Wanted: TerraCorps Youth Education / Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator with Round The Bend Farm

TerraCorps is an AmeriCorps affiliated start-up environmental non-profit preparing and mobilizing emerging leaders to help communities gain access to and conserve land for people and nature. Working at the intersection of the land conservation and urban agriculture movements, our vision is to create a future where land is the foundation of health and well-being for ALL people in EVERY community.

This year’s TerraCorps program will support up to eighty-eight full-time AmeriCorps Members across three states (MA, RI, and CT), serving in one of five positions: Land Stewardship Coordinator (LSC), Regional Collaboration Coordinator (RCC), Community Engagement Coordinator (CEC), Youth Education Coordinator (YEC), or Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator (SAC).  Members will serve in full-time, 11-month terms (August 31st, 2020-July 30, 2021) in which they complete at least 1,700 hours of service with one of our partner organizations. Members receive a living allowance, education award, and additional AmeriCorps benefits (see full list at end of announcement).

Round The Bend Farm will host a Youth Education/ Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator for the 2020-21 service year. Information about all TerraCorps positions is available at terracorps.org.

Youth Education / Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator with Round The Bend Farm

Round The Bend Farm

92 Allens Neck Rd

Roundthebendfarm.org

Round the Bend Farm (RTB), a Center for Restorative Community, located in Dartmouth, Massachusetts is a working farm and educational non-profit. We are a living laboratory that cultivates, educates, and empowers people of all ages. We are devoted to the global paradigm shift toward hope and abundance by valuing diversity, modeling nature, and redefining wealth.

Each choice that we make on the farm seeks to enhance and promote life. We aim to exemplify a lifestyle that respects and consciously works with the environment, using the resources offered by nature to their “highest good”. We are deeply aware that we are a part of nature’s complex web of interdependence. In each choice that we make as a team, we consider: What is the impact on nature? How can we use this resource to its full potential? And finally, how can we share these lessons with our community? Empowering others to make choices that are in line with their highest good is our ultimate goal as living laboratory.

A Service Member at Round the Bend Farm will be serving in a blended capacity, with 50% of time in a Youth Education role, and 50% of their time in a Sustainable Agriculture role.

Youth Education Coordinators (YEC)/ Sustainable Agriculture Coordinators (SAC) build the long-term capacity of their Service Site by engaging youth in service learning, experiential education, and inquiry-based science and nature learning projects. YEC/SACs may engage neighborhood and civic associations, community members, youth groups, and schools to improve access to, and support the long-term resiliency and sustainable use of community lands. YEC/SACs may create raised beds or community gardens, monitor and maintain farmland, establish sustainable food systems, develop curriculum and programming, run youth trainings, lead community workshops, etc. By engaging youth in activities that support the hands-on stewardship of community lands, they reinforce the connection between people, nature, and community and foster an inclusive land stewardship ethic in future generations.

TerraCorps Members engage with their supervisors to develop and carry out three or more capacity building projects over the course of the service year. Some of these projects will involve recruiting, training, and/or managing community volunteers. Round the Bend Farm has proposed the following potential projects for their Youth Education/ Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator:

• The YEC/SAC Member will support our education programs on the farm and in the wider community. This includes collaborating with teachers, students, and RTB staff to plan and implement experiential farm-based field trips, educational workshops, tours, presentations and other forms of community outreach.
• The Member will also have the opportunity to support RTB’s food systems. This includes collaborating with our Garden Manager in the operation of RTB’s market-garden scale crop production. We are growing a diversified range of primarily vegetables, fruits, nuts, edible perennials and medicinal herbs, on roughly 2 acres of land, in order to feed and heal our community, source events and occasionally sell to the public. Cooking and on-site food processing and preservation is also a crucial part of our food systems.
• We hope to increase our online presence and develop open source curriculum /materials to support people in these uncertain times. The YEC/SAC member could assist in developing these resources such as film projects, visual aids, outreach materials, and marketing support. As well as brainstorm new creative solutions that help address this need.

Development of these and other projects will occur during the first two months of service and consider the member’s interests and skills.

