vyt voices 2015 2016 fall/winter newsletter

VYT Voices

Vermont Youth Tomorrow A*VISTA Program

Fall/Winter 2015

Volume 14, Issue 1

Dear Readers,

The first of three newsletters for the ‘15-’16 service year has arrived! Contained

within are the newest members to join the Vermont Youth Tomorrow A*VISTA

team. Throughout the 2015-2016 service year VYT members will make amazing

things happen at their organizations, and you can read about some of those ac-

complishments here.

For our introductory newsletter members explain why they became VISTAs, either

with the VYT program or in general, or perhaps a bit of both. After having been in

service since early August, members have gotten the chance to reflect on their

experience as VISTAs so far. Although it is early in the service year, the members

have already shown what it means to cooperate as a team, represent their ser-

vice sites to the public eye and each other, and get things done.

Without further ado, I present to you a group of people who have only just

begun to inspire their communities and me.

Enjoy,

Hannah Bober

VYT A*VISTA Leader

In This Issue

Griffin Payne 2

Julia Scheier 3

Julia Dillavou 4

Laura Biren 4

Ashten Stringer 5

Ginny Cooke 6

Sara Day 7

Madison Rossi 8

Katerina Fluharty 9

Michelle Goldsmith 10

Heather King 11

Jon Notwick 11

Orientation 12

2014-2015 Stats 13

Griffin Payne, VYT A*VISTA

Randolph Area Community Development Corporation, Randolph

The first time someone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, three year-old Griffin responded by

saying, “I want to be a firetruck.” And then, around the time I turned six, I reconsidered my answer, not for the

laws of physics, but for this essential question, “How can I effect the most change?” I’ve seen my answer evolve

over the years. The short list is as follows: Basketball Player, Lawyer, Volcanologist, Teacher, Statesman, and then I

grew up and became artist, educator, mental health professional, and organizer. And now, I am honored to call

myself an AmeriCorps VISTA.

Rooted and steadfast, the Town of Randolph has weathered many storms, and within the last twenty-five

years, a series of devastating fires that has left as many questions as it has mounds of ash and debris. In 1994, after

the worst set of fires, a trifecta of blazes that destroyed approximately sixty percent of the downtown, The Ran-

dolph Area Community Development Corporation (RACDC) was born from those ashes to lead in the rebuilding and

revitalization efforts. With time the scope of RACDC’s mission has expanded to include affordable housing, eco-

nomic development, and implementation of revitalization strategies that have helped to bring Randolph not only

to its former pre-disaster state, but to levels of beauty and vitality that far surpass even the most optimistic of im-

aginations.

Just months after the flooding caused by Tropical Storm Irene, Executive Director of RACDC, Julie Iffland,

wrote a visionary essay entitled, “Good Neighbors Make Good Bridges.” The premise of her words is the premise of

our organizational mission and lies at the foundation of why I am honored to serve at Julie’s side. It is clear, to the

core, we are a quality of life organization, though our efforts were forged in crisis; “Resilience isn’t created on the

day of a disaster, it’s revealed.” And, while the resurrected brick buildings that line Main Street and nearly 200

affordable housing units stand as testament to RACDC’s work, what matters most of all, as Julie wrote, is this: “In

disaster, relationships and trust may be the only building blocks left.

Good neighbors are the bridge that never falls down!”

Through bringing communications expertise, an expanded youth fo-

cus, and more cohesion to our downtown community, it is my goal to

continue strengthening these bridges of trust, goodwill, and access

through my service here in Randolph.

Julie Iffland, Executive Director of RACDC (left), and

Griffin Payne, AmeriCorps VISTA Volunteer (right)

