Fellowship Opportunity: Eagle Rock--deadline Jan 30

A unique leadership opportunity at Eagle Rock

The Public Allies fellowship program at Eagle Rock School and Professional Development Center supports new ways of leading that are right for the times and right for a unique student population. The Fellowship Program provides twelve individuals with an advanced yearlong service and leadership development program focused on education and youth development at the nationally recognized Eagle Rock School and Professional Development Center located in Estes Park, Colorado.

Founded in 1993, Eagle Rock is a tuition-free residential high school that serves diverse young people (ages 15-21) from across the country who have not succeeded in conventional schools. Drawing on the beautiful mountain setting and an innovative curriculum focused on how people learn rather than how teachers teach, Eagle Rock School emphasizes active learning, community service, environmentalism, outdoor education, and traditional academic subjects. The Eagle Rock learning process, as shared through their Professional Development Center, has influenced educators across the country and inspired the Public Allies continuous learning process.

Through this unique service and training opportunity, Public Allies Eagle Rock Fellows will gain skills that will make them effective teachers, leadership trainers, and youth workers.

Candidates must have a college degree to be considered for the fellowship. Fellows will work and live together in community with eleven other Public Allies Fellowship Program participants, students and staff at the school's state of the art facilities in the Rocky Mountains northwest of Denver.

Leaders interested in this specialized leadership development opportunity must have a college degree, and those who have previously served in AmeriCorps should verify their eligibility before applying.



About the Program

Fellowship: The Public Allies Fellowship is an opportunity being made available to individuals who are passionate about education, youth development and working with 15 - 21 year old students from diverse backgrounds across America who have not been successful in conventional school settings.

The Public Allies Fellowship has two perspectives--local and global. The local reason is that Fellows contribute skills, energy, and knowledge to the community. As residents they are involved in student activities and campus life as well as classroom teaching and administration. Like everyone else at Eagle Rock, they serve as role models, take on leadership roles, and live the values expressed through Eagle Rock's commitments.

The global reason is related to Honda's reason for founding the Eagle Rock School and Professional Development Center--to influence renewal and rform initiatives in American Schools. Learn about the American Honda Education Corporation

We envision Fellows utilizing what they learn at Eagle Rock in their next work environment and serving as emissaries for the kind of education Eagle Rock believes in. No matter what they do or where they go (but most especially if they enter public education) former Fellows act as ambassadors for the values that Eagle Rock honors. Thus, Public Allies Fellows are part of Eagle Rock's professional development effort.

Training & Learning: Molding tomorrow's educational leaders begins with core training where Fellows are oriented and begin the community-building process. Throughout the year, Fellows gather together as a cohort once a week for training provided by skilled professionals in the field. Learning seminars are designed to build the necessary skills for strengthening communities, nonprofits and civic participation in ways that embrace the core values of Public Allies: collaboration, diversity, community participation,continuous learning and integrity."

Fellows participate in a variety of professional development experiences, including weekly training seminars exploring theory and practice of education. We use Eagle Rock's own Dr. Lois Easton The Other Side of Curriculum: Lessons for Learners as well as Dr. Easton's book Engaging the Disengaged: Helping Struggling Students Succeed, as coursework.

Additional training topics include: Asset Based Community Development, Diversity & Oppression and Giving & Receiving Feedback.

Fellows also participate as a group in mid-year and year-end retreats, as well as regular critical reflection sessions where they connect their service to larger social and public issues.

The Fellows are coached using the Public Allies continuous learning process which includes setting personal and professional goals, creating plans to achieve those goals, giving and receiving feedback from peers and supervisors and documenting progress towards specific service and learning outcomes. The program concludes each August with Presentations of Learning, when Fellows demonstrate to the entire Eagle Rock community how they have met their service goals and learning outcomes throughout the year.
Team Service Projects: Throughout the program year, Fellows work in teams of 4 and side-by-side with community members on Team Service Projects (TSPs). TSPs are based on the idea that in order to improve communities, you must discover and build upon their assets - the talents and capacities of the community.

Team Service Projects leave a sustainable contribution to the Eagle Rock Community with direct and measurable impact.

The projects are divided into four phases: community exploration; project planning; project implementation; and critical reflection, evaluation & project transition. Their team service projects allow the Fellows to gain an additional community service experience, while developing important skills in teamwork, collaboration, volunteer generation and project management.