Open VISTA Positions

Build professional nonprofit skills while building community! The Mercy Corps Northwest VISTA Program seeks applicants passionate about economic justice to join a cohort of AmeriCorps VISTA members that will begin a year of public service on August 17th, 2020.

Mercy Corps Northwest VISTAs oversee projects that build the long-term capacity of their communities through financial education, job skills training, microenterprise & asset development, affordable housing, homeless services, food security, and disaster preparedness. While the programs VISTAs develop endure for years, VISTA members perform only indirect service; interaction with clients will be limited and the member will spend the majority of their time in an office setting. However, VISTA offers the opportunity to gain advanced project management skills and exercise creativity in implementing a program—skills highly desired by employers.

Please note: VISTAs serving with the Mercy Corps Northwest cohort are placed in different non-profits around Oregon & Washington State. Most positions are located in the Portland Metro Area, but a few are located in Washington and Central Oregon. Please check the location of the specific position before applying and note that in some cases, rural sites may require that you have reliable transportation. 

Since VISTA has unique benefits and requirements, prospective applicants are advised to review the FAQ’s on our VISTA program. More details on pay and benefits is located there.  

We are currently recruiting for several positions to begin on August 17th, 2020. Please see descriptions of open positions below and click on the “learn more and apply to this position here” link after each position to apply directly through the MyAmeriCorps site! 

Eligibility and Qualifications for Service with our AmeriCorps VISTA Team:

To be eligible for VISTA service, a candidate must:

• Be 18 years or older (no upper age limit)
• Pass a national service criminal history check
• Hold one of the following citizenship or legal residency statuses: US citizen, US National, Lawful Permanent Resident (i.e. Green Card status), and persons legally residing within a state. Examples of persons legally residing within a state may include those holding the following classifications: refugee, asylee, temporary protected status throughout VISTA service, and holding Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status.

Desired Skills and Qualifications:

• Demonstrated commitment to community/public service
• Intercultural communication skills and experience working within diverse communities
• Preference given to those with lived experience in economically diverse environments 
• Strong volunteer/community service experience
• High school diploma or GED required; Bachelor’s degree, or 4 years of relevant work experience, or a combination preferred
• Strong interpersonal, written and verbal communication skills 
• Proven ability to solve problems and be flexible
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate and work well in a team environment 
• Highly organized and detail-oriented
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google Drive preferred

Please note: VISTA positions may have their own specific skills and qualifications not shown in the list above. Please see more details on skills and qualifications for specific VISTA positions in the listings above. 

How to apply:

1. Review open positions below and click the link after the description to apply to that particular position.
2. You will be prompted to create an account on the MyAmeriCorps.gov portal before applying, if you already have one created, please log in.  
3. Once your account is created, submit your application to the position(s) you’re interested in on the MyAmeriCorps.gov portal (you may submit your application to up to 10 positions in the portal). 
4. If your application is a match, the supervisor for the position will reach out within a few weeks for an interview.

Positions will be open until July 10th, 2020, unless filled sooner. Early applications are strongly encouraged as selections are made on a rolling basis. Applicants must submit an application through the MyAmeriCorps.gov portal via the links provided after each position description below. No other application materials will be accepted.

Have questions or need support navigating the AmeriCorps VISTA application process?

Review our Application Walkthrough document for step-by-step instructions on completing your AmeriCorps application or drop in to one of our weekly recruitment office hour sessions to chat remotely with one of our team members and get your questions answered!

Drop-in sessions available remotely every Friday from 11 am-12 pm Pacific Standard Time from May 15th-July 24th.
Join anytime between 11 am-12 pm PST via the Google Hangouts here.