Julia Scheier, VYT A*VISTA

Salvation Farms, Morrisville

My name is Julia Scheier and I am an AmeriCorps VISTA serving with Salvation Farms in Morrisville, VT. I am originally from Massachusetts and am currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Sustainable Development with a focus in non-profit management. I originally went to SIT Graduate Institute enrolled to serve in the Peace Corps for my internship phase, as I had a deep passion for serving others while becoming truly integrated into another community. Through my graduate courses, however, I came to question the ethics of traveling abroad to help alleviate poverty while there is such dire need in my own backyard. I realized there is so much meaningful work necessary in the United States and felt AmeriCorps upheld the same principles of community building, personal growth, and capacity building that I appreciated in the Peace Corps. In this way, I sought out a VISTA position and was lucky enough to connect with Salvation Farms, whose mission is to build increased resilience in Vermont’s food system through agricultural surplus management. Salvation Farms’ programming goes beyond the traditional

charitable model of capture and distribute to fundamentally strengthen the state’s food system. Our programs support local gleaning initiatives, which is the act of reaping after the harvest, and developing a commodity program, which

involves raw packing and processing for distribution into the charitable and institutional system. My work during my service year will include an agency-scale toolkit based on our Meals on Wheels pilot program to create a step-by-step document for agencies wishing to incorporate gleaned produce into their food programs. Additionally, I will be creating a business plan for the expansion of our commodity program from a pilot at Southeast State Correctional Facility to a community-based location. This program will manage farm-fresh surplus foods at volumes too great for efficient integration into local distribution methods. Additionally, the Commodity Program will incorporate a workforce development component by engaging individuals who may need transitional support in employment, such as the incarcerated or veterans. Salvation Farms strengthens the food systems chain so that Vermont is relying less and less on food from out of the state and efficiently utilizing food on local farms that would have otherwise been lost to consumers. This will result in more money in Vermont’s economy, agricultural education for community volunteers and eaters, less food waste on farms, and a smaller reliance on food from far away. It is through these sustainable and efficient programs, in conjunction with a stable workforce development experience, that my year at Salvation Farms will help alleviate poverty in Vermont.

Julia enjoying some gleaned

produce during service

Julia helping organize gleaned

tomatoes

Laura Biren, VYT A*VISTA

enVision, Montpelier

My name is Laura Biren and I am serving at enVision Montpelier in the City Planning and Community Development Department. The term enVision is what first caught my eye. The vision needed to plan a community to become a more secure and sustainable environment for every human residing there is a vision and a plan I would like to be a part of. I then initiated my service in August of 2015 as the AmeriCorps VISTA serving at enVision Montpelier. I have served with AmeriCorps twice before and both terms made me into a better, stronger, wiser, smarter person than I was when I first entered service. There was never a doubt in my mind for my desire to become the VISTA at enVision. It is a challenging role to be a VISTA with the intended goal of alleviating poverty in your new community. Poverty can be seen or unseen; it can be seen or unseen in many different forms as well –

such as hunger, food insecurity, homelessness, low-income, and lack of access to education, resources, etc. My role as the VISTA at enVision is to promote and develop civic opportunities and awareness for low-income youth and adults in Montpelier to participate in planning and implementing housing, food systems, transportation and energy policies. I have the ability to provide research on issues affecting low-income communities to City boards and commissions. One of my main focuses as a VISTA is capacity building – ensuring that the systems that are in place, or will be in place, are built towards self-sustainability. Capacity building envisions the security that communities need in order to remain sustainable. It is my hope that during my term I will build certain programs to become self-sufficient and will empower as many individuals living in poverty as possible to ensure that everyone’s envisioned future is secure.

Montpelier City Hall

My name is Julia Dillavou. I’m originally from a suburb of Boston but have been living in Burlington for the last 4 years. In May I graduated from the University of Vermont with a degree in Sociology! My service is as a Pro-gram Empowerment Director VISTA with the DREAM Program, which is a nonprofit youth mentoring organization that pairs college students with kids that live in affordable housing neighborhoods. I have been involved with DREAM for a little over a year, both running summer programming in DREAM communities as a Summer Associate VISTA, assisting with the Champlain College DREAM Program, and as a development intern in the office. My experi-ences with DREAM prior to my VISTA service were among the most fulfilling, empowering, and enjoyable of my life. Seeing first hand the effects DREAM has on its youth, mentors, and communities demonstrated the organization’s powerful mission and successful model. As a VISTA, I support the mentors and programs at Champlain College, Saint Michael’s College, and Johnson State College. My service focuses on increasing the sustainability of these student-run programs, facilitating the de-velopment of mentors, and empowering our DREAM youth while working towards DREAM’s mission of community building and empowerment through ownership. My service will help to provide opportunities and experiences that will broaden our mentees worldviews, expand their social horizons, and increase their social capital and self-reliance.

