Montana State helping launch statewide AmeriCorps program for community health

BOZEMAN - Montana State University is a key player in launching a new AmeriCorps program designed to bolster the community health workforce in Montana.

After nearly a year of planning, the Community Health Corps Montana program will kick off in January 2026. In its first year, the program will support 14 AmeriCorps service members paired with around 14 host sites across the state. AmeriCorps is a federal program that funds service opportunities for Americans to address critical national needs such as education, health care and environmental disaster response.

In 2024, the Governor's Office of Community Service, which allocates Montana's federal AmeriCorps funding, tapped the Montana Office of Rural Health and Area Health Education Center to design the program. MORH/AHEC is housed within the Mark and Robyn Jones College of Nursing at MSU and helps coordinate health care outreach across Montana.

To design the program, MORH/AHEC project manager Angela Davis met with multiple Montana communities to identify the health-related needs that AmeriCorps service members could help address.

"Our office already has a plethora of community-level data about health care needs across Montana, and we also held some focus groups and one-on-one conversations to assess if an AmeriCorps program could work to meet those needs," Davis said.

The needs broke down into three broad categories, Davis said: strengthening mental health and substance use disorder services; improving chronic disease prevention and management; and addressing the social determinants of health, which include access to food, transportation and housing.

Service members will be matched with a not-for-profit host site working in one of those areas, which may range from hospitals to county and tribal health departments to nonprofits providing social services, Davis said. The program will prioritize tribal and rural communities in Montana.

This is the first health-related AmeriCorps program in Montana with a statewide reach, Davis added. A past program based in Sidney provided support to eastern Montana, but it ended in 2023. This program will further extend those efforts to have the greatest impact, she said.

Applications opened for host sites and service members in September. The service term starts Jan. 12, 2026, and will run until Aug. 21, 2026.

"This program is geared toward folks who are interested in service and want to make a difference in their communities," said Davis, who previously managed AmeriCorps programs and was a service member herself. "This can be a really great opportunity for resume building, to kind of bridge the gap from graduation into that long-term professional career. It can also be a great opportunity for folks with a community mindset who are still trying to figure out exactly what they want to do."

The work will largely involve providing institutional support for the host sites, with potential responsibilities including facilitating community engagement, education, meetings and data management, and helping organizations with branding and grow their reach in local communities.

Davis emphasized that applicants do not need a background in medicine or health care, and she expects the program to appeal to people studying or working in community health, psychology, social work, family and child development, and even marketing.

While everyone is invited to apply, she said preference will be given to Montana residents and people already living in the communities they hope to serve. The program will be a great fit for many MSU students, who have already started to express interest, Davis said.

"MORH/AHEC does critical work of bolstering our health care workforce through education, community coordination and financial support to support everyday Montanans, and this forthcoming AmeriCorps program does exactly that," said Sarah Shannon, dean of the nursing college. "The Mark and Robyn Jones College of Nursing is proud to support this important initiative that will positively impact the entire state."

In addition to providing a portion of the program funding, MORH/AHEC will play an active role during the service term, Davis said, coordinating meetings with service members and host sites, and providing professional support and other resources as needed.

Davis will also facilitate the design of year two and three of the program. She explained AmeriCorps funding is typically allocated in three-year increments. In future years, she hopes to increase the term length from eight months to 10.5 months as the program gets established.

"I do think that in the first year, eight months with the right person and the right fit can still really make a large impact for the host site," Davis said, "which is then transferred into a large impact on the local community."

As director of the MORH/AHEC, Kailyn Mock emphasized that the program is about both immediate impact and long-term workforce growth.

"At its heart, this program is both service and workforce development in action," Mock said. "Community Health Corps Montana will not only expand local organizations' ability to meet pressing health needs but also provide hands-on experience that can launch meaningful careers in health care and community service."

More information about the Community Health Corps Montana program is available at healthinfo.montana.edu/chcm/index.html.