VMS Admin Newsletter: 1st Quarter, 2022

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TMN VMS Support Team Newsletter


All Admin Meeting - April 21st

Our next All Admin Meeting will be April 21st, from Noon to 2:00 p.m. on zoom.
Zoom Link:  Click Here

Agenda items will include:

  • Review of documentation requirements for the Federal Reports
  • Slack Review
  • CBC Update
  • 2021 Annual Data Review
  • CMOP Initial Training & Certification Review
  • AMS Account Review

Field in Focus: Current Chapter

The current chapter field helps us find and follow volunteers at the state level. 

It is also used by the Background Check card email. Be sure to type out the whole name of the chapter followed by "Master Naturalists" (plural) so that it reads properly on the Background Check card. The Current chapter field is also used in our grids and is critical to helping Admins find people quickly in the All Data, Inbox, MyData and Recycled grids.
The other chapter fields are useful for Admins when volunteers transfer between chapters, or if you have an emeritus member.  In conjunction with the Master Naturalist Comments field, it can really help tell your volunteers’ history.  

You can find the Current Chapter field in the Volunteer Profile: User Defined Tab\Certifications group.

Current Chapter

Shared Systems

Just a reminder that TX Parks and Wildlife and TX Master Naturalists share the same VMS system, and volunteers... Think of it as two buckets of water in the same pool.  When a Master Naturalist administrator looks in the pool, they only see the opportunities and volunteers in the TXMN bucket, but when a volunteer looks in the pool, they see all the opportunities in the bucket that they are approved for, regardless of which organization owns the opportunities.  When a TPWD administrator looks in the pool, they see everyone that is approved for their opportunity - TPWD and TXMN volunteers alike. 

Sharing VMS data means we have to be very careful to not double dip hours when we have volunteers that work at state parks or TPWD activities like Angler Ed.  It's also why we have to vet our training classes to make sure they don't have a volunteer profile on the TPWD side so we don't create duplicate entries.


Clean up Grids/Filters/Email Templates

Please take some time to clean up your grids, filters and email templates. 

Delete the ones that you are no longer using and be sure that the ones that you do use have your name or chapter acronym/name in the title so we know who it belongs to.



2021 Data Review

We are working on the 2021 data review.  If you remember, the 2021 Federal Report consisted of our normal statistics, but the logbook analysis was based on 2020 data.  We are pulling the 2021 logbook data now and will present it at the April All-Admin meeting.


CBC Update - Volunteer Authorizations

EditMyProfile

In the past, we have accepted email and phone authorizations in order to run the volunteer background checks.  The lawyers have determined that that is insufficient.  The volunteer must authorize the background check through the online dashboard.  The Background Check Authorization should be the first notice that they see.


Quick Links

Get quickly to the help desk: TXMN.org/help

Slack Channels: TXMN.slack.com

Check your public facing chapter page: TXMN.org/apply

Login Page: TXMN.org/hours

Admin Login Page: TXMN.org/coordinator


Don't forget to report your Texas Master Naturalist volunteer time!

REPORT YOUR SERVICE