Julia Dillavou, VYT A*VISTA

The DREAM Program, Inc., South Burlington

Ashten Stringer, VYT A*VISTA

Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce, Burlington

My name is Ashten Stringer and I am the current AmeriCorps VISTA at the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce. I am a native Vermonter from the Northeast Kingdom and have witnessed and experienced the effects of poverty on various occasions throughout my life. I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to attend the University of Vermont where I earned a B.A. in Global Studies with minors in Community and International Development and Spanish. I was drawn to community development and, in turn to VISTA service, while at UVM. During my time in university, I learned that people all over the United States and the world face a variety of problems ranging from poverty to oppression. It became clear that real action is needed to confront these challenges. As a result I have been drawn to jobs and service that will make a difference for people in need of change. I have also been drawn to VISTA in hopes of using it as a stepping stone to the international development industry. At the Chamber I work with my supervisor to develop and implement two youth development programs in local schools. The first, TIPS (Training Interns and Partnering for Success), teaches students the employment skills they need to get and keep a job in addition to what it takes to build a successful career. It also provides students with 40 hour internships at local businesses in a field they are interested in exploring. The second, PILOT (Program to Inspire Leadership, Opportunity, and Thought), consists of field trips to local organizations to teach students leadership skills and the importance of community engagement. It also gives students the opportunity to explore their career interests through job shadowing.

Students exercise their leadership and effective com-

munication skills to construct the best possible air-

plane out of tinker toys during the PILOT opening

retreat to the Vermont Air National Guard.

Ginny Cooke, VYT A*VISTA

Laraway Youth and Family Services, Johnson

My name is Ginny Cooke and I am serving as a VISTA at Laraway Youth and Family Services. Laraway is located in rural Johnson, VT and is a non-profit dedicated to serving youth and families in the state through strengths-based approaches and therapeutic methods. Laraway offers a special education K-12 school, a residential foster care program, and an after-school program. The Laraway offices and school are located on 39 acres of formerly agricultural land. One goal of the organization is to use the land as a tool for healing and personal development for the youth in their programs. My position as a VISTA is to help develop programs that connect youth to the land and maintain the ½ acre onsite farm. Upon graduating from Clark University in Worcester, MA two years ago with a degree in Environmental Studies, I had a yearning to travel and discover new horizons (aka head west!). I had fallen in love with farming during my college years volunteering on urban farms and decided to continue learning more about growing plants through farm work trades. I ended up in the mountains of Northern California, the Hawaiian island of Kauai, and an old mining town turned adventure destination in the bush of Alaska, planting seeds and harvesting veggies all the while. After two years of feeding my wanderlust, I felt compelled to get back into non-profit work, another love I had found in college while organizing a campaign with Real Food Challenge. I had heard about the AmeriCorps program from friends and family who participated and decided to look into some of the position descriptions. Lo and behold, a position that combined my desire to return to the non-profit world and my love of gardening appeared and I found myself in the Green Mountains of Vermont. One of the reasons I am so interested in growing food is that I see it a very empowering and healing activity. There is a lot of disconnect between people and the food we consume in our modern society. Through my year of service at Laraway, I hope to help the youth in our programs gain a sense of connection to their food and feel competent growing their own gardens. With food insecurity and physical as well as mental health being so closely tied to issues of poverty, I see my position as a bridge for youth to access healthy foods and recreation that hopefully they can carry on into adulthood.

