Northwest Service Academy Testimonials
Our members live and continue our legacy of service every day. Here are recent stories and testimonials:
NWSA helps Portland's Community Watershed Stewardship Program (CWSP) earn the first national Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Partnership Award (JRCPA) for Campus-Community Collaboration!
President Jimmy Carter and Mrs. Rosalynn Carter announced on June 3, 2008 that Portland’s Community Watershed Stewardship Program (CWSP) is the inaugural winner of the US-National Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Partnership Award (JRCPA) for Campus-Community Collaboration. Portland State University (PSU) and the City of Portland were recognized for the achievement at the concluding plenary session of the annual meeting of the Corporation for National and Community Service. Along with PSU and Portland’s Bureau of Environmental Services (BES), Northwest Service Academy is a major partner in this program, and the AmeriCorps component. Over the past decade, Portland’s CWSP has engaged 112 community-based organizations in greater Portland, mobilizing over 27,000 community volunteers to donate a quarter million hours to install 80,000 native plants and restore 50 acres of watershed along two miles of river. Individual projects have been supported by 700 PSU students working as part of class projects, resulting in two master’s theses and three research articles.
Portland State University Professor Barry Messer, Principal Investigator of Portland’s CWSP, says much of the credit for the recognition and success of the program belongs to NWSA:
“NWSA has been an invaluable partner in the work of the Community Watershed Stewardship Program," said Messer. "The NWSA AmeriCorps service volunteers that have been placed on the program have made outstanding contributions in working with the community partners on this program. The staff at NWSA have been great to work with over the years. The recognition that PSU and BES recently received for the CWSP as the first national recipient of the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Partnership Award is an honor that is deservedly shared with NWSA. Thank you for your years of support and I look forward to many more.”
NWSA congratulates PSU and the City of Portland for the well-deserved recognition; particularly PSU's Professor Barry Messer and Ms. Jennifer Devlin, Environmental Programs Coordinator at Portland's Bureau of Environmental Services! We are honored to be part of this effort, and look forward to many more years of accomplishment.
NWSA helps Pacific University “green” its office practices!
Laura Fieselman, an innovative NWSA member serving on Pacific University’s Resource Conservation team, used a community-based social marketing campaign to measurably increase Pacific University staff and faculty’s use of commingled recycling and environmentally preferred purchasing (EPP), and reduce paper consumption.
Laura first determined the baseline of Pacific’s practices by administering a pre-post survey to 227 respondents to assess current knowledge and behaviors; tracking reports of office product purchasing to assess consideration of environmental preferred products; and observing waste and recycling containers to assess volume and contamination of waste stream. Laura then focused on outreach efforts that included campaign branding, administering a “sustainable office pledge”, and organizing a Green Team who would serve as environmental liaisons to students and faculty. Laura also developed a website, created signage, obtained more than 500 additional recycling containers for Pacific University through a partnership with Washington County Recycle at Work program, hosted “Greening Pacific” information meetings, and led 280 college students in volunteer projects (1,015 total student hours) to develop awareness.
Laura’s efforts directly contributed to a deliberate cultural shift by Pacific University towards environmental awareness and minimizing waste. Some student and community education initiatives generated by these efforts produced the First Annual Greening Pacific Fair where vendors demonstrated environmentally friendly products. This event drew over 300 attendees (staff, students, faculty, and Forest Grove community members). Follow-on surveys conducted by Pacific University revealed that 93% of students, faculty, and staff are recycling, which is a significant increase. Additionally, EPP grew exponentially. Although there is still room for improvement regarding waste reduction, Laura left behind several recommendations for improvement including a cost savings analysis, ideas for composting, continued education, and a waste prevention campaign. Laura’s successful service experience and contribution to Pacific University was made possible by the dedication and superior direction from her sponsor, Elaine Jane Cole.
NWSA congratulates Laura for securing a full-time position with Pacific University as the Sustainability Coordinator!
NWSA members rehabilitate educational trail at Mt. Hood National Forest
Two NWSA members working with different districts of the Mt. Hood National Forest decided to work together on a service project to help their small rural communities. After careful consideration of the towns’ needs and their individual strengths, they decided to revitalize the Emil Creek Loop trail in the Mt. Hood National Forest Hood River Ranger District Work Center.
The trail had once been used by local day cares and elementary schools for education purposes, but had fallen into serious disrepair over the past decade. A site vist revelaed that the trail had been lost to tangles of weeds, woody debris, and piles of trash. The project’s scope clearly went beyond trail rehabilitation, and would require a complete effort to recreate the interpretive trail to include a stream clean-up project. The members called the local Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) and enlisted their help. A new trail was cut, huge piles of debris were removed, a bridge was reset, the trail was lined with poles, invasive weeds were pulled, and a new welcome sign was designed. After ten years of sitting unused, the Hood River Ranger Distric Work Center has reopened the Emil Creek Loop Trail to local school groups and community members.