We are currently recruiting for the following AmeriCorps VISTA positions: 

• Mercy Corps Northwest VISTA Leader
  Host organization: Mercy Corps Northwest, Portland
  Location: Portland, Oregon
  Based at Mercy Corps Northwest in Portland, OR, the VISTA Leader serves directly with the Mercy Corps Northwest (MCNW) VISTA Program—a team of 20 AmeriCorps VISTAs and 2 VISTA Leaders managed by MCNW and stationed at nonprofit organizations and public agencies across the state. The VISTA Leader supports the MCNW VISTA Team by coordinating & planning member trainings, mentoring members & resolving conflicts, coordinating/conducting site visits, collecting reports & managing data, and supporting outreach efforts & sharing program impact.
  PLEASE NOTE: Individuals are eligible to serve as VISTA Leaders only if they have successfully completed at least one term of service with AmeriCorps VISTA, AmeriCorps State and National, AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC), or Peace Corps. For more information on the difference between Members and Leaders, see our Applicant FAQ here.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• Arts Outreach Specialist
  Host Organization: Warm Springs Community Action Team, Tananáwit
  Location: Warm Springs, Oregon
  Warm Springs Community Action Team, located on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, promotes community development in Warm Springs by empowering individuals and groups of people to realize their potential, become self-reliant, and affect positive change in themselves, their families and their community. The VISTA will be working directly with Tananáwit, a group of Warm Springs artists that provides educational and economic development opportunities by empowering our people to build understanding of traditional and contemporary Native art of the Columbia River Plateau. As a VISTA at Warm Springs Community Action Team you will help end poverty by building community and financial support for Tananáwit programs and facilitating entrepreneurship for low-income artists on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation. Major functions will include developing outreach and recruitment materials, assisting in grant writing and organizational development, and building partnerships to support the economic opportunity to artists.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• Communications and Development Associate
  Host Organization: Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action Agency
  Location: Salem, Oregon
  Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action Agency has eight programs that focus on ending poverty in Marion-Polk counties. As a VISTA member at MWVCAA you will help end poverty by improving the agency’s communications capacity to increase community awareness of and support for our programs. Major functions will include creating systems and guidance to improve social media and communications activities, building capacity of donor management and engagement systems, and community outreach and planning activities to support a fundraiser event.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• Community and Volunteer Engagement Liaison
  Host Organization: Historic Parkrose
  Location: Portland, Oregon
  Historic Parkrose strengthens community vibrancy through equity and economic opportunity. Our community is an urban neighborhood on Northeast Portland’s urban fringe. The VISTA member placed at Historic Parkrose will assist in developing the Community Response Funding Pool, a program that unites service providers and resources to create a flexible pathway for houseless and housing-insecure residents to stabilize and re-enter the workforce. Major functions will include developing a volunteer recruitment and training process for strengths-based houseless outreach, creating community stakeholder forums, and designing a Community Response Funding Pool to support district-level solutions to houselessness.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• Community Outreach and Resource Coordinator
  Host Organization: Meals on Wheels People
  Location: Portland, Oregon
  Meals on Wheels People ensures that no senior will go hungry or experience social isolation. The VISTA member placed at Meals on Wheels People will reduce poverty by developing the organization’s capacity to connect with individuals, businesses, partners, and communities, and establish strong donor practices. The member will develop donor relations processes, conduct community outreach, and enhance the donor database; thereby changing the generational nature of hunger through the provision of nutritious food to low-income children, families, and seniors.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• Development and Communications Coordinator
  Host Organization: Project Lemonade
  Location: Portland, Oregon
  Project Lemonade inspires self-esteem in foster youth through three signature programs: a store where foster youth shop for free clothes, a paid summer internship for foster youth and a WISH enrichment program. As a VISTA member at Project Lemonade you will help end poverty by developing a resource development and communications program to expand the foster youth intern program. Major functions will include assisting in fundraising initiatives by participating in donor cultivation, donor database expansion and communications strategies.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• East Portland Community Prosperity Coordinator
  Host Organization: Unite Oregon
  Location: Portland, Oregon
  Unite Oregon is a statewide organization led by people of color, immigrants and refugees, rural communities, and people experiencing poverty, to build a unified intercultural movement for justice. As a VISTA, you will help end poverty by launching the East Portland Community Prosperity (EPCP) Initiative to build wealth for low-income immigrants, refugees, and people of color. Major functions include developing an East Portland Asset Map, establishing an EPCP stakeholder committee, launching a workforce training program and small business incubator connecting low-income clients to living wage jobs, and supporting resource development.
  Learn more and apply this position here