The farm and garden shed at Laraway

Sara Day, VYT A*VISTA

Franklin Grand Isle Bookmobile, Swanton

I can remember the sound of my Grandfather’s voice as he read to me story after endless story, my Grandmother videotaping the entire thing. My favorite were the fairytales that I had memorized myself, but enjoyed listening to my Grandfather’s voice too much to give it up. Now that both of them are gone, all I have left are stories. Their stories, my stories, and the stories that we read and created together. Books have always been my weakness and my passion. Because of my Grandfather’s love of reading, he made sure that I continued his passion and I have. There’s nothing I love more than curling up with a good book (I usually carry one around with me) and a hot cup of coffee. Being lost in a good story is one of the most magical things people can experience. Graduating from a small Liberal Arts College in Michigan gave me all sorts of experiences and new found passions, but an uncertainty of what my next step would be. Grad School? Maybe, but I wasn’t sure what I wanted to go into. Peace Corps? Only if I wanted to upset my mother. A full time job? Ideally, but my experience was minimal and I could only find jobs that were boring desk jobs. It wasn’t what I went to college for. It wasn’t until one of my sorority sisters, who was an AmeriCorps VISTA at my college, pointed me in the direction of AmeriCorps. With no strings to keep me in Michigan, I applied everywhere and anywhere. And that’s how I found the Franklin Grand Isle Bookmobile. One of the things I like most about my position is that I’m helping the education of those whose children are in poverty. Education is one of the most important things to me and also one of the best ways, I think, to alleviate poverty. The more educated a person is, the more adaptable he or she becomes. I think starting at such a young age helps to set children on the path of coming out of poverty. With the Franklin Grand Isle Bookmobile, our aim is to provide books to kids who might not have access to books otherwise. With education, poverty can be alleviated, one book at a time.

The FGI Bookmobile Mission

The Franklin Grand Isle Bookmobile promotes a lifelong love of

learning and creates community connections by providing greater

access to books, information, activities and fun. .

Sara and staff with the

Bookmobile

Maddy Rossi, VYT A*VISTA

Willowell Foundation, Monkton/Vergennes

My name is Madison Rossi and I am an AmeriCorps VISTA with the Willowell Foundation. I recently

graduated Willamette University in Salem, Oregon with a major in sociology because I have a passion for working

with people and a desire to know more about

our culture and social structure. Upon

graduating I knew I was ready for a break from

the books and was drawn to non-profit service

oriented work. This lead me to AmeriCorps and

then to the Willowell Foundation. The Willowell

Foundation resonates deeply with me because

of its mission statement, specifically their

outlook on education. The Willowell

Foundation’s mission statement is “to cultivate

healthy communities by connecting people to

the arts, education, agriculture, the

environment and each other.” Much of the

service I will be doing over the course of the year

supports the foundation as a whole. This service includes grant research, fundraising, volunteer coordinating, social

media, community outreach and supporting the education programs. One of my favorite aspects of service thus far

has been with Willowell’s two education programs: the preschool program called Wren’s Nest Forest Preschool and

their high school program called Walden.

Wren’s Nest mission is to get kids outside and comfortable with nature. When promoting this program

within the community I have been pleasantly surprised by how many people support the mission, and love to hear

stories about what the kids are up to. Personally, I love to see youth getting excited about education from such a

young age and having the opportunity to be kids, run around and get dirty. The Walden Project is an outdoor high

school program and an incredible alternative education option. The kids in the program are brilliant and incredibly

talented. Some students come to the high school program

because the traditional K-12 structure does not fit their learning

style, others come from difficult backgrounds and benefit from

the unique supportive, group structure. Programs such as The

Walden Project and Wren’s Nest give kids the opportunity to have

a successful education, and hopefully a healthy and successful

future as well. By helping people attain the tools needed to have a

healthy future, they will hopefully be able to break the cycle of

poverty or avoid finding themselves in a poverty situation. The

Willowell Foundation does incredible work for its community and I

am truly looking forward to a wonderful year of service with

them!

Maddy showing off some Willowell scenery

The iconic Willowell silo

Katie Fluharty, VYT A*VISTA

All-4-One, Springfield

I am originally from the little town of Indiana, Pennsylvania and I moved to Springfield, Vermont to serve the

youth and community through the All-4-One Program. Every path I chose in life has led me to serve, support, empow-

er, and advocate for those in need. Prior to my commitment to serve as a VISTA, I taught preschool and traveled to

Ghana where I taught primary school and served in an orphanage for a couple months.