NWSA LINKS member experiences the rewards of environmental service
Rachael Schultz, a LINKS member serving with Clackamas River Basin Council wrote, “On October 7, 2007, we teamed up with the staff of the new Clackamas Town Center REI, as well as local residents of the Cedarhurst neighborhood, to restore and enhance a riparian habitat, at the confluence of Spring and Clear Creeks in Clackamas County, Oregon. The area has been a targeted restoration site over the past several years, and this month’s planting party was the culminating event. With all of the extra volunteer hands, we were able to clear a large (approximately 500 sq. ft) patch of invasive English ivy, in addition to numerous stands of blackberry. In place of the invasive species, over 175 native trees and shrubs were planted. It was an extremely rewarding experience – witnessing the enthusiasm and energy with which the volunteers threw themselves into the work, getting caught up in the enthusiasm, and being able to see firsthand the amazing transformation of the landscape.”
NWSA placements with Southeast Alaska Guidance Association (SAGA) help Calypso Organic Farm
AmeriCorps Field Team members Wes Millar, Beth Gaughan, Libby Klancher, Tyler Wade, Josh Farmer, Pat Lindley, and Alex Johnson, are passionate about water conservation, farming, and land use in the Fairbanks region of Alaska. They learned a lot about organic farming practices at Calypso Farm and Ecology Center from Tom Zimmer, Ecology Center Director. Calypso Farm is a Community Shared Agriculture Program in Ester, Alaska providing educational and employment programs and garden crops to the areas surrounding Fairbanks. The farm was trying to increase production, but was in need of a second, larger irrigation pond to sustain additional crops and lacked the time and labor to complete the project. The AmeriCorps Field Team decided to help.
The team contacted local and corporate businesses to obtain materials for postcards and flyers to recruit volunteers. Evaluating other resources in the community, the team displayed flyers promoting a two-day irrigation-pond construction event at local businesses and attended the Renewable Energy Fair at Chena Hot Springs, handing out flyers and talking to the community. They also reached out to the Calypso Farms volunteer base.
On August 24 and 25, 2007, the Field Team, assisted by Tom Zimmer, directed over 20 volunteers in addition to two SAGA crews, in the construction of the new irrigation pond. With tools in hand, volunteers were directed on lining the pond, clearing brush and trees around the constructions site, hauling materials, and building fencing. During the volunteer event, the Field Team hosted a celebration of food and community at the farm with a raffle and “slow” food buffet.
After the two-day event, the Filed Team and volunteers had a 90,000-gallon irrigation pond that will fill itself naturally with winter snow, sustaining yearly irrigation to crops. The team achieved their goals of community outreach and direct service with Calypso Farms. The short-term effects from this project are the farm’s exposure to the community and expansion of the practice of sustainable agriculture. The long-term effects from this project are a higher crop-yield and for years to come. For this team, the most rewarding part of the CAP was helping out Calypso. As they later wrote “We always knew we could make a difference, we all have in different ways, and this is an example of us coming together to make a difference [as a team].”
NWSA LINKS increases the capacity of Aprovecho, a non-profit research and education center
5/2/08
Re: AmeriCorps Week
In anticipation of the upcoming AmeriCorps Week, I am writing to recognize the positive impact that AmeriCorps has had at our site. I am the site supervisor for Aprovecho, a non-profit research and education center. We are a relatively small organization and can only afford to retain most of our staff at part time. It can be extremely difficult for us, as staff, to maintain the operations and development of the organization within such limiting available hours.
Since becoming a work/living site for AmeriCorps volunteers, we have seen our capacity grow significantly. After signing up, we started out with a nine-member crew that spent three cold and rainy months working with us to overhaul the campus and implement systems for better stewardship of our land. This task had been seemingly insurmountable without their hard work.
We have since reduced the amount of simultaneous positions, and spread the responsibilities into other departments of our organization. Having assistance in outreach and program development, as well as in our forest, garden, and land stewardship has freed up time for our staff to focus on the overall development of our goals and mission.
I would personally like to thank Erika Johnson and Mindy Crouchley of the LINKS program for their continued support of Aprovecho. They have been extremely helpful in developing Aprovecho’s AmeriCorps service program. I appreciate their professionalism, and their willingness to help Aprovecho integrate LINKS program members into our unique site. They have been very patient and understanding with me, and should be commended for the great work they are doing.
Aprovecho is proud to have played a small part in sponsoring some of the 542,000 people who have served as AmeriCorps members. We sincerely appreciate being given the opportunity to be involved in such an important program for creating stronger communities through service learning.
Cheers!
Jeremy Roth
Office Manager
Aprovecho
Updated: September 12, 2008