Community Partner Placements
The success of the Community Engagement Fellows Program is represented by the opportunities and learning that come from serving with a local non-profit organization in a long-term capacity. Organizations that host Community Engagement Fellows must be non-profit or governmental. They must have a supervisor willing and able to mentor the students place with the organization and be willing to work within the developmental model for leadership.
All positions are located within walking distance of campus this Spring 2025 semester, except for the internship with Shippensburg Produce and Outreach (SPO).
Ready to Apply?
Organizations interested in participating in this program can contact Sam Ha-DiMuzio at the Center for Civic Learning & Action (CCLA) at 717-245-1005 or hadimuzs@dickinson.edu.
Positions Open for Spring 2025:
to view the list of positions in a different format.
Carlisle Victory Circle - Youth Diversity & Civic Engagement Programming Intern
Organization Website:
Organization Address: 368 W. North St., Carlisle, PA
The Carlisle Victory Circle (CVC) is affiliated with the Carlisle School District and is a United Way non-profit agency supporting middle school and high school students in the Carlisle District. Our mission is to prepare students for their future through education and character development. We support students’ preparation for the future through tutoring, advising, life-skills programming, and prizes for good grades.
This internship offers students an opportunity to shape the CVC themes of learning and celebrating diversity and civic engagement, how they are explored, and contribute to and/or lead activities to help our students to explore them. The Intern will take a leadership role in projects including managing and evaluating our tutoring program and in identifying, organizing and evaluating our community-service and other civic-engagement projects. The role will provide a valuable experience for students with interests in social justice and related structures and systems of support, education, and community and civic engagement.
Hours: Tuesday and Thursday evenings (6-8pm) at our Clubhouse, attendance at middle or high school meetings as available (schedules vary) and a one-hour weekly intern team meeting (timed to suit interns' schedules)
Hope Station - Programming & Fundraising Intern
Organization Website:
Organization Address: 149 West Penn Street, Carlisle PA 17013
Hope Station promotes economic and social mobility of Black and Brown individuals through advocacy and strategic community partnerships. As a grassroots, Black-led nonprofit, Hope Station is committed to dismantling systemic barriers and empowering Black and Brown individuals to achieve equitable outcomes.
The Program/Fundraising Intern will work directly with the Executive Director, Rogette Harris, to increase authentic connections between community events, programs, and fundraisers. In this role, they will gain experience in planning and executing new community fundraisers, assist in stewardship and engagement strategies with the local community, project management regarding events, workshops, and awareness campaign, and overarching non-profit organizational management.
Hours are flexible.
Moving Circles - Development & Communications Project Assistant
Organization Website:
Organization Address: 211 Tall Oak Drive, New Cumberland, PA 17070 (but this intern could work on site at the CCLA)
Moving Circles empowers people to build bridges, create dialogue, and take actions toward transformative and hopeful futures. The purpose of the organization is inspiring people to take action toward individual and collective social change, network to build welcoming and sustainable communities, and restore the human spirit.
This internship will provide hands-on experience working with a small, grass-roots non-profit. The intern will support, grow, and develop various aspects of Moving Circles operations and capabilities. This will include community outreach, volunteer recruitment, marketing and communications, social media and website development. Moving Circles is launching a newsletter and the Development and Communications Project Assistant will have an integral role in its development and rollout.
Hours are flexible.
Shippensburg Produce & Outreach - Multiple Internship Opportunities, dependent on CEF interest
Organization Website:
Potential Positions: Lead Data Analyst; Public Relations & Outreach Liason; Media & Marketing Lead; Nutrition & Food Insecurity Action Officer
Shippensburg Produce and Outreach (SPO) is a nonprofit food pantry that provides fresh produce and healthy food items to households in the Shippensburg community. SPO is dedicated to creating a welcoming environment and making a positive impact on the lives of individuals and families in the community. The CEF will play a critical role in SPO’s three-year Strategic Plan Implementation.