Our mission at the All-4-One program is to support, strengthen, and sustain before/after and summer school

programs while promoting social and emotional development and academic achievement through high yield learning

available to all students in the Springfield School District. We attend to the needs of each child in our program and we

provide them with the support and resources to develop skills to overcome the stress of their everyday lives, in addi-

tion to teaching them how to cultivate that stress into a positive and productive lifestyle. When taking Abraham

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs into consideration, the effects of poverty on motivation and learning are clearly correlat-

ed. For instance, according to Maslow’s theory, an individual cannot move to the next hierarchies of need until the

previous one has been fulfilled. Therefore, when relating Maslow’s theory to a

person’s motivation to learn, it becomes apparent that they must first have their

basic needs of air, food, water, warmth, sleep, and proper health met in order to

learn. At All-4-One we provide children with those essential resources and we en-

sure that their needs are met. We do this by providing each student with a hot

meal both before and after school, and three full meals during the summer. Fur-

thermore, we provide our students with access to enrichment activities, clubs and

resources to enhance their cognitive learning. Statistics indicate that unequal ac-

cess to summer learning opportunities accounts for 2/3 of the achievement gap

between low and middle-income students. We strive toward alleviating that gap by hosting a summer program that

provides students with activities that promote learning, social interaction, positive experiences, and fun.

There is not a one fix cure for poverty; it is an in-depth and diverse problem. In order to help those in need, we have to

be willing to take a multidisciplinary approach to develop a solution to the prob-

lem. Each day at All-4-One we work toward developing a sustainable and effec-

tive solution to alleviate poverty not just for our students but for each student

across the world. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “I have the audacity to be-

lieve that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, edu-

cation and culture of their minds, and dignity, equality, and freedom for their

spirits.” Here at All-4-One we believe the same thing, and we won’t stop until

each child has their needs met; we have two hands, one to help ourselves, and

one to reach out and help others. Youth at an All-4-One event

Youth at an All-4-One event

Michelle Goldsmith, VYT A*VISTA

Big Picture South Burlington, South Burlington

My name is Michelle Goldsmith and I am serving at Big Picture South Burlington. Big Picture is a proficiency

based school-within-a-school at South Burlington High School that supports student learning through hands-on,

student driven opportunities. I was drawn to this position because of my background in education, and my desire to

find ways to help all learners access high-quality personal learning. I am a licensed English teacher, and while I love

teaching, I sometimes feel unsatisfied by the confines of a traditional classroom. As a big proponent of experiential,

individualized learning, Big Picture is a perfect match for my VISTA year.

Big Picture employs a “one student at a time” approach with the goal of making learning accessible,

personal, and individualized. Big Picture equips students with skills and mindsets that enable them to continue

academic and personal growth when they leave school. To achieve this, students explore content they are

interested in through self-directed projects, internships, and reflection. They are responsible for demonstrating

their learning through a series of public exhibitions that are evaluated based on a series of program identified

proficiencies.

Another unique opportunity students have with this program is the internship experience. Each term,

students pair with community partners in a field of interest and spend two days a week (80+ hours per semester!)

learning at the site. This allows students to delve into potential career fields, gain knowledge around workplace

practices, participate in interviews with professionals, and network with community members.

This program model makes academic success achievable for many students who struggled to succeed in the

traditional classroom. It fosters a close-knit community of staff and students who work collaboratively to identify

what learning success looks like for each person. Students are challenged, supported, and held accountable for their

education.

My role as the VISTA is to support the growth of the program through outreach, networking with

community partners, assessing and developing materials, managing media platforms, and more. Additionally, I

connect students with secondary and postsecondary resources and opportunities in order to promote their

continued growth. Accessible and high quality education is one of the many factors that has the power to chip away

at poverty, and I hope that my time here will allow for this program to continue improving how it helps students

and families find both academic, and real-world success.

Student presenting work at

Orientation Term Exhibition

Jon Notwick, VYT A*VISTA

In-Sight Project, Brattleboro

Hello, my name is Jon and I am an AmeriCorps VISTA serving with the In-Sight Photography Project in

Brattleboro, Vermont. Several of my friends served as VISTAs in the past. I saw the positive changes they were

making the community and the immense personal growth they underwent during their service. I wanted to be

involved. As soon as the VISTA position at the In-Sight Project opened up I leapt at the opportunity to serve.

