About the Concho Valley VISTA Placement Project
The Concho Valley VISTA Placement Project at Angelo State University requests proposals for one-year placements of AmeriCorps VISTA Members. VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) is a federal antipoverty program administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service. CNCS provides VISTA members to support projects at nonprofit, grassroots organizations, and local government agencies that operate programs to help alleviate poverty in the United States within their approved focus areas.
What Can a VISTA Do?
The role of a VISTA is to help build capacity in the Partner Agency they are placed using sustainable solutions. Hence, VISTAs do not perform direct services such as tutoring, teaching, counseling, driving clients, painting, manual labor, or clerical work. Instead of tutoring youth, for example, VISTAs may help create or expand a tutoring program by recruiting community volunteers to tutor or by obtaining funding for the program. Below are some examples of the natural progression in the types of service performed by a VISTA; this not meant to be an exhaustive list of allowed activities
| Activity Category | Examples of Capacity Building Activities | Examples of Sustainability Activities |
| Recruiting Volunteers | Develop forms and write volunteer job descriptions | Develop volunteer handbook |
| Developing Training Materials | Write training curriculum and train the trainer curriculum | Develop training manual |
| Coordinating Projects | Develop procedures and strategic plans | Develop procedural guide and volunteer management system |
| Marketing | Develop press kits and media database | Secure media partners and develop schedule/procedure |
| Fundraising | Write grants and develop databases | Create planning guides and time lines |
| Organizing Task Forces/Coalitions | Develop infrastructure of task force/coalition | Implement schedule and communication expectations |
| Conducting Outreach | Design brochures, attend community events, and deliver presentations | Create mechanism for project evaluation |
Requirement for Hosting a VISTA
- Be a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit or a government agency; (Public, private, or faith-based nonprofit organizations, local, state, or federal agencies)
- Share in the administrative cost of the program at $3,075 per VISTA member per year
- Have at least one full-time staff member (paid or unpaid) with the capabilities to supervise fulltime
- Provide a professional work environment and regular direct supervision for its VISTA member(s) and all necessary office equipment and supplies
- Develop a project concept designed to alleviate poverty within the community
- Plan for the eventual sustainability of the VISTA’s project beyond their service year