The overarching role/responsibilities for a CEF at SPO will depend on the CEF’s academic interests and skills balanced with the needs of SPO. SPO CEFs will be afforded the opportunity to build their position/projects within SPO’s defined vision/purpose (under the umbrella of one of SPO’s five strategic goals, yet with the freedom to exercise creativity, critical thinking, and informed, ethical decision-making.
Hours are flexible, but the CEF should plan to be at SPO for some amount of time every Tuesday (food distribution day)
Supportive Partnerships for Youth (SPY) - SPY Historical Preservation & Storytelling Intern
Organization Website:
Organization Address: 149 West Penn Street, Carlisle PA 17013 (at Hope Station)
SPY is an organization dedicated to ensuring all children have access to the resources and relationships needed to help them reach their full potential. In 2026, SPY will be celebrating its 40th Anniversary which is a significant milestone. Over the last 5 years, SPY has had remarkable growth and transformation and now plays a meaningful role in our community. It is clear SPY is here to stay. Unfortunately, there is no clear record of how SPY began or how it progressed from serving 18 students to nearly 200 this year. All our historical files are in boxes without proper order. SPY is proud of its accomplishments over the years and would like to recognize our 40th Anniversary in a celebratory style. As a part of this commemoration, SPY would like to unveil the story of its origins and evolution. The SPY Historical Preservation and Storytelling Intern Fellowship position was designed to help accomplish this.
This intern will conduct research on the establishment of SPY and document the timeline of significant events in our organizations history in a way that is clearly delineated. They will also help to create a public exhibit that memorializes SPY's origins and evolution and appropriately recognizes key stakeholders in its founding and development. This intern will orchestrate the preservation of SPY's historical data and storage at the Cumberland County Historical Society and help plan a celebratory event to honor's SPY's 40th Anniversary.
Hours are flexible.
The J. Sherwood McGinnis, Jr. War, Peace, and Justice Project (WPJP) - Peace-Builder Intern
Organization Website:
Organization Address: 111 S. College St, Carlisle, PA 17013 (across from Landis House)
The J. Sherwood McGinnis, Jr. War, Peace, and Justice Project (WPJP) brings together nationally and internationally recognized experts, practitioners, academics, and interested citizens to address vexing questions about the relationships between war, peace, and conflict through free and open sessions to the public. WPJP seeks to illuminate the tragedy of human conflict; create the full experience of understanding peace, justice, and war as human phenomena; foster a better peace through a deeper understanding of war and its consequences; establish critical dialogue among people of diverse perspectives; and help the citizenry better understand the impact of conflict and the use of force on society, especially on veterans who have served our nation. The humanities play an essential role in this endeavor.
This intern will be an integral part of the WPJP Planning Staff, while also being an active citizen within the Carlisle, and within their own home community, to help foster communities of conscience while becoming advocates working for enduring peace with justice. They will play a significant role in helping to shape future WPJP sessions and new initiatives that are being launched at the intersection of ethics, the arts, and history. In 2025, WPJP plans to open the year with a Quaker art exhibit at the G.B. Stuart History Workshop. This will be the fourth art exhibit that they have offered to the community. Later in the year, they will plan a robust film festival with the theme being the UN International Day of Peace. They also have already begun preliminary planning for a major symposium in spring 2026--all events that this intern will engage in as a “Peacebuilder.”
Hours are flexible, Monday-Friday, 9am-4:30pm
Current & Past Placements
Alliance for Aquatic Resource Monitoring (ALLARM) is 蘑菇视频's community science center. Since 1986, ALLARM has collaborated with PA and NY volunteers and partners on stream monitoring efforts to support local, state, and regional clean water initiatives. ALLARM employs 10-12 蘑菇视频 students as part time watershed coordinators. In addition to helping to conduct community workshops to teach people how to do stream monitoring, watershed coordinators work in several areas: research, lab, stormwater education, data analysis, and communications and outreach.
Learn more about ALLARM at /allarm.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Capital Region has operated under hte belief that inherent in every child is the ability to succeed and thrive in life for more than 30 years. As the largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring network, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the capital Region makes meaningful, monitored matches between adult volunteers ("Bigs") and children ("Littles"), ages 6 though 18, in communities across Cumberland, Dauphin, Lebanon, and Perry Counties.
