Illinois State University Stevenson Center

This is a podcast recorded by Applied Economic and Community Development Fellow Ward Westray, who is in the second year of his Stevenson Center fellowship. In the podcast, Ward speaks about his general background and what led him to join the Stevenson Center at Illinois State, including his two respective AmeriCorps experiences and why they were so instrumental in making service to others the central tenet of his career.

Hello lovely listeners! Welcome to our Stevenson Center Podcast; “A Gaggle of Gals.” In this episode, Hannah Gdalman (Peace Corps Fellow, Sociology), Isabella Green (ACED Fellow, Sociology), and Rose Commins (ACED Fellow, Kinesiology and Recreation) discuss their past service experiences with AmeriCorps and Peace Corps, reflect on the first year of grad school madness, share thesis progress, and talk about their current professional placements, exploring the ways they have implemented their ISU coursework into their new positions. The gals provide a glimpse into the lives of Stevenson Center students as they discuss their academic (classes, professors, and projects) and social (cohort support, life in Bloomington-Normal) lives during grad school. Listen to find out more about the unique perspectives these gals bring, and hear what they have to say about their experiences as Stevenson Center Fellows!

Casey joined the Stevenson Center's Peace Corps Coverdell Fellows Program from California. In this podcast he discusses his experiences with Peace Corps Ukraine, adjusting to graduate classes, life in Bloomington-Normal, and his professional practice with the McLean County Regional Planning Commission in Bloomington, IL, where he researches a variety of planning and transportation topics.

This podcast features Orsolya Ficsor, a graduate fellow for the Stevenson Center's Applied Community and Economic Development Fellows Program. Orsolya talks about her year of service in City Year Dallas and how it brought her to ISU, her studies in Anthropology, and her work at the East Central Illinois Area Agency on Aging. Orsolya shares how her service in City Year inspired her research interests, what life is like in Bloomington-Normal, and some advice for prospective students.

Listen as Joel and Ryan share about their experience as ACED fellows and discuss what they have learned about organizational culture after working in the nonprofit sector and while studying at Illinois State University and the Stevenson Center.Music from https://filmmusic.io"Cheery Monday" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com) License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Stevenson Center Fellows Ana Fochesatto and Jordan Norton have been working in youth development organizations for their 11-month fellowships to complete their Master's in Community and Economic Development. Listen to learn more about their experience!

I am a graduate student at Illinois State University studying sociology within the Applied Community Economic Development Program through the Stevenson Center. Prior to enrolling in the Master's program, I served as an AmeriCorps member in City Year Kansas City providing added support in a classroom setting as a primary focus. I now continue to serve as an AmeriCorps member at a non-profit called Hope Meadows located in Rantoul, IL which provides below-market rent housing in exchange that residents provide 6 hours of volunteering within the 22 acre community per week.

After earning her bachelor's degree in biological sciences from DePaul University in 2011, Rachel Almburg worked for Global Brigades in Ghana to promote healthcare, economic development, and access to clean water. She then returned to Chicago to serve as an AmeriCorps Member with Northwestern Settlement House, which provides youth education and other services with the goal of disrupting generational poverty.After a year of interdisciplinary coursework, Almburg is now applying her skills with the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority's Research and Analytics team. Almburg finds the work both informative and helpful for her future career.

Juan Zamarripa is completing his professional practice with Credit Builders Alliance (CBA) in Washington DC. In his capacity as the Data and Communications Fellow, Juan is tasked with evaluating current data intake strategies, recommending new strategies to make data collection more efficient, and improving CBA member engagement by analyzing CBA's social media communications strategy, and outlining new efforts to increase engagement. Juan has a B.A in Economics and Political Science, and will soon have an M.S. in Applied Economics from Illinois State University. Prior to his time with the Stevenson Center, Juan worked with nonprofits in Washington, DC and Northern Virginia focusing on college access and success.Austin Moser is a Peace Corps Fellow with the Housing Assistance Council. He is working within their Research and Information Department to provide in-depth research on a variety of specific topics in the field of rural housing issues. Austin has a B.S. in Economics from Virginia Tech, and is working towards an M.S. in Applied Economics from Illinois State University. Austin is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, having served in the mountain kingdom of Lesotho from 2015-2017.During their first year with the Stevenson Center, Juan and Austin analyzed data for their graduate research assistantships with the McLean County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council.

