How’s the relationship between your college or university and the town or city that it’s in? Let me guess. Not so hot. It always seems that students and “townies” don’t get along too well. Beyond that, there can also be situations like at Yale in New Haven, CT where the students are generally much wealthier than the people who live in the surrounding neighborhood. This just exacerbates the fundamental gap between the university and the community. National Student Partnerships is a non-profit organization that was started in New Haven by two Yale students who wanted to close this gap. They “designed a program where college student volunteers work one-on-one with community residents, coordinating access to employment opportunities and social services, including job training, housing, health care, child care, and transportation.” It’s a wonderful idea, and it’s working – look at the success stories.

Become a Part of NSP

In a lot of ways college students are an untapped resource. They generally have a lot of free time, a lot of energy, and a lot of brains – they’re just lacking a bit when it comes to “real world” experience. Putting them to work whether it be an internship or a volunteer program like NSP just makes sense. Additionally, college students are our future, which is why “NSP seeks to unite a national movement of students dedicated to direct service now, so that the systemic challenges we inherit do not become ones we will pass on.” Beyond offering volunteer opportunities and internships, NSP also has some entry level jobs for new grads. You can find the listings on NSP’s Jobs page, and they include openings for a Site Coordinator and a Regional Program Manager. The Site Coordinator positions are available in Baltimore, MD; Bronx, NY; Cambridge, MA; Chicago, IL; Evanston, IL; New Haven, CT; Philadelphia, PA (2 Offices); Pittsburgh, PA; Richmond, VA; Somerville, MA; and Washington, DC, while the Regional Program Manger position is located in Boston, MA. You can apply for the Site Coordinator jobs by sending a cover letter and resume to jobs@nspnet.org, and for the Regional Program Manager job by sending your materials to joinus@nspnet.org

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

• NSPNet.org
• Jobs with National Student Partnerships
• About National Student Partnerships
• The History of NSP
• National Student Partnerships’ FAQ
• NSP’s Staff
• NSP News and Events
• NSP Client Success Stories

How is your college’s relationship with the community?

We've identified National Student Partnerships as having career opportunities in the following categories:

• all employers
• Connecticut
• Illinois
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• New York
• non-profit
• outreach
• Pennsylvania
• program development
• Virginia
• Washington DC

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Jobs Near You

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