Required AmeriCorps Qualifications

• A US citizen, US national, or Lawful Permanent Resident Alien of the U.S.
• At least 18 years old
• A minimum of a high school diploma or GED
• No more than three previous terms as an AmeriCorps member
• Pass a criminal history background check, including an FBI check

Desired Qualifications

• Strong writing and verbal communication skills
• Able to serve both independently and as a member of a team
• Comfort navigating computer software programs including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Google Docs. Skills in photography, film making, editing, and social media applications are not required but would be valuable
• Training and experience pertinent to the Youth Education/Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator position and projects listed above
• Experience training and educating community members and volunteers
• Experience in organic growing and a general love of dirt
• Strong work ethic and ability to complete tasks in a timely manner
• Desire and ability to integrate into the community at the farm, open mindedness and high self-awareness are crucial

For questions about Round The Bend Farm’s service position, contact: Nate Sander;  Education Manager nate@roundthebendfarm.org

AmeriCorps Member Eligibility Requirements

This year’s TerraCorps Members will serve from August 31^st, 2020-July 30^th, 2021. All Members are expected to serve full-time, commit to serve for the entire 11-month term, and complete at least 1,700 hours of service, including time spent in trainings and service with the full TerraCorps team. Weekly service averages 38 hours and commonly includes some night and/or weekend activities.

AmeriCorps programs provide equal opportunities. TerraCorps will recruit and select persons in all positions to ensure a diverse and inclusive climate without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, color, political affiliation, creed, national origin, marital status, or any other status as protected by federal, state, and local laws. We encourage applications from individuals with disabilities and will provide reasonable accommodations for interviews and service upon request.

Member Compensation and Benefits

• TerraCorps Members will receive a living allowance of up to $15,200 (pre-tax) over the 11-month term of service, which is $633.33 (pre-tax) per 24 biweekly pay periods.
• TerraCorps assists Members in obtaining health insurance coverage. Reimbursement of costs may be available.
• Childcare assistance may be provided in cases of financial need.
• Upon successful completion of a term of service, AmeriCorps Members receive a taxable $6,195 education award that can be used for future education or to pay off existing school loans. See gov/resources/edaward for info and restrictions.
• TerraCorps Members are eligible for forbearance of most federally-guaranteed student loans, as well as payment of interest accrued during service.
• TerraCorps Members will receive mentorship, training, and career development opportunities while serving directly with community-based nonprofits.
• TerraCorps Members experience the personal rewards of national service
  and community engagement.

Note: TerraCorps Members are responsible for their own housing and must have access to reliable transportation.

How to Apply

2020-2021 Service Site organizations, service positions, and application procedures are described at terracorps.org.

A complete member application includes a 1-page cover letter, a resume, two references, and an application form. Member application and detailed instructions can be found at https://terracorps.org/apply/.

Member applications will be collected by TerraCorps and shared with Service Sites. Do not send applications directly to a Service Site.

We strongly encourage interested individuals to apply as soon as possible once applications are posted mid-April. Position offers and acceptances will be made on a rolling basis. The program aims to fill all positions by late June, but Service Sites will continue interviews as needed until all positions are filled.

For questions about TerraCorps, contact Hanna Mogensen, who manages TerraCorps’ recruitment process. Email admin@terracorps.org or call 978-364-9770 x2.

Additional Information About this Program

TerraCorps seeks to create change by achieving a broader, more authentic engagement of the diverse peoples living in our communities. When we do this, resources will grow, access to land will increase, the pace of land conservation will accelerate, and whole communities will achieve more resilient futures. To learn more about TerraCorps, visit: terracorps.org.

AmeriCorps engages more than 75,000 people in intensive service each year through more than 15,000 nonprofits, schools, public agencies, and community and faith-based groups across the country. AmeriCorps Members help communities tackle pressing problems and also leverage their service by mobilizing volunteers to help address community needs for environmental stewardship, health, education, economic opportunity, disaster services, and support to veterans and military families. To learn more about AmeriCorps, visit americorps.gov.

TerraCorps is a grant program contingent upon renewal of federal funding from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). TerraCorps is also supported in part by the Massachusetts Service Alliance in MA.