Hunter Ryan is working towards a MS in Kinesiology at Illinois State University. Prior to resuming his academic career, Mr. Ryan lived in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala where we worked as a program manager for an international study abroad organization while also managing a local small business' soccer team in area leagues. He was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Paraguay from 2012-2015 where we worked with young people using soccer as a tool to meditate conflict and build values. He is a two time AmeriCorps member, holds a BA in Philosophy, and constantly seeks to irritate the status quo.

In this podcast, Angela Eastlund, Policy Fellow at the Chicago Jobs Council, talks about her professional practice fellowship and interviews Executive Director, Carrie Thomas, and Director of Policy, Mari Castaldi, on the SNAP Employment and Training program's origins, history, and current effects on Illinois SNAP recipients and beyond.Angela Eastlund is a Master's Degree candidate in Cultural Anthropology and Applied Community and Economic Development at Illinois State University, with the Stevenson Center.

Jalisa Holifiled is pursuing her Master's in Sociology, Applied Community and Economic Development. She serves as an AmeriCorps Member at the Stevenson Center in her second year of the program, advising the McLean County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council. Podcasts topics include: what Jalisa did to prepare for graduate school; her experience with the Stevenson Center and why she choose them; her experience with the Sociology Department; budgeting and planning advice; and where she is now.

Listen to why I served with AmeriCorps, why I chose Illinois State University and the Stevenson Center, and why I'm working at Housing Action Illinois!I served with City Year Chicago and then Cradles to Crayons through Project Yes! at the Northwestern Settlement House for my AmeriCorps terms. I am now getting my Master of Science in Applied Economics and beginning a career in the public advocacy field.

This episode is a conversation about gentrification.Recommended Resources:Stacey Sutton. “TED Talk: What We Don't Understand about Gentrification.” https://youtu.be/XqogaDX48nIColin Woodard. 2016. “How Cincinnati Salvaged the Nation's Most Dangerous Neighborhood.” Politico (June 16, 2016) https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/06/what-works-cincinnati-ohio-over-the-rhine-crime-neighborhood-turnaround-city-urban-revitalization-213969Learn More about the Stevenson Center: https://stevensoncenter.org/

Continued from Season 2, Episode 6! Jon Monsma talks with alum Derek Conley about their experiences as Stevenson Center students and their professional practice with public/private economic development partnership Invest Aurora.

Continued in Season 2, Episode 7! Jon Monsma talks with alum Derek Conley about their experiences as Stevenson Center students and their professional practice with public/private economic development partnership Invest Aurora.

Peace Corps Fellow in anthropology Alesha Klein talks about her past, present and future within community and economic development.

Tune it to hear how Peace Corps Fellow Doug Gass transformed his outlook on communities during Peace Corps service in Uganda and a handful of AmeriCorps assignments.

Lindsey Earl is a graduate student at Illinois State University's Stevenson Center for Community & Economic Development completing her professional practice with Change Happens. Her major responsibilities include spearheading disaster relief services after Hurricane Harvey, writing and editing grants, program design, and assisting with a comprehensive, resident-driven neighborhood plan. Outside of work, Lindsey lives at a sustainable, egalitarian housing co-operative in the Greater Third Ward. Originally, Lindsey is from Littleton, Colorado, and has a B.A. in Environmental Sociology from Colorado State University. After two years of AmeriCorps NCCC Pacific Region, Lindsey entered the Stevenson Center as a Cultural Anthropology Fellow. For her thesis, Lindsey is researching occupational culture (police, city government, and homeless services) in relation to the system of homeless encampment eviction.

Alyssa discusses the path that led her to her graduate program at the Stevenson Center at Illinois State University. Alyssa is an Illinois native and is a second year ACED Fellow studying Economics at the Stevenson Center, and completing her professional practice with the City of Bloomington, IL.

Molly Cook is receiving her M.S. in Sociology from ISU. She is currently completing her ACED Fellowship at Missoula Economic Partnership. Molly is also completing her thesis, titled, "More than Just a Job: A Social Enterprise's Response to Homelessness." Molly Cook served as a homeless youth case manager with Christ the King Service Corps before coming to ISU.

