You are viewing a preview of this job. Log in or register to view more details about this job.

Youth Council-Community Engagement Coordinator VISTA

The Youth Council was started in 1974 by local counselors to help greater Nashua families build the skills they need to be strong, effective parents, raising children and teens that make good decisions and stay on track. Today we provide the safety net the community relies on when a child is suspended from school, arrested for a minor offense, experimenting with alcohol and drugs or having a tough time with peers, mental health issues and the like. We provide quality, non-duplicated services—with measurable outcomes—to impact close to 750 low-income children and teens each year designed to strengthen families, keep children safe, improve risky decision-making and reduce involvement with the justice system. Given today’s opioid crisis we are also “swimming upstream” to work earlier with youth through referrals from primary care and middle school staff. Our $692,346 budget come from local, state and private funding sources, sliding scale fees and local contributions. Our programs have evolved to address documented community needs. In 1982 our acclaimed Court Diversion Program was launched to help Nashua Police in 1998, our School Suspension Center for 5th-8th graders was established due to high numbers of dropouts. In 2004 we were approached by the School District to assist with students with alcohol and drug problems and have two counselors serving Nashua’s High Schools. In 2017, we launched Project Impact, a Middle School early-intervention program in collaboration with Southern NH Health. Staff members are skilled at rapid-cycle-testing new systems and new approaches with our clients and using data to drive our decision-making. We collaborate with several community partners through My Brother’s Keeper, Nashua’s Public Health Advisory Council, Nashua’s RED Committee and Nashua Prevention Coalition. In 2017, our executive director was honored by Enterprise Bank celebrating “Women in Business” and in 2013 by The Telegraph as one of Nashua’s 25 Extraordinary Women.

 The VISTA position will enable us to develop a viable communications plan and strategies to better engage the community in our work to reduce substance misuse for youth and mental health issues. VISTA should be able to generate ideas that will be helpful engaging the community in supporting our efforts with time, talent or treasure. New partners will be engaged in our work through increased volunteer opportunities through the agency as well as increasing the number of people that connect with us through social media. Given that spring is our typical season for planning events, the VISTA will have the opportunity to develop one or more creative events to showcase our mission and services to area families and potential donors. Sustain the momentum after the VISTA has created multiple new systems and procedures. VISTA will train current staff on how to maintain his/her effort, and continue to track increases in client referrals and other measures.

Families in Transition-New Horizons (FIT-NH), a nonprofit organization located in Manchester, Concord and Dover, New Hampshire, was founded in 1991 in response to the growing number of homeless individuals and families in the greater Manchester area and throughout the state. Since its inception, FIT has been committed to providing only the most innovative, and effective interventions specifically designed to help homeless individuals and families reach beyond the cycle of homelessness to lead healthy and successful lives. Our belief is that having a home is a basic human right and is fundamental to becoming an engaged and contributing member of our community.

For more information about AmeriCorps, visit: www.nationalservice.gov.

For more information about the FIT VISTA Program visit: www.fitnh.org/vista.

To view the full position description and apply, visit:
my.americorps.gov/mp/listing/viewListing.do?id=73857