After serving as the Financial Literacy Development VISTA at Spanish Coalition for Housing (SCH), Audrey Carberry was excited to accept a full-time staff position at their host site. They are looking forward to building on the relationships and communications skills they developed during their service as the Marketing and Communications Coordinator at SCH.
“AmeriCorps set me up for this role,” Audrey says. “I worked with the previous coordinator, and he happened to transition out of his role right when my service was coming to an end. It was a smooth transition into my new role and the staff at SCH were excited to welcome me!”
It is not always easy to figure out what to do next after a year of service, and it’s a challenge to complete that year of volunteering full-time with a community organization to begin with. In fact, fewer than 200 people in Illinois served in AmeriCorps VISTA last year. We are grateful to have connected with 29 dedicated AmeriCorps members who served in our Housing Action Corps network from the summer of 2023 to fall 2024. These individuals were matched with 21 host organizations throughout Illinois, as well as in 6 other states (these positions are through our national Housing Counseling Corps initiative). During a year of full-time AmeriCorps VISTA service, they took on a variety of projects to build organizational capacity, advance housing opportunities, and strengthen communities.
We caught up with three recent alumni—along with Audrey Carberry, we spoke with Katie Ellis and Vanessa Johnson-McCoy—to learn about their experiences serving in Housing Action Corps and what they are working on now.
Rather than providing direct, hands-on support, Housing Action Corps members focus on enhancing the programs and services of their host organizations to meet the changing needs of their communities. Projects include activities like grant writing and fundraising, curriculum development, research and data analysis, communications, volunteer recruitment, and community organizing. In 2023-2024, Housing Action Corps members launched and expanded programs related to youth hunger, financial literacy, housing counseling, homeless services, and more.
While serving, Housing Action Corps members receive the benefits of the AmeriCorps VISTA program, including a biweekly stipend, health care and child care benefits, an end-of-service education award or cash stipend, and a year of non-competitive eligibility status for federal jobs. They also receive tailored professional development to launch a career in the housing field. Our alumni pursue diverse paths after their term ends, including higher education, continued national service, and traditional employment.
Audrey attends the 2023 Housing Matters Conference along with a cohort of AmeriCorps members
Audrey is excited to witness the long-term impacts of their AmeriCorps service and continue their professional development with SCH.
“Over the course of my service, I was able to work on many projects that I now get to see pushed into the future! The one I am most proud of is the financial literacy curriculum,” reflects Audrey. “I studied HUD curriculum and financial literacy for months, and worked with our housing counselors and community health workers to learn what their clients still needed to know. It was a big undertaking for a 22-year-old with very little financial knowledge, but the housing counselors were thrilled with the final result.”
Katie Ellis joined AmeriCorps to gain professional experience and try out potential career paths while furthering causes that are meaningful to her. Driven by her interest in affordable housing, Katie served as the Communications and Development VISTA at Housing Action Illinois. She is transitioning from serving in her home state to serving internationally with the Peace Corps.
“I just started serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Timor-Leste, where I will be co-teaching English and helping develop educational resources in partnership with a local school,” Katie describes. “Throughout my time at Housing Action, I learned that I love working with people, doing creative projects, and working toward a cause I care about. [AmeriCorps service] was a solid foundation for both my professional skills and for developing a direction for my next steps in my career.”
When asked what she learned about the housing issues facing communities in Illinois, Katie had a succinct answer: a safe, affordable home is the foundation to a healthy and stable life.
“During my service, I learned from people who had experienced homelessness in the past, and from their stories,” Katie remembers. “It was evident that having a good place to live made a huge difference in their lives. Hearing from people who had lived-experience of homelessness opened my eyes to the importance of a stable home and the dire need for affordable housing that exists in Chicago and beyond.”
As the Fair Housing VISTA at Open Communities, Vanessa Johnson-McCoy was motivated to serve her local community in Evanston and build relationships within the nonprofit sector. She recently accepted a full-time position with FirstRepair and the Reparations Stakeholder Authority of Evanston (RSAE), where she will continue working to help Evanston community members access the resources they need to thrive.
Vanessa (left) shows former AmeriCorps Leader Dani around the Open Communities office during a site visit
“AmeriCorps service helped me confirm that I would like to continue working with an organization that aligns with my passions of working with those who are underserved and underrepresented, especially in my local Black community,” Vanessa says. “Both [my AmeriCorps service and my new role] focus on addressing systemic social change, fostering healing, promoting equality and justice, and ensuring that Black voices in the Evanston community are heard and considered.”
Demonstrating her aptitude for outreach and organizing, Vanessa planned several educational events throughout her service that brought Evanston community members together to learn about fair housing.
“I am especially proud of the lead role I took in the collaborative event with the Evanston History Center (EHC) held around Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day about fair housing. It was an excellent, well-attended event with a wonderful panel—and I moderated the panel discussion,” Vanessa reflects. “It went so well that the Skokie Public Library used it as a model to plan a similar event. [I also helped plan] the Open Communities’ Walk/Roll the Redline, which provided so much information about the history of fair housing and how housing discrimination still impacts our community today.”
Housing Action Corps alumni often pursue careers in housing, homeless services, and community development after service. For Audrey, learning about the specific housing needs and barriers facing Spanish-speaking communities in Chicago provided a new perspective and fueled their passion for housing justice.
“Housing justice goes beyond just safe and affordable housing. Housing justice relates to communities as an ecosystem,” Audrey says. “Many of the changes across the city happen without the consent or knowledge of the people who have called these neighborhoods home. Housing justice is financial education, developer transparency, and genuine efforts to engage the people who were born in, raised in, and would like to stay in their communities.”
AmeriCorps VISTA alumni are eligible for several end-of-service benefits, including the AmeriCorps Segal Education Award, which is a voucher to repay student loans or cover future education and training expenses. With this benefit, Vanessa’s AmeriCorps service will not only create change for generations in Evanston, but also the next generation in her family.
“Something unexpected was that I could transfer the [AmeriCorps Segal] Education Award to my son, who is currently in college,” Vanessa describes. “That was a pleasant, financially helpful surprise!”
Katie (right) leads a button making activity at our annual Toast to Housing Justice
For Katie, the chance to use her creative skills and explore a variety of new activities were some of the best parts of her AmeriCorps experience.
“Try lots of new things!” Katie recommends. “Don’t say no to new projects or learning experiences, even if you’re not sure whether you’d like it or be good at it.”
Alongside professional skills and connections, Housing Action Corps service also allowed Audrey to develop lasting friendships.
“The other VISTAs [in my cohort] were such fun and wonderful people,” Audrey shares. “I didn’t expect to genuinely enjoy spending time or have so many laughs when we attended conferences, meetings, and volunteer days together. I have learned a lot from the people that AmeriCorps has brought into my life and it is so great to be able to call them friends.”
About Housing Action Corps
From launching new programs to growing volunteers and donors, Housing Action Corps members spend a year of service helping their host sites enhance their services, resources, and partnerships to meet community needs in new ways.
Applications to host AmeriCorps VISTA members with Housing Action Corps in 2025-2026 will open December 2, 2024 to January 31, 2025. Members will serve full-time with organizations in our coalition from August 2025 to August 2026.
Learn more about serving as a Housing Action Corps member or becoming a 25-26 host site »