A CONVERSATION WITH FORMER AMERICORPS DIRECTOR BY SABRINA QUIMBY
Service work is not for everyone, but for some it’s their calling. Bill is one of those people who was meant to help others and dedicate his life to it. We met for the first time at Serve Montana Symposium earlier in March and I was taken back by how laid back he was considering his resume. He talked more about other people than himself and he is quite humble for someone who served this country on a national level for over four years (along with lifelong experience in the field of service in general). Someone that has dedicated his…
ENGAGING THE DESIRE TO LEARN MORE BY HANNAH FERUS
Scientific magazines, documentaries, and science fiction have all been a weekly, if not daily, part of my life for as long as I can remember. Even then, I wasn’t sure until my second semester at college whether I was going to be able to pursue a STEM based degree. The self-doubt and uncertainty for if I was good enough to even try was off put in the end by the simple desire to learn more. And as I learn more about different forms of education, and have been working more and more with youth in the community, it is a…
STARTING OVER BY ASHLEY HETTLER
Poster above my deskHanging above my desk is a poster that reads, “No hate, No fear, Refugees are welcome here”. Every time I look at it, I hear chanting in the streets and see thousands of people swarming Washington D.C., with their signs waving. Living in D.C. for 6 years was eye-opening. I was no stranger to protests, politics, and people marching for what they believe in. It’s inspiring, and exhausting. By late 2017, I knew it was time for me to leave D.C. and pursue a field I was passionate about. I had wanted to work for the International…
AN EXTROVERT ALONE: MUSINGS ON SOLITUDE BY ALEXIS BURTON
I moved to Montana with the understanding that I was going to live in a small town I had never heard of, in a house that stands out among the crowd. I did not come here with the understanding that to live alone meant I was alone. No big deal, I decided, I get along with myself just fine. But when I arrived, the worries startled me. A whole year alone? No roommates, no friends, no one to greet when I come home except my plants. What would I do when the aloneness got real?The Mothership, a.k.a my houseWhat I…
SERVICE AND SELF-CARE BY SABRINA QUIMBY
Love More, Stress Less! Through my national service, I’ve learned that service is more than the day-to-day of what your site asks for. Service is building relationships, increasing morale, and creating a legacy; it’s learning more about yourself. Picture from HealthPsychTam.comAs AmeriCorps Leaders, we try our best to make the most positive impact on our host sites and on the people we serve through them. We spend time training and learning how to provide for our communities but it’s important to not let ourselves get burnt out.At my site, the faculty and staff periodically host socials where we can check in…
What I’ve Found BY ELI BOWE
When setting out, pack light. What you anticipate isn’t what you find, and what you need is what you’ll forget; so in this case, less is more. When I departed Wisconsin for Montana, I fit my entire life into a Honda Civic, made the Fargo-Billing’s run in nine hours, and subsisted on a protein bar and a package of Corn Nuts. Along the way, I enjoyed a break at Teddy Roosevelt National Park. AmeriCorps called me because industry seemed droll. I went west because it seemed the thing to do. More or less, that’s the story of how I…
WAYFINDING AT MAPS BY DANIELE VICKERS
I had never heard of AmeriCorps until I moved to Montana last May with my partner. Having recently finished my Masters, I came to Montana, not sure how my MFA in photography would play out in trying to find work. I was in the process of transferring my out of state K-12 art teaching license to Montana, but was soon realizing that teachers had been long hired for next year. Through some serendipity, I met the executive director at MAPS, and applied for the AmeriCorps position.The mission of MAPS is to better the lives of Montana youth through media arts…
USING MY PRIVILEGE TO PROVIDE A SAFE PLACE FOR YOUTH BY LONI NEILSON-KATTELL
Ten years ago, I stepped off a bus onto camp Paxson in Seeley Lake, MT. The leadership camp held by the National Coalition Building Institute (NCBI) now EmpowerMT changed my life. We learned about mistreatment and how to make connections with people I wouldn’t have otherwise invested in. We saw how oppression and violence affect all of us and what we can do to break the vicious cycle. We learned how leadership has no age limits and most of all we learned about ourselves. Ten plus years ago I attended Big Sky-High School as a leader. Now…
JUMP INTO SERVICE HEAD FIRST BY CLARA MOSER
At Big Sky’s GSA end of the year meeting Serving in Missoula at Big Sky High School has been both a tremendous transition and a rewarding adventure. While it is bizarre to be back in the middle of those high school days of anxious sweat, many heartbreaks, and the buzzing need for independence, I am so grateful to be able to stand beside these kids as they find their way. I have been working primarily with the support staff team here at Big Sky. The support staff consists of counselors for each grade-level, a college graduation coach,…
I DON’T WANNA MAKE THAT: THE DICHOTOMY BETWEEN VISION AND REALITY BY CHANDLER PADGETT
As I approach a quarter year of service, I look back on what I’ve done so far with both wonder and a good deal of amusement. From the wackiness of helping build an escape room and making a spider out of a hay bale to the doldrums of mopping and serving yogurt, my time in Sidney has been an interesting experience. Out of it all, the service I’m most passionate about and have had the most fun with is my art history program.The program started with lofty goals and aspirations—we would tour the world through the lens of significant art,…
A TELESCOPE LOOKING IN BY EVERETT WALKER
