Montana Campus Compact awarded funding for Campus Corps Program

Next academic year, hundreds of college students across the state will
address community needs, build capacity for nonprofit agencies, and
receive education awards to help them access a postsecondary education.

The Montana Campus Compact (MTCC) http://www.mtcompact.org , a statewide higher
education consortium of 19 colleges and universities, has been awarded
$639,583 grant to support its popular, statewide Campus Corps program.

"Montana citizens and especially its college students rank highly in civic
engagement," said Eric Cardella, program manager at Montana Campus
Compact, "this funding is a vote of confidence in the students across our
state."

For sixteen years, MTCC’s Campus Corps program has integrated community
service into the lives and curricula of students at Montana’s public,
private, two-year, four-year, tribal, and community colleges. The program
provides professional development training, citizenship skill-building,
and hands-on, real-world experience that enhances education and fosters
civic engagement in future graduates. MTCC supports the program with
unique array of funding from campus-community partnerships, local
nonprofits, federal and state sources, and the Montana Commission on
Community Service. A large portion of this support comes from the
Corporation for National and Community Service through its AmeriCorps
initiative.

Once students enroll as MTCC Campus Corps members they serve on community
projects in the neediest areas of the state. Next year, the Corps will
address shortages in teaching and healthcare professions, mobilize fellow
student and community volunteers and most importantly build capacity so
nonprofit organizations to meet their humanitarian goals.

This new grant will allow MTCC to enroll, train, and engage more than 800
college students. This money will help MTCC provide training, support,
living allowances, and education awards for students who chose to complete
a set number of service hours addressing community needs and getting
things done for Montana.

The Montana Campus Compact is Montana’s largest higher education network
composed of 19 colleges and universities. MTCC is committed to renewing
the public purposes of higher education through community service,
service-learning, and civic engagement activities. College students from
the following institutions will participate in Campus Corps: Blackfeet
Community College, Carroll College, Dawson Community College, Flathead
Valley Community College, Fort Belknap College, Fort Peck Community
College, Little Big Horn College, Miles Community College, Montana State
University-Billings, Montana State University-Bozeman, Montana State
University-Northern, Montana State University-Great Falls, Montana Tech of
UM, Rocky Mountain College, Salish Kootenai College, The University of
Montana-Missoula, The University of Montana-Western, The University of
Montana-Helena , University of Great Falls

— Dean McGovern, Executive Director Montana Campus Compact 302 University Hall Missoula, MT 59812 Phone: 406.243.5177 Fax: 406.243.5407 website: http://www.mtcompact.org email: [email protected]