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Kelly Hamshaw , VISTA, University of Vermont Office of Community University Partnerships and Service Learning

Kelly Hamshaw is serving as an AmeriCorps*VISTA in the Office of Community-University Partnerships and Service-Learning (CUPS) at the University of Vermont (UVM). Her year of service as a VISTA continues work that she began as part of her graduate assistantship providing support to the Department of Community Development and Applied Economics (CDAE) for its Engaged Department Initiative and the Department’s service-learning faculty.

Another component of her service this year is coordinating a new initiative called “UVM Responds.” The purpose of this initiative is to realign resources from the University to better match urgent needs in the community. Kelly provides support for the UVM Responds planning committee, which is comprised of staff and faculty from UVM as well as valuable community partners from the Burlington Community and Economic Development Office and the United Way of Chittenden County.

The committee has identified six core topic areas to focus our efforts on: Housing, Food, Fuel & Weatherization, Youth, Workforce Development, and Capacity Building. Kelly has worked with faculty teaching service-learning courses to strategically form partnerships with local community groups that work in each of these areas. For example, a spring 2010 CDAE service-learning course, Strategic Web Development, will be working with staff from the Housing Resource Center and the Committee on Temporary Shelter to make changes their newly launched website that will make it more navigable.

Kelly feels that strong campus-community partnerships are the foundation of effective service-learning classes. Her work with CDAE and UVM Responds has led to both the creation of new partnerships as well as strengthened existing partnerships—leading to mutual benefits for students, faculty, partners, and the greater community alike.