Healthy Futures AmeriCorps places service members across rural Colorado to support programs working for an equitable and healthy future for all. This includes focuses on nutrition and environmental education, community and school gardens, regenerative agriculture practices & increased access to healthy food.
WHAT IS AMERICORPS?
Join us for anywhere from one season to up to two years of mentored service, where you’ll gain hands-on experience building and sustaining healthy communities.
AMERICORPS SERVICE POSITIONS
Positions are open until filled
Local Education Initiatives
Local Education Initiatives encompass a diverse range of roles aimed at engaging communities, fostering relationships, and enhancing educational opportunities. Within this category, positions such as Community Outreach and Farm to School Environmental Educators play crucial roles in connecting individuals with resources, knowledge, and experiences that promote learning and community involvement. These initiatives prioritize bridging gaps in education, whether through hands-on environmental lessons or outreach efforts that bring people together for meaningful engagement.
Rio Grande Farm Park (SLVLFC): Education Assistant - Alamosa, CO
Start date: May 2024 | Term length: 6 months, 900 hours
Help implement educational programming in 2024 for the Rising Stewards program, programs for high school youth, and community members. 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.Mountain Roots: Summer Outdoor Educator - Gunnison, CO
Start date: May 2024 | Term length: 3 months, 450 hours
Teach hands-on lessons in environmental science, food & nutrition, outdoor skills, cooking, and more during a 10-week outdoor experience summer camp program for K-12 youth. This position also serves in after school programming with Gunnison and Crested Butte Schools.Mountain Roots: Environmental Educator - Gunnison, CO
Start date: May 2024 | Term length: 12 months, 1700 hours
Teach hands-on lessons in environmental science, food & nutrition, outdoor skills, cooking, and more during a 10-week outdoor experience summer camp program for K-12 youth. Days are spent outdoors exploring the natural world.
Nutrition and Food Access Programs
Nutrition and Food Access Programs focus on addressing food security and promoting healthy eating habits within communities. Roles like the Food Security Coordinator are dedicated to coordinating efforts to ensure equitable access to nutritious food through initiatives such as food rescue, cooking classes, and community gardens. By prioritizing collaborative approaches and tailored solutions, these programs aim to alleviate food insecurity and empower individuals to make informed choices about their nutrition.
Mountain Roots: Food Security Coordinator - Gunnison, CO
Start date: May 2024 | Term length: 12 months, 1700 hours
(Specifically seeking a Spanish speaker) Coordinate collaborative and equitable food access programs such as, food rescue, cooking classes, community gardens, Spanish language food assistance distributions, and senior outreach in a rural Colorado mountain community.
Agricultural/Conservation Programs
Agricultural/Conservation Programs center around sustainable land use practices, agricultural production, and land access initiatives. Positions like Community Farm and Garden Production and Land Access and Succession service towards fostering regenerative farming practices, promoting access to land for agricultural purposes, and providing support to farmers and landowners. Through innovative solutions and educational resources, these programs contribute to the conservation of natural resources while supporting the viability of agriculture in rural communities.
We are committed to creating an equitable work environment and we strongly encourage you to apply if you are part of the BIPOC and/or LGBTQIA communities, are a person with a disability, a veteran, or are of diverse nationality or religion. We expressly prohibit any form of workplace harassment based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, or veteran status.
Member Terms & Benefits for Service
You don’t pay tuition or fees for the world of knowledge and experience you’re going to gain during your year of service. But we know you need to live, and to have space for outside-of-work experiences that are fun and fulfilling as well. While you’re in service, you’ll get a living allowance that covers your room and board, and after your service, you’ll get a cash education award that can be applied to pay back your federal student loans, to pay for grad school or other continuing education, including trip-based programs like NOLS and Outward Bound. Read more on the education award here.
Other benefits include:
attendance at 1-2 regional conferences, like the Western Colorado Soil, Food and Farm Forum, Regenerate, or Agrisummit.
three, 2-day expense-paid trips, to locations around the region to broaden your food systems experience
relocation reimbursement (mileage)
$100 allowance toward professional development / training of your choice
some sites offer housing stipends to further offset the cost of housing
some sites offer ski passes, rec center passes, gas cards, and other discounts to local community services
certifications in first aid and food handler, some sites offer more
student loans go into forbearance and the interest is paid
child care and health care coverage for members serving Full Term (1700 hours)
What’s in it for You?
Placement in top Colorado organizations. Healthy Futures AmeriCorps Program places our members in top food systems organizations in Central and Western Colorado to implement and expand community services.
Leadership, mentored by leading industry professionals. Our positions provide unparalleled opportunity for a higher level of responsibility and agency than typical entry-level positions, with the support of a mentor who is invested in your success.
Change the world. Localizing food systems is arguably the best solution we have to combatting so many of our global problems. We need more motivated leaders to challenge the status quo and then mobilize others to do so.
Make a lasting difference in the lives of others. While you’re gaining experience through a meaningful service, the real-world solutions you create are transforming rural Colorado communities, helping to achieve equity and social justice.
Professional development and personal growth. Build lasting relationships, expand your professional network in education, agriculture, food security, and conservation, and provide excellent professional development experience, and add to a compelling resume for your career.
Transformative life experience. Looking back, our members all say that their service terms were pivotal periods of their lives that prepared them for or launched them into the next chapter of their life.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Agency of AmeriCorps under
Grant No. 21AFDCO0010007. Opinions or points of view expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not
necessarily reflect the official position of or a position that is endorsed by Serve CO.
