Summer 2022 Middlebury Social Impact Corps: Impact Monterey County Scholar
Connecting students to social change in Monterey, California
About MSIC
The Middlebury Social Impact Corps (MSIC) Scholars program is a place-based cohort experiential learning program developed to prepare students to become purposeful global citizens in the field of social impact. Two MIIS graduate student Scholars will participate in ongoing learning, reflection and action research in partnership with this year's host site, Impact Monterey County, located in Monterey, California, USA.
The Scholars will work with four Middlebury undergraduate interns to complete the deliverable, and to participate in regular check-in meetings with supervisors. The Scholars will be overseen by faculty advisor, Dr. Netta Avineri, and training will be provided as needed to complete the scope of the project.
By participating as a MSI Scholar, MIIS students will:
- Demonstrate leadership & collaboration skills by engaging in intern & cohort mentorship
- Engage in ongoing reflection about their contribution to the mission of the host site, the success of the MSIC cohort, and social impact on the Monterey County community
- Engage in action research about the MSIC/Impact Monterey County partnership
This is an in-person internship. Scholars will receive a summer grant to compensate for lost wages. Project work is estimated to be 35-40 hours per week.
About Impact Monterey County
Impact Monterey County (IMC) is a collaborative effort of nonprofits, public agencies and the community working together to identify the most effective ways to improve life in our county. IMC employs multiple outreach and engagement strategies to shine a light on our community aspirations. These aspirations are listed under four priority areas including: education, safety, economic self-sufficiency and health.
The goals of IMC include:
- Assess: To assess and measure important community needs
- Collaborate: To identify other community assessments and use existing data to ensure efficiencies and to streamline IMC
- Align: To align stakeholders toward common goals and measurements that improve conditions for all
- Implement/Take Action: To establish a common agenda for addressing specific issues impacting communities throughout Monterey County and to take actionable steps toward accomplishing said agenda
- Measure/Sustain: To establish a plan to measure progress made toward common agenda and to continue the assessment process at regular intervals going forward
IMC is looking for students who believe in the importance of incorporating community member voice into policies, projects, and programs to help with our 2022 Community Assessment in Monterey County. Impact Monterey County conducted its first Community Needs Assessment in 2014, which was the first assessment in our local community to understand the experiences and aspirations of those who live here. This assessment consisted of 7,400 survey respondents and 400 community conversation participants who articulated a clear vision, set of values, and community priorities.
A smaller scale version of this assessment was conducted again in 2019 in collaboration with the Middlebury Institute of international Studies, Middlebury College, California State University at Monterey Bay, and many local partners to collect experiences and aspirations from over 3,000 survey respondents and 154 community conversation participants. We are seeking to conduct this assessment again in 2022 knowing that the pandemic has changed our community. We would like to understand how experiences and aspirations have been impacted and where they currently lie. As we face our “new normal” we know that fresh data is critical so the polices, projects, and plans reflect where our community currently is and are aligned with existing priorities.
Students working on this project during Summer 2022 will be collaborating with community partners and members to carry out the implementation plan and collect data which reflects the lived experiences of our community.
Responsibilities in this position will include:
- Implementation of focus groups, surveys and key informant interviews with diverse community partners
- Time permitting, collaboration with local community-based organizations to analyze the findings and create a plan for distribution of results.
Skills and Experience:
- Spanish proficiency is preferable, but not required;
- Knowledge of Monterey County geography and/or community assets is preferable, but not required;
- Project management experience is preferable, but not required;
- Facilitation experience;
- Interview experience;
- Excel proficiency;
- Survey design or implementation experience;
- Leadership and/or mentor experience;
- Experience working with diverse communities and stakeholders.
Program Dates:
Summer date: June 1-July 29*
*Some in-person and/or online training may be required in April/May and a debrief in Fall 2022.
Program Fees:
Participant cost is covered through acceptance into the Social Impact Corps program. This includes extensive training, and an on-going student support system. Students will be responsible for travel and housing expenses and any additional related expenses.
All participants will receive a $4700 summer grant to offset lost wages, housing and food expenses.
How to Apply
Applications Due: Friday, March 11, 2022, 9:00amPST/12:00pmEST
Please submit a letter of interest, resume, and complete the Summer 2022 MSIC Scholars Application. Applicants are required to include the name of a Middlebury faculty or staff reference who may be contacted on behalf of this application. Applications will only be considered once all materials have been submitted.
If you have questions please contact Dr. Netta Avineri, MSIC Faculty Director (navineri@middlebury.edu)