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 working for MTCC."

Emily is currently a hydrologist with WGM Group, Inc..Thanks for your service, Emily!

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 program. Thanks for your service, Katie!

 

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 member for the Montana Campus Compact, I was able to pass on the same passion for national service and skills to other National Service Members. In a sense, I was able to pass the torch to a new generation."

"I am eternally grateful to the Montana Campus Compact for all the opportunities that were provided to me. I developed a deep sense of community involvement that I have carried with me into a new career. The Compact instilled the desire to serve my community, and to make the world around me a better place."

Thanks for your service, Jon!

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 also helped me develop many professional skills that I rely on today – particularly understanding how different personalities can work together and how positivity and organization really do help you get things done!"

"I feel I can say with confidence, that without my AmeriCorps experience, my life could have taken a different path. The opportunity to engage in something meaningful after finishing college, but before moving on to the next phase of my life, is something I will always be grateful for. AmeriCorps is a unique experience, and one that without a doubt, shaped who I am today."

Jennifer is currently an attorney with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Thanks for your continuing service, Jennifer!

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 off the bat. There’s something about AmeriCorps volunteers: their work ethic, their hopefulness, their commitment to their communities and to service. I know that AmeriCorps service members and alums are transforming our country and our state for the better, one project at a time!"

Jenny is currently the Executive Director of the Friendship Center in Helena, MT and Minority Leader of the Montana House of Representatives. Thanks for your continuing service, Jenny!!

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 continue discussing the theory and practice of organizing for change. Connecting with other young activists in Boston helped me realize both the common threads that run through all of our work, and how we can collaborate to address big problems, as well as the characteristics that make my community unique. I left the conference feeling truly inspired by the incredible activists that I met and empowered to make a tangible, positive change in my community.
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Sophie Moon, a Political Science and Environmental Studies student from the University of Montana, is one of seven Montana Newman Civic Fellows.