Thursday, October 10, 2002, 3:30 – 5:00 p.m. THE FABRIC OF VOLUNTEERISM:  Changing the Cultural Paradigm Tina Sweeten, Volunteer Resource Center, Minnesota Session Description:  This workshop will introduce managers of volunteer programs to best practices around changing organizational structures to best embrace cross-cultural volunteers.  The non-traditional groups to be highlighted include: youth, seniors, persons with physical and mental disabilities, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons, refugee/immigrant communities and racial/ethnic communities. Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will develop an action plan specific to their organization for changing the climate of their organization 2. Participants will increase their understanding of specific barriers to volunteering for the identified groups 3. Participants will be more prepared to recruit, engage and retain non-traditional volunteers Level:  Advanced Conference Theme(s): Balance, Community, Opportunity