About the role#
The Rural Partners Corps (RPC) is an AmeriCorps service fellowship that places locally rooted individuals with rural backbone organizations. As an RPC Fellow, you will serve 40 hours per week from December 2026 through August 2027. You will work alongside staff at the RiseUp Partnership and the Southeast Minnesota Cradle to Career (C2C) Regional Partnership to build community capacity and support economic mobility for rural youth.
What you'll do#
- Organize meetings for C2C organizations and partners, maintain work plans, document decisions, and follow up on action items.
- Inventory community assets including programs, employers, postsecondary partners, and workforce organizations.
- Compile publicly available data and develop repeatable processes for updating it to help inform regional priorities.
- Interview staff and partners to identify effective practices in education, career exploration, mentoring, and family engagement.
- Support staff-led engagement with cross-sector partners, including businesses, foundations, and public agencies.
- Gather input from young people and families using approved methods to document their experiences.
- Research funding opportunities and maintain a funding calendar to support staff-led sustainability planning.
- Develop communications materials, such as briefs, success stories, and dashboards, for staff review and approval.
What you'll need#
- A meaningful connection to your community and an understanding of its strengths and relationships.
- A commitment to serving the community where you live.
- Strong skills in relationship-building, communication, and collaboration.
- Initiative and the ability to work independently to move projects forward.
- Experience in project management, community engagement, youth development, or organizational capacity building.
- The ability to work across nonprofit, government, education, and business sectors.
- Humility and curiosity to learn from local leaders and community members.
- U.S. citizenship, national status, or lawful permanent residency.
- A high school diploma or GED equivalent.
- Must be at least 17 years of age by the start of service.
- Must have served fewer than four AmeriCorps State/National terms.
Location & details#
- This is an on-site role based in Southern Minnesota, including Rochester, Red Wing, Owatonna, Austin, and Northfield.
- The term runs from December 2026 through August 2027.
- This is a full-time position.
- Fellows receive a living allowance of $23,300, dispersed biweekly.
- Upon successful completion of the program, fellows receive a $5,220 Segal AmeriCorps Education Award.
About Lead For America
Lead For America is a national service organization based in Wichita, Kansas. Founded in 2018, the nonprofit focuses on local public service and civic engagement. It operates across 44 states and has created over 500 fellowships. The organization supports programs like the American Connection Corps to improve community economic and social outcomes.
How to get in at Lead For America
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