Kirk Douglas Richardson is a Fellow in the Stevenson Center for Applied Community and Economic Development and a graduate student in the Politics and Government Department at Illinois State University. Previously he served as an English Education and Community Development Peace Corps volunteer in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia. He currently works at a CDFI in Missoula, Montana doing marketing and business development.

Bryan Titzler is currently pursuing a M.S. degree in applied economics from Illinois State University. His prior service experience includes a 10-month AmeriCorps term as the Housing Liaison at Central Arizona Shelter Services. While at Central Arizona Shelter Services he managed a caseload of low income and homeless individuals to help them secure permanent, sustainable housing. In his current role as Development and Sustainability Specialist at the Community Development Commission of Mendocino County, he is involved with several activities related to community development and energy efficiency through the Mendo-Lake Energy Watch.

Melissa is a student at Illinois State University's Stevenson Center. She is completing a Master's in Applied Economics. This podcast describes her experiences before the Stevenson Center, her academic career at ISU and professional practice at United Way of McLean County.

I am a 25-year old graduate student at Illinois State University, currently completing the Professional Practice portion of my degree requirements in Missoula, Montana. I am majoring in Political Science. Previously, I graduated with a BA in Psychology from Texas State University. In between my studies, I served two 10-month terms with AmeriCorps in Texas, one in South Texas as a College Adviser, followed by the second term in Austin, Texas, where I served as an Early Childhood Literacy Tutor.

Two Stevenson Center Fellows, Andrew Kuka and Derek Conley, discuss their backgrounds in service, their graduate experience at Illinois State University, and their current professional practices.Andrew is a master's student in sociology and an ACED Fellow at Illinois State University. He served two years in AmeriCorps and is interested in solving housing issues in the U.S. He is currently doing his professional practice at Housing Action Illinois where he manages a HUD intermediary, and helps to provide capacity-building services to housing counseling agencies in Illinois, and a few in Missouri and Indiana. Andrew's capstone project is an autoethnography of city walking, which will illuminate social theories surrounding pedestrianism, automobility, and the built environment through a first person perspective of walking in contemporary Chicagoland.Derek is a master's student in economics and a Peace Corps Fellow at ISU. He served two years in Peace Corps Costa Rica and is interested in community and economic development efforts. He is currently doing his professional practice at Invest Aurora, an economic development organization, where he manages communications between the EDO and the public, and organizes development deals with business owners.

Cecilia Montesdeoca is graduate Applied Community and Economic Development fellow at Illinois State University studying anthropology. Her previous service work experience includes working as a project manager for a non-profit in Peru, and serving terms with AmeriCorps through Illinois Public Health Association AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps NCCC in Denver, CO as a Team Leader. Cecilia is currently in her second year of her graduate studies completing her field practicum in North Dakota. Her 11-month field placement is with Dakota Resource Council where she is a community organizer with communities impacted by oil and gas extraction to help shape public opinion and influence public policy.

I am currently a Peace Corps Fellow in the Stevenson Center Program at Illinois State University getting my master's degree in Political Science and Applied Community Development. In Micronesia as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I taught English, trained teachers in English teaching techniques, and engaged in other projects like coaching a long distance track team. Currently I am in my professional practicum working in Washington, D.C. for two financial service non-profits called Credit Builders Alliance and Center for Financial Services Innovation. I mostly work on large scale financial research projects and data management for both organizations.

Lauren Troxtel is a Master's Student in the School of Kinesiology and Recreation with a focus on community and economic development. She is also working on her Women's and Gender Studies Certificate. Lauren served in Peace Corps Ethiopia as a Community Health Volunteer. While in Ethiopia, Lauren worked with her local community to host project design and management trainings, permagarden (small scale gardens) trainings and other projects involving youth development and health. She is currently completing her professional practice with the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee as the health liaison in the CHOICE Neighborhood Initiative. This is a "$30 million locally-driven, comprehensive strategy to transform Westlawn (public housing) and the surrounding neighborhood into an inclusive community of opportunity with quality housing, schools, businesses, services, and amenities where people want to live, learn, work, shop, and play." Lauren's main goals are to connect residents within the 3 mile radius to health and recreational resources.