• Emergency Preparedness Program Specialist
  Host Organization: Home Forward
  Location: Portland, Oregon
  Home Forward (Housing Authority of Portland) works to assure that the people of the Multnomah County community are sheltered. The VISTA member placed at Home Forward will assist in developing disaster preparedness and resilience programming among low-income households of all abilities in order to mitigate the effects of a major disaster on people experiencing poverty. Major functions will include implementing the Readiness Training Program and culturally specific materials for residents, creating a template for property-specific emergency action plans, and establishing a network of housing providers to increase resilience in our community.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• Homeless Partnerships Integrator
  Host Organization: NeighborImpact
  Location: Bend, Oregon
  NeighborImpact was created to represent and serve Central Oregon’s economically disadvantaged residents and is the region’s leading provider of emergency food programs, housing and homeless services, energy assistance, home weatherization, childcare provider resources, early childhood education services, and self-sufficiency programs for the working poor. As a VISTA at NeighborImpact you will help end poverty by developing projects that increase participation by volunteers and businesses to support people experiencing homelessness. Major functions include developing volunteer teams to collaborate on projects, building business partnerships to increase commitments to NeighborImpact, and designing a sponsorship system that links persons experiencing homelessness to private resources for support.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• Housing and Community Development Coordinator
  Host Organization: Bienestar
  Location: Hillsboro, Oregon
  Bienestar builds housing, hope, and futures for the wellbeing of Latinx, farmworker, immigrant, and other low-income families by developing, maintaining, and rehabbing affordable rental housing and providing culturally specific, bilingual services. As a VISTA member at Bienestar you will help end poverty by supporting the development of affordable housing projects. Major functions will include assisting with identifying, tracking, and preparing funding proposals; strengthening Bienestar’s housing development feasibility process by creating and testing a feasibility analysis tool; and conducting community engagement with Bienestar’s resident community to inform project design.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• Marketing and Outreach Specialist **Position Filled**
  Host Organization: Warm Springs Community Action Team
  Location: Warm Springs, Oregon
  The Warm Springs Indian Reservation (WSIR), home of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, covers over 1,000 square miles in Wasco and Jefferson counties. The Warm Springs Community Action Team (WSCAT) aims to promote community development in Warm Springs by empowering individuals and groups of people to realize their potential, become self-reliant, and affect positive change for themselves, their families, and their community. The VISTA will develop marketing and outreach strategies to recruit businesses into a small business incubator. The member will recruit small businesses and food truck businesses, organize trainings, and plan events in the incubator. They will also assist in asset mapping projects of the community, outreach to local organizations, and fundraising to support the incubator.

• Online Education Associate
  Host Organization: Mercy Corps Northwest, Portland
  Location: Portland, Oregon
  As the domestic arm of the global organization of Mercy Corps, Mercy Corps Northwest is focused on creating innovative solutions to tough local challenges, including limited access to finance, recidivism, structural inequality and the intergenerational cycle of poverty. As a VISTA with the Mercy Corps Northwest (MCNW) Women’s Business Center COVID-Response Team, you will help develop the Online Education Project, which will enhance MCNW’s capacity to support COVID-impacted, economically disadvantaged small business owners through expanded outreach and development of education assets. The VISTA will pilot a customized online education platform, develop expanded online curriculum, create connections with rural development organizations and other partners, and provide recommendations for future expansion of online offerings to support underserved entrepreneurs.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

• Program Efficiency Coordinator
  Host Organization: Proud Ground
  Location: Portland, Oregon
  Proud Ground creates permanently affordable homeownership opportunities for low-income, first-time homebuyers. As a VISTA member at Proud Ground you will help end poverty by supporting the expansion of the Homeownership Program to serve rural communities in Oregon, ensuring low-income households have access to first-time homeownership. Functions will include implementing program improvements through data management, evaluations, and expansion of the Community Land Trust model in rural areas through partnerships with Habitat for Humanity affiliates.
  Learn more and apply to this position here

Benefits:

AmeriCorps VISTAs serving with the Mercy Corps Northwest cohort receive several benefits including a living allowance, an end of service benefit, and a $4,000 MCNW supplemental benefit. For the full list, please check out the benefits section of our FAQ.