Montana International Choral Festival
Position Type: VISTA
Service Commitment: August 10, 2026 – August 9, 2027
Final Application Deadline: July 12, 2026
Car required? Recommended
Driver’s License Required? Yes
Position Summary:
The Montana International Choral Festival (MICF) is a Missoula-based nonprofit that brings choirs from around the world to perform, learn, and connect through shared repertoire, workshops, and community events. The Youth Outreach Initiative goal is to expand access to the Montana International Choral Festival’s artistic and cross-cultural experience by partnering with summer youth programs in Missoula and surrounding communities to create pathways for participation. The goal of this project is to alleviate poverty by helping marginalized individuals and underserved communities to broaden their horizons and develop skills essential for economic mobility and a sense of belonging. For the individuals engaged through the Youth Program Initiative, musical exposure leads to the development of artistic and professional skills. This VISTA project will focus on expanding enrichment opportunities for children and young people from underserved backgrounds, thereby increasing participants’ engagement in social networking and establishing mutual support within their community. Creating and identifying these support networks can translate into employment opportunities within numerous fields, fostering entrepreneurship and offering a path out of poverty for talented individuals and their communities. Social capital is one of the strongest predictors of upward mobility.
VISTA member will develop outreach strategies, toolkits and frameworks that expand youth engagement with Montana International Choral Festival (MICF) in the greater Missoula area. VISTA will create materials that elevate community access towards MICF enrichment programming. VISTA will conduct research and evaluate outreach strategies that identify existing youth summer programming that could be targeted for MICF partnership; focusing on lower-income working or non-working family situations for maximum benefit. VISTA will identify participation barriers and create systems to expand access to new local residents and organizations. VISTA will increase festival participation of marginalized youth & families, and identify opportunities for youth volunteerism. VISTA will create marketing materials that empower people to take active roles in shaping the MICF environment.
Montana Campus Network for Civic Engagement (MCNCE) serves as the intermediary for this project. MCNCE is a coalition of colleges and universities dedicated to fostering civic engagement, service learning, and volunteerism across Montana. Led by CEOs from participating institutions, MCNCE works to improve community life and educate students on civic and social responsibility, preparing them to be thoughtful, compassionate, and engaged leaders.
Benefits Include:
- $24,962 VISTA Living Allowance (full year) = $957.46 bi-weekly
- $7,395 Education Award or $1800 cash award
- Relocation Allowance
- Health Insurance
- Personal & Medical Leave
- Non-Competitive Federal Hiring for one year & Eligible for Federal Loan Deferment
- University of Montana access & resources
- Access to regular professional trainings through MCNCE & University of Montana
Professional Skills You Will Gain
- Communications
- Indigenous Community Outreach
- Intercultural Relations
- Leadership
- Marketing
- Partnership Development
- Partnership Management
- Program Assessment
- Program Development
- Public Speaking
- Teamwork
- Time Management
- Nonprofit Administration
- Social Media