Supervisor, You've Got Mail
Your Ally submits their Time Log, and the clock starts ticking. This is how many days you've got to review it and leave feedback before you're the one in trouble.
What is 10 days?
Desk, phone, internet, supplies, and a place to stash their stuff. This is the bare-minimum setup you owe every Ally on day one.
What is appropriate office space and communication tools?
Your Ally wants to moonlight as a fundraiser. This is the max percentage of their total hours they can spend on pre-approved fundraising before someone notices.
What is 10%?
Lunch at their desk doesn't count. This is the minimum break, in minutes, an Ally must take daily, and it can't sneak into their Time Log.
What is 30 minutes?
Strike one. This is the first move in Public Allies' discipline playbook, delivered by staff, no paperwork required yet.
What is a verbal warning?
Reviewing isn't approving. This is your outer deadline, in days, to actually hit "approve" on that Time Log and MSR.
What is 30 days?
Your Ally isn't just staff, they're a walking billboard. This should be visible at their workstation, and their business cards should call them a "Public Allies AmeriCorps Apprentice."
What is AmeriCorps signage/logo?
Picket signs stay home. This entire category of civic muscle is a no-go for Allies on the clock.
What is protesting/petitioning/boycotting/striking?
Ghosting you without a heads-up earns your Ally this label, and it's basically a one-way ticket out of the Program.
What is an unexcused absence?
Strike two in the discipline lineup. A Public Allies staff member delivers this, and unlike strike one, it comes with paper.
What is a written warning (reprimand)?
Thinking about rewriting your Ally's job description on a whim? Loop in this person first!
Who is the Ally's Program Manager?
Before your Ally lifts a finger on real work, you owe them this: a walkthrough of your org's philosophy, policies, and procedures, plus intros to the team.
What is an orientation?
No exceptions, no gray area. Allies can never provide these services or make referrals for them.
What are abortion services?
The reporting period just ended and the countdown began. This is how many business days your Ally has to file their forms in the Leadership Journal.
What is 2 business days?
Verbal warning didn't land, and written warning didn't either. This is what happens to your Ally on their third strike under the discipline policy.
What is probation?
Twice a year, you owe your Ally more than a pat on the back. This is how many times you must formally evaluate their performance, once at the midpoint and once at year's end.
What is twice?
If a another pandemic sends everyone home, you're on the hook for equipping your Ally with these tools, laptop or terminal included, so service doesn't skip a beat.
What is remote equipment (email, word processing, web browser software, computer/laptop)?
This door-to-door gig isn't something your Ally can pick up during service hours. This role is flat-out banned while they're on the clock.
What is being a census taker?
This is the magic number of service hours a full-time Ally needs in the bank to walk away with a full Segal Education Award.
What is 1,700 hours?
You've decided an Ally has to go after the fourth strike. Besides the letter explaining why, you're also on the hook for returning this to Public Allies.
What is any unused money owed under the Partner Organization Contract/all required evaluations?
Cap and gown optional for the Allies, but showing up is not. This is the year-end event where your Ally shows off everything they've learned.
What is the Presentation of Learning (and graduation ceremony)?
Retreats aren't optional field trips. This is the attendance rule for every Ally when Public Allies calls a retreat.
What is mandatory attendance?
Ghostwriting a federal funding application? Not on your Ally's watch. They can never help prepare or submit one of these to AmeriCorps or any other federal agency.
What is a grant?
Your Ally wants to skip a Training Day for an outside conference instead. This is the max number of days they can use for that swap.
What is two?
Violent felony, drug charges, or an offense the Site Director deems serious enough. In these cases, Public Allies skips this entire step-by-step discipline process.
What is the progressive discipline policy?