Join the biggest little book club in Seattle! Behind the scenes at SAL is a corps of dedicated volunteers who contribute their time to ensure we meet our mission of sparking imaginations and bringing together people and ideas. We have a host of areas to get involved in, from ushering at our events, to assisting with mailings and other administrative tasks, to working on our annual Words Matter Benefit Gala & Literary Auction.
Benefits of volunteering
- Volunteers receive complimentary admission to events.
- Volunteers enjoy the benefits of working in the cultural atmosphere of a distinguished literary arts institution.
- Volunteers will connect to a community of imaginative thinkers, readers, and writers.
- All volunteers are invited to attend volunteer receptions and appreciation events we host.
“We had just moved to the area, and after our first SAL event – as a ticketed guest – we found out about volunteering and signed up. Although we originally thought it was all about the events, we soon found it is so much more than that! Volunteering itself is just so much fun, and so gratifying to be part of this positive team, meeting and greeting the guests, and generally being part of the whole arts community in Seattle.” – SAL Volunteer
We currently have the following positions open:
Front-of-House Volunteer:
The Front-of-House Volunteers –ushers, box office assistants, and information table assistants– support the effective running of events by welcoming, serving, and monitoring the audiences that enter our venues. This role puts you on the front lines of the literary world in Seattle!
Back-of-House Volunteer:
As a Back-of-House Volunteer your primary responsibility is to assist the Director of Events with the variety of tasks related to auditorium seating, sound/technical checks, and other backstage needs.
Behind-the-Scenes Program Support:
Whether you are a student, stay-at-home parent, retiree, or anyone with some free time during office hours (9 a.m. – 5 p.m.), we could use your organizational skills to help with a variety of projects: everything from assisting with ticket orders to file management, operations and board support, data entry, bulk mailing, auction donations, program and marketing research, and more.
Writers in the Schools:
Writers in the Schools (WITS) is a literary arts education program serving 25 public schools in five schools districts. We are looking for volunteers to help the writers-in-residence in the schools, as well as and behind the scenes in the office. This is a great opportunity for creative writers who are interested in being a Writer-in-Residence, but don’t yet have the teaching experience necessary to apply for a full position.
Fund Development:
Seattle Arts & Lectures is looking for open-minded, motivated volunteers that are enthusiastic about literature and spoken word and have an interest in helping further the mission of our organization, particularly in respect to our resource development. From volunteering at our fun and inspiring fundraising events, to helping keep donor records up to date, this is a great position for those interested in nonprofit management and fund development. Volunteers in this role will find joy in helping others to support SAL.
Marketing, Communications, and Public Relations:
Love the idea of connecting people with SAL’s programs? Wild about copy writing and editing? Excited about social-media, Google Analytics, and other aspects of digital marketing? Bring your savvy and ideas to SAL. Marketing volunteers will assist the Marketing Associate with SAL’s promotion and sales efforts. Ideal candidates will be energetic, inventive, hard working, web-savvy, and brimming with ideas about creative ways to market our events and programs through the web, print, and more.
To get involved, please fill out a volunteer application form here and email it to sal@lectures.org.
Thank you for your interest!