respectful
• reliable
• communicative
• proactive
• professional in shared spaces
• mindful of their impact on guests, staff, and fellow volunteers

General expectations for all volunteers

All volunteers are expected to:

• represent ONDA positively at all times
• respect ONDA’s values, house rules, and community standards
• treat staff, guests, and fellow volunteers with respect
• communicate clearly with the ONDA team
• respond to scheduling and operational communication in a timely way
• maintain appropriate personal and professional boundaries with guests
• contribute positively to the overall guest experience
• help support a warm, respectful, community-oriented environment

Expectations by theme

Reliability and accountability

Volunteers are expected to take their role seriously. Even though the arrangement is voluntary, ONDA provides accommodation, meals, and other support in exchange for commitment, motivation, hard work, and respect. The agreements make clear that being a volunteer at ONDA is a privilege, not a right.

This means volunteers are expected to:

• follow their agreed role schedule
• communicate early if there is an issue
• complete the responsibilities of their role consistently
• avoid creating extra work for the team through poor communication or unreliability

Shared living and working environment

Because volunteers live and work within the ONDA environment, expectations go beyond just role performance.

Volunteers are expected to:

• respect the shared home and community
• follow all ONDA house policies
• use common areas appropriately
• behave in a way that supports a comfortable environment for others
• understand that their behavior affects both the staff experience and the guest experience

Role-specific expectations still apply

This lesson covers the expectations that apply to all volunteers. In addition, each role has its own specific standards.

For example:

• Social Butterflies are expected to be outgoing, proactive, and socially engaging
• Social Butterflies are expected to maintain a welcoming, socially aware, and proactive guest-facing presence

Summary

In simple terms, every ONDA volunteer is expected to:

• respect people and the property
• communicate clearly
• act responsibly
• follow ONDA’s rules and standards
• contribute positively to the guest experience
• help maintain a healthy and respectful community environment