VCFP Fall 2025 Application

Part 2: Narrative Section
As a Vermont Community Fellow you will join a cohort of 8-10 people committed to mutually beneficial engagement with others, which they will apply in their own communities. An important element of this process involves participating in an ongoing, group learning experience. We ask for a minimum time commitment of approximately 20 hours/month, including attendance at 11 meetings and workshops (in-person and virtual) between February 2026 - March 2027 to complete the Program. If Fellows desire more time to develop and complete their project, facilitators can offer up to 6 months of additional mentorship and support (i.e 18 months total program participation).

Each Fellow will bring a wealth of personal knowledge and experience to the group; program facilitators are committed to upholding a group learning environment where all participants are encouraged to provide feedback, offer ideas, and support each other.

In this next section we’d like to get to know you and what you would bring to the Vermont Community Fellows Program.
What does your community mean to you?
The Vermont Community Fellows Program builds capacity for action-oriented field research. We believe that most enduring and sustainable change results from people working within their own communities.

The program offers individuals a process to collaborate with their communities to better understand and address shared needs and concerns. We define community as any self-identified group of people that feels a strong connection to one another. Such connections can be based on shared identity, geography, occupation and/or interests. They can be long-standing or recently formed.

With this in mind, please answer the following questions in one to three paragraphs each.
Describe the community you wish to work with and your relationship to it. (i.e. What brings you together? How and when do you engage with this community?)*
What makes you proud to be part of this community? What about it inspires you? What are its strengths? *
What are the questions and concerns you have for your community that you’re curious to address through VCFP? You can list several here if you want.*
What motivates you to engage in a collaborative, ethnographic process to explore and begin to address these questions and concerns?*
How do you approach a new learning process?
Sincere, ethical collaboration can be complicated and messy. Over 12-18 months, Fellows will facilitate an unfolding process with the people who make up their community—one where differences will emerge and priorities and assumptions will shift and evolve. This program is rooted in the belief that such a dynamic is a strength, and fundamental to ethnographic engagement.
What are the strengths, skills, and experience that you will bring to this Program?*
What are you hoping to learn and gain from this Program?*
Describe a time when your perspective on or understanding of a person or situation shifted or changed. What did you learn?*
How do you approach collaboration and long-term work?
Provide an example or two of how you have worked with a group of people—successfully and/or unsuccessfully. How will this shape your approach to collaboration in the future?*
Give us an example of how you respond to conflict, uncertainty, and change when working with others.*

Part 3: Program Schedule and Agreements
Workshops & Meetings Schedule
While the research and action project you will develop as a Vermont Community Fellow is uniquely your own, the group learning experience offered through meeting and engaging with a diverse cohort of other Fellows from around the state is central to this Program. Attendance at Workshops (in-person) and Zoom meetings (virtual gatherings to stay connected and receive guidance and inspiration) on the following dates are required to complete the Program:
- Nov. 3 - Dec. 14, 2025 - Applications accepted
- Jan. 23, 2026 - Accepted fellows notified
- Feb. 7, 2026 - Workshop #1, 10am - 3pm / Projects begin
  * Workshop #1 location in the Montpelier area; reimbursement for travel to workshops available
- Feb. 28, 2026 - Workshop #2, 10am - 3pm
  * future workshop locations TBD based on program participants
- March 28, 2026 - Workshop #3, 10am - 3pm
- April 25, 2026 - Workshop #4, 10am - 3pm
- May 27, 2026 - Zoom meeting, 6:30 - 8pm
- June 6, 2026 - Workshop #5, 10am - 2pm
- July 15, 2026 - Zoom meeting, 6:30 - 8pm
- August, 2026 - No meetings or workshops; Fellows work on Action Plans
- September 26, 2026 - Workshop #6, 10am - 2pm
- October 22, 2026 - Zoom meeting, 6:30 - 8pm
- December 2, 2026 - Zoom meeting, 6:30 - 8pm
- March 20, 2027 - In-person gathering: Celebration! and exhibit preview.
- Spring, 2027 - Opening of public exhibition showcasing projects from all Fellows
Schedule also viewable on the program webpage. Schedule subject to change.
Participation Agreements
The Vermont Community Fellows Program requires a minimum time commitment of approximately 20 hours/month, including attendance at 11 meetings and workshops (in-person and virtual) between February 2026 - March 2027. We anticipate projects will require 12-18 months.

To help make participation possible, Fellows will receive a stipend ($5,000*) dispersed in monthly installments, contingent on attendance at meetings and workshops and demonstrated progress towards Program goals. Fellows are welcome to apply for additional funds from outside sources to support their projects.

*Applications from individuals currently enrolled in a credit-bearing educational program (highschool, college, or graduate school) will be considered “student” applications. Student fellows will receive a smaller stipend from VCFP, as additional outside funding will likely be available for students.

The program includes four elements:
1. Workshops & Meetings: Fellows attend 11 meetings and workshops (in-person and virtual) between February 2026 - March 2027 (see dates above), plus engage in one-on-one mentoring and peer support throughout.
2. Research & Fieldwork: The majority of Fellows’ time in the program should be dedicated to spending time listening and learning with their community. The time commitment required for fieldwork will vary with each project.
3. Creating & Carrying out an Action Plan: After 6 months, Fellows will share what they’ve learned through research and fieldwork with their community, hear feedback, co-create a plan to envision and enact change, and work together with their community to realize it.
4. Public Exhibit & Presentation: Vermont Folklife staff will coordinate a final exhibit with Fellows to create a public exhibit showcasing their projects.
If you foresee anything in the program description that would constitute a barrier to your participation, please describe supports or accommodations that would allow you to participate.
Fellows admitted to this program are eligible to receive a stipend. The stipend is intended to make participation possible for those who otherwise would not be able to take part. If you were to be accepted into this program, do you intend to take the stipend? Your answer to this question has no bearing on the evaluation of your application. We ask so that we can determine how many Fellows our funds can support.

Yes - I will take the stipendNo - I do not need the stipend
Please carefully review the Program timeline above.
Are you able to participate in all elements of the program as described above?*

YesNo
Will your schedule and other commitments over the next year allow you to participate fully? I.e. be able to complete ~20 additional hours of work per month on your project.*

YesNo
Do you have conflicts with any of the workshop dates?*

NoYes, and will elaborate below
Please explain any schedule conflicts you may have.

Part 4: References
Please list the contact information for 2-3 people who can provide references for you. We encourage you to include at least one person representative of the community you’ll be working with.
Reference 1
Name*

First NameLast Name
Reference's relationship to you*
Email
example@example.com
Phone Number
Please enter a valid phone number.
Reference 2
Name*

First NameLast Name
Reference's relationship to you*
Email
example@example.com
Phone Number
Please enter a valid phone number.
Reference 3
Name

First NameLast Name
Reference's relationship to you
Email
example@example.com
Phone Number
Please enter a valid phone number.

Part 5: Anything Else?
Is there anything else you would like to share about yourself and your interest in the Vermont Community Fellows Program?
How did you learn about the Vermont Community Fellows Program?
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Fall 2025 Application

Application Process

Part 1: Basic Information

Part 2: Narrative Section

What does your community mean to you?

How do you approach a new learning process?

How do you approach collaboration and long-term work?

Part 3: Program Schedule and Agreements

Workshops & Meetings Schedule

Participation Agreements

Please carefully review the Program timeline above.

Part 4: References

Reference 1

Reference 2

Reference 3

Part 5: Anything Else?