Service Site: Rio Grande Farm Park
Address: 6935 State Hwy 17 Alamosa, CO 81101
Site Supervisor’s Name: Meg Mercier
Slot Type: Three Quarter Term Minimum # of hours to complete term: 1200
Start Date: March 15th End Date: October 31st
Program Overview
Localizing our food system is one of the most impactful and actionable steps we can take to solve so many of our global problems, Across the central Rocky Mountains and southwestern Colorado, AmeriCorps service with Mountain Roots Healthy Futures Program builds social, economic, and environmental health for rural communities. We work with ten organizations throughout the region who are leaders in their fields, activating community-driven initiatives including Farm to School, Regenerative Agriculture & Community Gardens, Hunger Solutions (Community Food Security), and other programs in public health, conservation, and the environment. Join us for anywhere from one season to up to two years of mentored service, where you’ll build a bridge from college to career while building and sustaining healthy communities, healthy people, and a healthy environment.
Organization Overview
The Rio Grande Farm Park’s mission is to create and sustain a vibrant place where people come to learn, play, and grow. The Farm Park maintains 15 arable acres for disadvantaged farmers to grow food regeneratively, while the whole 40 acres provides youth and community education, robust volunteer programs, and a public park and orchard. The populations served are everyone, with particular focus on families in Alamosa and populations that seek farming opportunities but lack access to land, water, and capital.
Service Description
The Rio Grande Farm Park seeks a passionate, community-oriented Education Assistant AmeriCorps member to help implement educational programming in 2024. The primary focus will be to implement 2024 Rising Stewards, a summer working and learning experience for high school youth. This member will also assist with farmer educational events and community educational events that will occur at the Rio Grande Farm Park. This person will get to know community members and bring them in to share their knowledge related to regenerative agriculture. They will also help the Farm Park with multimedia education opportunities and passive education opportunities, such as video and social media. Last, this person will participate in creating a long-term vision and curriculum around RGFP educational programming and support the ecosystem of environmental education in the San Luis Valley.
AmeriCorps Member Primary Responsibilities
- Lead the implementation both on the land and in the classroom for the RGFP cornerstone summer high school program: Rising Stewards.
- Assist in the planning of Rising Stewards during the springtime and storytelling and reporting in fall.
- Facilitate for logistics such as camping, food, and recreational activities.
- Assist with youth-related activities at the Farm Park or elsewhere in the San Luis Valley with Generation Wild partner organizations.
- Assist with logistics planning and recruitment of farmers to attend agricultural conferences, workshops, and farm tours hosted by our organization, community partners, and organizations state & nationwide.
- Assist with passive and multimedia educational opportunities at the Farm Park, including social media.
- Participate with the weekly Mercadillo farmers’ market during the growing season – helping to set up the RGFP information booth, utilize a Point of Sale system to exchange SNAP and Credit Cards for market vouchers.
- Integrate educational opportunities into projects occurring at the Farm Park throughout their service.
- Participate in strategic planning related to Education at the Rio Grande Farm Park.
Location and Service Conditions:
This position is based at Rio Grande Farm Park and will involve service at San Luis Valley Local Foods Coalition Office at 412 State Ave, Alamosa, CO 81101. Position will involve frequent days of service outdoors.
Qualifications:
- College graduate with a degree in agriculture, biology, or education preferred.
- Comfortable with giving presentations/public speaking one-on-one, in small groups, and at large gatherings.
- Able to assist in curriculum creation and lesson planning.
- Familiar with principles of regenerative agriculture.
- Comfortable interacting with program participants grades K-12.
- Able to demonstrate program-related tasks, such as shoveling, using wheelbarrows, planting, and weeding.
- Alongside the program coordinator and site director, be able to lead and manage a group of high-school workers in various tasks and recreation activities
- Priority given to bilingual English/Spanish speakers. Tho se who are not bilingual will need to be able to comfortably work alongside monolingual Spanish speakers.
AmeriCorps Required Qualifications:
- At least 17 years old at start of service
- Must be a high school graduate, GED recipient, or working toward attaining a high school diploma or GED during the term of service. Members must obtain either a diploma or GED before using an education award.
- Be a citizen, national, or lawful permanent resident of the United States
- Able to pass a National Service Criminal History Check (state, FBI, and National Sex Offender Public Website checks) per 45 CFR 2540.202
Healthy Futures AmeriCorps Program Benefits
- $13,552.00. Living Allowance – AmeriCorps Member(s) will receive total stipend paid bi-weekly at $797.18 over the course of the term.
- $4,826.50 Education Award / Tuition Assistance – AmeriCorps Member(s) can receive an Education Award upon successful completion of service. This can be used to pay back student loans, or to further your education.
- Eligible AmeriCorps Members can receive childcare assistance.
- All Members receive professional development and training, plus covered travel costs for attendance at state or regional conferences.
- All members may be eligible for Federal program assistance (SNAP, Medicaid, etc.)
- All members may qualify for student loan forbearance (postponing the payment of loans) while in service.
- Alumni benefits may include priority hiring with organizations that are part of Employers of National Service and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program to eliminate educational debt.