Learn more about Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Capital Region at .
The Carlisle Area Chamber of Commerce has been serving the Carlisle, Pennsylvania, Area for more than 100 years. Our mission is to serve as a community catalyst that encourages and supports economic growth and stability. We help connect people to what they need to start a business here, grow a business here -- or even move a business to Carlisle. The Chamber plans, hosts, and partners in diverse networking and professional-development events. They also foster dialogue and communication with members and community partners, about how they can better support them. And, the Chamber offers exclusive advertising opportunities to members, that showcase their business.
Learn more about the Carlisle Area Chamber of Commerce at .
Carlisle Arts Learning Center (CALC) serves and enriches the community by encouraging creativity and self-esteem through exploration and appreciation of the visual arts. It does this via classes and workshops, exhibits and participation in community events. Since its founding in January 1992, CALC has offered a variety of courses for children and adults in a number of settings, including the Carlisle YWCA, Carlisle Community Center, Hope Station, One West Penn, and Cumberland Crossings.
Learn more about CALC at .
Carlisle Victory Circle (CVC) programs are designed to teach minority and under-represented middle and high school students in the Carlisle Area School District to dream dreams, to set goals, to work to achieve those goals, to see themselves as necessary contributors to their community, and to see themselves as people who are worthy.
Learn more about Carlisle Victory Circle at .
Central Pennsylvania Conservancy (CPC)鈥痠s a nonprofit, charitable organization with a mission to acquire, preserve, and protect local land and natural resources in South-Central Pennsylvania. Central Pennsylvania Conservancy is an accredited land trust. Active for over 35 years, the organization serves as the local land trust for a 5-county region (Cumberland, Franklin, Perry, Dauphin, Juniata Counties), plus Northern York County. Their vision is to create a local network of permanently protected and preserved lands by fostering a community committed to conservation and acquiring key lands and easements.
Learn more about CPC at .
Central PA Family Support Services鈥痠nstills hope and empowers families and individuals to make positive life changes using diverse programs. Central PA Family Support Services is also the HUB for the Pardon Project of Cumberland County which was created to secure pardons to members of our community who were once convicted of a non-violent crime, completed their sentence, and turned their lives around.
Learn more about CEntral PA Family Support Services at
Community CARES began as a ministry of Grace United Methodist Church in 2004 to provide overnight emergency shelter from November through March to those with nowhere else to go. Shelter was provided in host churches in the Carlisle area and staffed entirely by volunteers. In the first year of service, CARES provided shelter to 45 homeless guests. Since then, the organization has sheltered more than 1,000 homeless in Cumberland and Perry counties.
Learn more about Community CARES at .
Cumberland County Court Appointed Special Advocates Program (CASA) recruits, trains, and supports volunteer advocates for children involved in the child welfare (Children & Youth) court system of Cumberland County. The subject children are typically removed from their parents’ custody due to abuse and neglect concerns and are living in foster homes, group homes, shelters, treatment facilities, etc. Their volunteers focus on advocating for the best interest of the children to the Dependency Court system.
Learn more about CASA at .
Employment Skills Center鈥痟elps individuals become more employable, productive鈥痑nd self-sufficient community members through education and training. The organization hosts English as Second Language courses, computer classes and help with resumes, interviews and other job necessities.鈥疶hey also help organizations become more efficient, safe and productive with Customized Workforce Training designed to deliver foundational skills to incumbent workers.
Learn more about the Employment Skills Center at .
Hope Station seeks to lift up the neighborhood surrounding Memorial Park by tackling the most difficult problems through education, technology, job development and, most importantly, teaching children to become leaders by learning to respect themselves and others. It provides programs such as Kids Cafe, where kids can get healthy snacks after school; Youth Growth Activity (YOGA), where students in 6th - 12th grade do fun and enriching activities after school; HIRE Plus, where adults learn basic job skills to improve their chances of finding work; and many more.
