We are hiring!

We are currently hiring a VISTA Summer Associate and two year-long AmeriCorps VISTA positions! Please reach out to info@ccfoodsecurity.org if you have questions or need help navigating the application process.

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VISTA Summer Associate (8-10 weeks)

​The summer VISTA position will focus on two main projects: supporting summer meal programming for Portland, ME Public Schools and working with the Cumberland County Food Security Council gleaning initiative. Summer meals are provided by Portland Public Schools Food Services free of cost to students and families and are available at various sites throughout the city of Portland. The Gleaning Initiative harvests excess produce from local farms and gardens and redistributes it to communities throughout Cumberland County. The Summer Associate, alongside the Food Fuels Learning Coordinator and the Director of Food Service, will help train volunteers, advertise summer meals on social media, and support enrichment activities. Additionally, alongside the Local Foods Coordinator and Food Access Organizer, the Summer Associate will harvest and collect local produce, coordinate volunteers, and assist in redistribution. 

The full-time (35-40 hours/week), 8 or 10 week term begins on June 13 or June 27. Applicants must be 18 or older. Benefits for this commitment include: A biweekly stipend of $674; choice of $1,345 AmeriCorps Education Award (scholarship) OR cash stipend of $345; and professional development/training. If you are interested, please contact Zoe Grodsky at grodsz@portlandschools.org and fill out this brief survey form.

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Local Foods Coordinator VISTA (one year)

The AmeriCorps VISTA member will build upon the foundation of a recently developed gleaning initiative for Cumberland County. The member will strengthen existing relationships with current participants and actively recruit new program participants. Managing the information infrastructure, including web and social media, will be important elements, as will be tracking and documenting the distribution of gleaned food. The AmeriCorps VISTA member will also work with people organizing community meals to integrate local food into their projects. Other responsibilities include strengthening the volunteer infrastructure and supporting our efforts to build food security in public schools.

Application Deadline: 8/1/2022
Interested applicants must apply through AmeriCorps here.

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Maine Meat System Initiative VISTA (one year)

The VISTA will build capacity for infrastructure, marketing and communications, and fundraising efforts related to the Maine Meat System Initiative (MMSI). The VISTA will assist in developing cooperative infrastructure for training, production, processing, and distribution systems based at the food hub at Ummah Farm. The VISTA will support community-based research that helps bridge the price gap between the farmer/producer and limited resource community members. The VISTA member will build the capacity of local organizations to support an empowerment network that will elevate the voices of people with direct experiences of poverty to promote solutions. The VISTA will promote local food through events including processing and community meals. The VISTA will collect data to report on disparities in food access for BIPOC Mainers - both quantitative and qualitative which will inform infrastructure development and project design. The VISTA will manage a web page and social media.

Application deadline: 8/1/2022
Interested applicants must apply through AmeriCorps here.