I find myself at odds with how to really convey much of anything in this blog. I’m here to serve, I felt a call and had to find where that call was coming from. I’m almost thirty with 3 kids and I’m married. I used to sit in a cubicle and sell insurance over the phone and I was good at it. I can connect with people quickly and serve his/her needs in about twenty minutes, another ten to get the policy or policies rolling and after 11 hours in the building I would clock out and go home with…
MY AMERICORPS SERVICE THROUGH THE WORDS OF BEAT POETS BY AMBER DECHAINE
“None of us understand what we are doing, but we do beautiful things anyways” -Allan Ginsberg. That is how my year of service began. Confusion and chaos amongst paperwork and packing boxes. I was unsure of what I was committing to and how I would budget bills and expenses with only a living stipend at my disposal. It wasn’t until orientation that it began to sink in. Three days spent with people I have never met. Team building, sharing meals, service learning. In those three days we learned about our mutual connection. The passion to give something of ourselves to those…
Alumni Spotlight: Emily Clark
Emily served as both an AmeriCorps Leader at Montana Campus Compact, and later as a staff member! Of the service year, Emily said “I was able to witness inspirational community service occurring across the vast state of Montana. MTCC college student members served a breadth of community needs: from health classes at the Poplar Wellness Center with Fort Peck Community College to the TRIO peer tutoring at UM Western in Dillon. MTCC fostered collaborations between non-profits and college campuses to meet community needs and encouraged student members to be proactive citizens. I feel fortunate to have met many engaged and charitable Montanas while…
Alumni Spotlight: Sydne Campbell
Sydne served as a Campus Compact AmeriCorps VISTA at Fort Peck Community College from 2004-2005. Of the service year, Sydne said “It helped me to be able to work with those from other areas of the United States and see what we do have in common as one. It gave me a positive encouraging push to strive to help others in a positive way. It helped me to give back to my community and the organization.”Sydne currently works as a Legal Assistant/Administrative Assistant at the Fort Peck Tribes Chairman’s Office. Thanks for your service, Sydne!
Almuni Spotlight: Katie Koga
Katie served as a Campus Compact AmeriCorps Team Leader at The University of Montana from 2010-2011. Reflecting on the service year, Katie said “This experience helped shape my view of public service and what it looks like for different individuals. Following my time with Campus Corps, I transitioned to working for a social justice organization, addressing issues of prejudice, oppression, and discrimination. As I’m transitioning to a career in healthcare, my service experience continues to strengthen my commitment to work that serves and benefits the public while engaging me as a community member.”Katie is a current student at the University of Montana, in the pre-nursing…
Alumni Spotlight: Jon Stephani
Jon served as an AmeriCorps Team Leader at The University of Montana Western from 2009-2011, and was a staff member at Montana Campus Compact from 2013-2015. Reflecting on service, Jon said “I would not be where I am today without my experience with the Montana Campus Compact. My two years of National Service set the stage for my future career. While serving, I was involved in many training and development opportunities that allowed me to build skills in Situational Leadership, Group and Team Dynamics, and Project Planning and Implementation. National Service pushed me to become not grow professionally, but to become a better person. As a staff…
Alumni Spotlight: Jennifer Gardner Newbold
Jennifer was an AmeriCorps Leader with the University of Montana Campus Corps from 1999-2000. Reflecting on service, Jennifer said “It really solidified in me a sense of responsibility to my community. I was always civic-minded, but my second year with AmeriCorps as an AmeriCorps Leader with Campus Compact really instilled in me a lifelong sense of duty in me. I think that’s because I developed a deep appreciation for service through my time with AmeriCorps. You see so many needs met, but also so many needs left unfulfilled. You learn that you actually can – and do – make a difference. It…
Alumni Spotlight: Jenny Eck
Jenny served as an AmeriCorps VISTA at the Poverello Center, Inc. from 2004-2005. Reflecting on the service year, Jenny said “The work I did during my year as an AmeriCorps VISTA helped me prepare for future employment in many ways. It was my first job in a professional office setting, and my first job in the nonprofit sector. It was also how I gained experience in grant writing and fundraising. I have since gone on to build on those skills I first learned at the Poverello Center.””When I come across people in the professional world who were once VISTA’s, I often know it right…
GUEST POST: NEWMAN CIVIC FELLOW SOPHIE MOON CHECKS IN.
Thanks to Campus Compact and the University of Montana, last week I was able to attend the Newman Civic Fellows Conference in Boston, Massachusetts as the University of Montana’s Newman Civic Fellow.Held at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute, the conference brought together student leaders from across the country to celebrate our work and strategize for the future. Fellows had the special opportunity of debating current issues, such as the DREAM Act and the Farm Bill, in a way that closely resembled real-life deliberations in the Senate. We also toured the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library, and used the space to…
GAMIFYING EDUCATION BY DAYTON SMITH
I had never heard the phrase “gamify education” before I joined the Tech4Good team at Salish Kootenai College.Gamifying education is a trendy term for efforts to create immersive, engaging experiences as opposed to traditional lecture or classroom learning and it’s something I continue to enjoy implementing into our various programs at. Another term commonly used to describe the practices in place at Tech4Good and in the Digital Design Technology department is “experiential learning”.Our keystone program at Flathead Tech4Good, now in its third year, is called Gaming the Future. The goal of this yearlong project is to gamify our educational opportunities…