I was a volunteer with In-Sight for a number of years before my service but I was excited to have an opportunity to

devote all of my time to bettering this wonderful organization. In-Sight offers photography classes to the youth of

the community regardless of their ability to pay class fees. Their mission will help alleviate poverty by providing

children and young adults with a form of education that is not always available. Early arts education gives children a

creative outlet and voice. This type of education also teaches children creative

problem solving all of which will prepare them for life after school. I am proud

to serve In-Sight and I can’t wait to see what

the rest of this year has in store.

Heather King completed her service with Vermont Youth Tomorrow this past November.

My name is Heather King, and I serve with Cornerstone Bridges to Life Community Center, based in Richford. I’m not a new VISTA; I end my service in November. I moved to Vermont from Brewton, Alabama, a tiny town 14 miles away from Florida. I decided to become a VISTA because I felt I did not possess the tools or knowledge to bring permanent, positive programming to the youth in the Brewton community. In my time as a service member, I now realize that I also lacked self-motivated direction. As I stated last year, the VISTA program is unique, because it allows you to completely immerse yourself in a new community where you can experience how a non-profit operates; more than that, it allows you to interact with that process and contribute to it. Through the VISTA program, I have gained some of the tools I needed, and have a better understanding of the kind of impact I eventually would like to have on communities like Brewton and Richford. I also have an outlet that allows me to put my talents and passions to their best use. Reflecting back on the last few months, I also see that while I have learned a lot about how a non-profit operates, I still have so much to learn.

Heather King, VYT A*VISTA

Cornerstone Bridges to Life Community Center, Richford

The Beginning of (Our) Time

What do you do when you’re meeting a group of people, most of whom for the first

time? Dress up and play with puppets, of course!

There’s always a lot to learn when starting in a new

role, including some of the less obvious

abbreviations and nicknames of VYT and

AmeriCorps in general. One way to solidify some of

those tougher ones was to write skits and perform

them for the group. VISTAs, making learning fun!

Since the initial orientation where our

enthusiasm could be intimidating, members have

jumped into their service and their monthly training

opportunities. With several wonderful AmeriShare

and team meeting examples under the belt, members continue to volunteer for the

opportunity to lead the group in their own unique ways.

One thing is certainly

clear, whether individuals are

leading, following, or walking

side by side, this team has a

very promising and productive

year of capacity building in

front of them.

One group takes on the AmeriCorps Argot skit

Enjoying some of Heather’s grits Heather provides some knowledgeable ways to

eat on a budget through her AmeriShare

A group presents during a workshop

on poverty in VT with

Jennifer Jewiss (top left)

Members assemble for a

group photo

Accomplishments of the 2014-2015 Team

1,464– Youth benefitting from receiving nutritional information and curricula

1,826– Youth that engaged in structured physical activity

1,854– Recruited and managed volunteers

24,621– Volunteer hours total

$540,958– Monetary equivalent of volunteer hours

$425,114– Cash and in-kind donations procured

5,981– Individual youth that directly benefited from service

56,097– Individual youth that indirectly benefited from service

Background: An End of Service craft

project led by members

PO Box 627 / 38 Elm Street

Montpelier, VT 05601-0627

Phone: 802-229-9151

Fax: 802-229-2508

Vermont Youth Tomorrow

A*VISTA Program

Washington County Youth

Service Bureau

M. Kadie Schaeffer

Director of National

Service Programs

[email protected]

Kirsten Brewer

Assistant Director of

National Service Programs

[email protected]

Amy Schratz

Assistant Director of

National Service Programs

[email protected]

Compiled and edited by:

Hannah Bober

VYT VISTA Leader

[email protected]

VYT is sponsored by the

Washington County Youth

Service Bureau.

The opinions expressed in the articles in this newsletter belong to the individual

writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the site where the VISTA serves,

Vermont Youth Tomorrow, the Washington County Youth Service Bureau,

SerVermont, or CNCS.

2015-2016 VYT A*VISTA Team

*A special thank you and best of luck to previous Assistant Directors of

National Service Programs, Aubrey Mertens and Patrick Sheld, who helped

the team settle into their service.

https://www.facebook.com/vermontyouthtomorrow

vyt voices 2015 2016 fall/winter newsletter

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