Abstract

Peer exchange visits can provide coordinators with technical assistance by learning how another program deals with similar issues. Visitors need to be prepared to maximize the usefulness of a visit to another program. Pre-visit preparations, on-site expectations, and post-visit follow through should all be planned out well before the actual visit day. Use these steps to develop continuing resources and transform programs into model sites. Excerpted from The Resource Connection, v.2(1), June 1996.

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Issue

Planning is the most important thing you can do to maximize the usefulness of a visit to another program. Once you have decided that a peer exchange is the most effective form of technical assistance for your needs, it's best to focus on two or three areas which you are ready to address, and arrange the visit with these areas in mind.

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Action

Edward Doty and Margaret Hawthorne Doty, program consultants with the Catholic Network of Volunteer Service, suggest the following effective practices:

By the time you're ready to make your visit, you should have spoken with and written to your host, discussed your areas of interest, and requested any information that can be provided in advance. During the planning, all questions and concerns should be carefully thought out and written down, and all decisions and schedules should be recorded and confirmed.

The Visit

In contrast, the key words during your visit are flexibility and balance. Trust your host. If you've done your planning well, your host knows what you want to learn. Hopefully, you and your host have discussed the experiences which will best facilitate this learning, but be prepared for last minute changes nonetheless. There may be conflicting circumstances of which you're unaware. Or it may be that your host, who understands both your needs and the local landscape, has thought of something new which would benefit you more than the experiences initially proposed.

Keep in mind that, just as you are not merely a passive observer, your host is not just a passive tour guide. Rather, he or she is someone with a great deal of knowledge who may be able to provide information you never considered. Stay focused on your areas of interest, but not to the point that you miss out on other information that could be useful. Don't be afraid to ask for changes in the arrangements that have been made for your visit, but realize that they may not always be possible.

Be flexible in your time and activity scheduling as well. Make sure you incorporate "down time" for yourself each day. Don't feel guilty if a recreational hour is included. You want to gather as much information as possible, but if you overload yourself, you will lose more than you will gain. Take notes when talking to people about your focus areas, but take time, too, to absorb the flavor of the programs you see.

Let good methods recommend themselves through the atmosphere they produce. Note how programs use the particular strengths of their members, and try to think of ways you can adapt their techniques to fit your own situation. And set aside some time each day to record your initial impressions of what you've seen. Great thoughts have a way of fading fast when you're back in your old surroundings.

Following Through

When the visit is over, your work is not. The first thing to do when you return home is report to someone within two or three days. (Schedule this before you go on your visit.) The report can be made to your board, supervisor, Corporation or CNVS contact. The act of having to summarize your experiences and consolidate what you learned will help you to clarify what was gained by the visit.

As soon as possible, and certainly within a week of your return, you should write your host and any programs you visited to thank them for their time. Remember that hosting a good visit is almost as taxing as making one, and your host put aside work during this time. A thank-you is not only basic courtesy, but it also solidifies the contacts you've made, turning them from one-time meetings into continuing resources.

Within the first two weeks you should write a report about the visit. If you leave it longer, the information gets stale and the problems you face at home intrude, making the report more difficult to write.

Now it's time to plan how to implement the changes that you've decided to make! Draw up a written plan within a month of your visit. The more you wait, the less the information gained on your peer visit will help you. CNVS can provide technical assistance in drawing up this plan. Presenting a formal plan to your supervisor or board justifies the time spent on the visit and makes it easier to push through the changes you propose. Used effectively, a peer exchange can be the impetus you need to transform your program into the model everyone else will wish to visit.

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Citation

Doty, Edward and Margaret Hawthorne Doty. Peer Exchange II: Making Your Visit Count. The Resource Connection. The National Service Resource Center. v.2(1), Summer 1996, pp. 2-3.

The Resource Center published The Resource Connection newsletter in print format quarterly from spring 1995 to fall 2002 to facilitate the exchange of training and technical assistance (T/TA) information, ideas, and resources to those in national and community service. In March of 2003, The Resource Connection went to a digital format, continuing to highlight information and resources that help programs funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service. Archived e-newsletters can be found online at www.nationalserviceresources.org/newsletters.

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