The Office of Community Engagement and Scholarship at the College of William and Mary is proud to announce that we have funding for our third and final year of AmeriCorps*VISTA members, and are accepting applications. Each VISTA contributes to working against poverty locally and building community capacity. VISTAs are part of the OCES staff and contribute valuable energy, skills and knowledge to their work with students and communities.
VISTAs are compensated a stipend at a poverty level to encourage solidarity with the communities in which they serve. They are eligible for an education award or cash award at the end of their term of service. The VISTA term with OCES will be from August 2011 to August 2012.
To apply, submit a cover letter and resume to Melody Porter,mcporter {at} wm(.)edu, by 5 pm on May 31, 2011. Online applications through the AmeriCorps*VISTA portal will also be required; those will be available shortly.
Following are overviews for each position. Full job descriptions are available at www.wm.edu/oces; click on right side event about the posting.
VISTA for Student & Community Engagement
The VISTA for Student and Community Engagement will mobilize students, faculty and staff to partner with each other and nonprofit agencies in order to increase communication, understanding, education and direct action in fighting poverty. The VISTA will develop sustainable large scale and small group service projects, and education and outreach events that will engage more student volunteers in service, while deepening our educational focus for students to learn about root causes. Large scale projects include Stand Up Campaign, Spring into Action, SHOW Day and Make a Difference Day; small group advising includes the Engagement Council and student-group-led short term and long term community projects. Because this is the final year of a three-year grant, the VISTA will also develop how-to manuals and transition leadership toward the end of the term.
VISTA for CKWM
The VISTA for The Campus Kitchen at William & Mary (CKWM) will support our student-led Campus Kitchen chapter, building up its organizational capacity so that it can expand opportunities for student volunteers and add additional events reaching out to senior citizens, children and individuals, and carry on its work after the end of the VISTA term. Specifically, the VISTA will work with the students of CKWM to expand the program by creating an annual spring semester event similar to fall semester’s Turkeypalooza, regularly occurring programming targeted to the adults at the Blayton Building, New Hope Road, Dunning Street, and Mimosa Drive communities; and an annual campus wide educational event focused on poverty in our community. The VISTA will assist with the transition of full-time advisor of CKWM and build the student group’s capacity to carry on with service after the VISTA term by creating a manual outlining CKWM operations and policies.
VISTA for W&M – Petersburg Partnership
The VISTA for the W&M & Petersburg Partnership, an economic development and service partnership with the community of Petersburg, VA, will build on W&M’s connection with Petersburg stakeholders, facilitating student and faculty involvement in Petersburg. Specifically, the VISTA will advise student volunteers in developing regular service projects with partners in Petersburg. The VISTA will also foster relationships with nonprofits in Petersburg to connect them to resources from W&M, meeting with nonprofit and community leaders on a regular basis. Each of these efforts will combine to result in high-quality service projects and capacity-building efforts that have the tools to continue past the end of the VISTA term.
