We are so honored to be part of the service journeys of seventeen new AmeriCorps VISTA members across #Montana! Last week, at the UM Lubrecht Experimental Forest, our staff onboarded and trained seventeen, full-time service members who will serve via higher education institutions and partner nonprofits to address poverty challenges like hunger, nutrition and educational persistence. The Montana Campus Network for Civic Engagement has hosted a statewide VISTA program for 25 years, and we have a legacy of supporting the higher ed and nonprofit sectors work to move people out of poverty.
Back Row (Left to Right): Malone Ingram, Thuongan Tranvu, Gregory Ray, Sydney Greek, Samuel Donovan, Aubrey Pfalzgraf, Ruth Holliday, Bonnie Moore, Despues Green, Rebecca Maine, Daniel Corradini (MCNCE Associate Dir./VISTA Program Dir.), Allison Ouendag Front Row (Left to Right): Gabsu Smallwood, MarLynn Cloud, AnnaBella Teggeman, Annie Meek, Rachelle Lang, Hannah Gangwish
The 2026-2027 Service Year is Off to a Great Start
The VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) Program was dreamt up by President Kennedy, and started during the War On Poverty by President Johnson in 1964. We often describe VISTA service as a domestic version of the Peace Corps, and to this day Americans of all ages take the oath to “defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic” taking on projects that leave behind valuable infrastructure to support college access and success, nutrition and hunger work, veterans and military families and more. It’s also important here to thank our hardworking staff, in particular Dan Corradini, Isabella Culver, Daniele Vickers and Lizzy Daly who developed sites, trained supervisors, interviewed candidates and so, so much more!
Our 2026-27 VISTA cohort come from a variety of backgrounds. Whether they had served overseas during Operation Desert Shield, became the first in their family to graduate from college, made the transition into the non-profit sector, or have moved to Montana from out of state, our members arrived with a strong range of skills, experiences and motivations to address challenges facing Montana communities. Our VISTAs are ready to get things done! Stay tuned for more updates throughout the year!
Get to know our VISTAs:
That’s a Wrap! THANK YOU VISTA Summer Associates for your service
MCNCE just said farewell to our 2026 Summer VISTA members on August 9th, and we are so excited to share with you the successes of their service! This year, there were 22 members in our summer cohort located at 8 host sites, ranging from the Flathead Valley all the way down to Hamilton, Montana. Members were tasked with leading summer programming for many of our sites, including a Summer Farm-internship program, science camps, art camps, library and meal-bus programming, college-readiness programming, and so much more! Our summer members were hard at work connecting with students all while serving their grander communities. We thank them for their commitment to service and wish them the best of luck as some begin a new job, new school year, or another kind of adventure!
Back Row (Left to Right): Kale Kirk, Andrew Curran, Colette Harris, Riley Hickey, Sydney Greek, El Smith, Bryan Williams, Eve Sexton, Oliver Suhrbier, Luke Armstrong-DuBois, Marissa McClintock, Daniel Corradini, Hadley Bybee, Maggie Hable, Daniel Hamilton, Ella Koch, Elysa Fetviet Front Row (Left to Right): Daniele Vickers (MCNCE Ops. Manager), Isabella Culver (Program Coord./Summer VISTA Prog Dir.), Rebekah Harrell, Matthew Passini, Tru Good, Grace Hable, Zoe Sampson
MCNCE Network Faculty Members attend for Free!
Engaged Faculty Institute
The Seed Coalition, Iowa and Minnesota’s higher education Civic Engagement Network, is offering the Engaged Faculty Institute this winter, and faculty members with the Montana Campus Network For Civic Engagement can attend for free through our partnership with Seed and the Alliance for Campus Community Engagement! This institute offers a framework for faculty to approach community partnerships and engagement, centering respect and reciprocity.
About the EFI Online
The EFI Online is a cohort-based online course which combines asynchronous and synchronous activities to guide faculty, instructors, and staff who support community-engaged teaching and learning through the core considerations, elements, and process of designing a community-engaged course. The course features five modules with individual learning activities and course design exercises:
– Module 1: Foundations and Critical Commitments – Module 2: Planning and Facilitation – Module 3: Partnerships and Engagement – Module 4: Learning Outcomes and Reflection – Module 5: Assessment and Evaluation
The Western Region Continuums of Service Consortium (WRCOS), which all MCNCE campuses are a part of, is pleased to offer the Awareness in Action: Bright Sky on Campus grant opportunity to campuses via the Vodafone Americas Foundation. Campus grants will highlight Bright Sky, a unique, community-based tool that gives friends, peers, educators, and students resources to recognize domestic violence and respond safely. In 2025 Montana colleges and universities used the grant funding for domestic violence awareness walks and campus activities. This program proposes to engage over 20,000 students across 4 states on or around Domestic Violence Awareness Month, October 2026.
Chief Dull Knife College was a 2025 grant recipient, facilitating a variety of domestic violence awareness performances and activities.
American Indian College Fund Launches Student Voting Initiative as Part of Its Reclaim Native Democracy Campaign
Denver, Colo., July 15, 2026
“The American Indian College Fund (College Fund) has launched its Reclaim Native Democracy Voting Initiative competition for students, asking Native students at tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) and current Full Circle scholars to share their thoughts on voting, democracy, and the future of Native communities…”
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