Seed Coalition is excited to begin recruiting AmeriCorps VISTA host sites for the 2025-2026 academic year.
VISTA is a federally funded service program focused on alleviating poverty by placing individuals in year long, full time positions; Seed Coalition’s cohort of service members generally focuses on improving health, education, or economic outcomes for low-income populations through community-campus partnerships and on-campus support for meeting students’ basic needs. You can learn more on our VISTA program page or at one of our information sessions in October (register below). This year we have received additional positions to support our network, and are excited to welcome project applications from our member campuses and their partners in Iowa and Minnesota. Anyone on a member campus can submit a project for application, and a single campus can support multiple projects.
Unlike other branches of AmeriCorps, VISTA is distinct in that members take on capacity building projects at their host sites. Here are only a few examples of how VISTAs have supported member campuses in the past year:
- At North Hennepin Community College, Austin Borowitz developed a training guide for student workers, which not only covers the logistics of daily operations of the Food Cupboard, but also the culture, mission, and vision of what the program does. He researched and implemented a volunteer program, and created an online format for students to easily sign up for volunteer shifts to support the operations of the Food Cupboard. Additionally, Austin has been able to improve overall processes and procedures for data collection at the site to ensure timeliness, efficiency, and integrity. Austin also assisted in grant writing, helping secure a $15,000 grant which ensures long term sustainability for the program to continue operating and providing food resources at North Hennepin.
- Parker Erickson’s efforts were essential to institutionalizing a permanent Basic Needs Coordinator position within the Center for Holistic Health at Concordia College. This position will oversee all basic needs support for students and lead health promotion work on campus. It is the first time the college has had a full-time position dedicated to this work. Additionally, the college has secured a Hunger Free Campus grant through the Minnesota Office of Higher Education to support students with emergent financial needs. Parker’s role in the engagement of community partners, volunteers, and students along with good data tracking was key in receiving this additional funding.
- Skyler Ramsey, a shared VISTA member at University of Northern Iowa (UNI) and Iowa Nonprofit Association (INA), had several opportunities to work on high-impact projects. At UNI, Skyler created a class for business students to earn their Certified Nonprofit Professional credential through the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance, and developed a marketing plan for reaching a broader and more diverse audience of students. At INA, Skyler supported the creation of the new group purchasing program, facilitated webinar trainings, sought event sponsorships, and began planning the Iowa Nonprofit Summit. Skyler has renewed their service and will continue to support the UNI and INA partnership for a second year.
We will host two informational sessions in October and invite you to join us to learn more about what our VISTA program can offer. Register at the links below:
Wednesday, October 16th at 10 am
If you have questions in the meantime, please reach out to Adia Zeman Theis.