Leadership Cumberland is a nonprofit that works to develop effective leaders for the workplace and community. We do so through our adult and youth community leadership programs. We also host nonprofit trainings, educational webinars, community events, and run an alumni association for past graduates of our programs.
Learn more about Leadership Cumberland at .
New Life Community (NLC) continues to desire to be a primary place of connection and care for our community. During the week hundreds of people come in and out of their building to connect with services, volunteer, or attend NLC ministry centered activities. It is not possible to expand and continue to grow without the partnerships that they have with organizations like 蘑菇视频.
Learn more about New Life Community at .
Professional & Educational Empowerment Center (PEEC) is a computer lab which offers daily drop-in hours for community members to use computers, wifi, phone and printer/fax machines. PEEC’s mission is to expand technological access by creating an inclusive space that connects community members to job readiness training, educational programming, and technical skill-building workshops, and is another resource for connecting social services, including housing and food support, for the Northside community, a low-income neighborhood that is the most racially and ethnically diverse in Carlisle.
Project SHARE’s mission is to reduce food insecurity for neighbors in the greater Carlisle area by offering access to nutritious food, programs, and a support network that promotes self-sufficiency, fosters dignity, and instills hope. Project SHARE of Carlisle is able to provide services to a family residing in the Carlisle area if they fall in the guidelines the Department of Agriculture has set with an income falling below 150% of the federal poverty level. In addition, they run a Farmstand that provides fresh produce to anyone in need in the greater Carlisle area.
Learn more about Project SHARE at .
搁贰础颁贬!鈥�is an after-school program for students in grades 3-12 that鈥痵trives to help students achieve greater academic success through performing arts. The program employs mentoring, tutoring, homework help and role modeling to achieve this goal. They believe that the discipline learned in performing arts can be applied to education, athletics, a healthy lifestyle and gaining relevant and useful life skills. The program鈥痵erves over 100 students each year and provides educational assemblies at schools and other live performances throughout the community.
Learn more about REACH! at .
Safe Harbour provides a continuum of housing services for the homeless of Cumberland County. Their services include an emergency shelter for families and single females who are in need of a secure place to live while getting their lives under control, a bridge housing program for individuals and families in need of longer-term assistance to acquire the skills necessary for independent living and productive lifestyle and single-room-occupancy permanent housing facilities for single individuals that are not yet ready for independent living.
Learn more about Safe Harbour at .
The Cumberland County Historical Society鈥痠s dedicated to collecting, preserving, interpreting, and promoting the rich history of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.
Learn more about the Cumberland County Historical Society at .
The Carlisle Theatre鈥痺as established in 1939 and renovated in 1993, the theatre remains Carlisle's downtown source of entertainment. The Carlisle Regional Performing Arts Center presents musical concerts, performances, films, live theatrical productions, and programming for children and families.
Learn more about the Carlisle Theatre at .
The United Way of Carlisle and Cumberland County's mission is to unite people and resources to build a stronger, healthier Carlisle and Cumberland County. They fight for the health, education, and financial stability of every person in our community. The United Way supports 35 programs and 23 partner agencies. In 2020-2021 (July 1 to June 30), United Way allocated $1,708,129 in programs and services to the community.
Learn more about the United Way of Carlisle and Cumberland Count at .
YMCA Carlisle鈥痺orks to promote personal growth, enhance family values, and provide community service through programs available to all. Programs include health, children and youth development, camping, after-school care鈥痑nd community groups.
Learn more about the Carlisle Family YMCA at .
YWCA Carlisle & Cumberland County operates Sexual Assault/Rape Crisis Services of Cumberland County to support victims of sexual assault and their families. Their Community Impact Department features various youth empowerment programs (like Empower & Equip Programs, After the Bell, Storytellers, Youth Leadership Conference, Martin’s Mission, and more) along with Women’s Empowerment Programs. Their preschool is dedicated to providing quality early childhood education to all families in the community. Racial justice is a critical focus and one of the two mission pillars of the organization, and drives their partnership with Carlisle Hope Station, a local community organization working to empower the Memorial Park neighborhood. YWCA is involved with community outreach, trainings, rallies, panel events and discussions to address racial and social justice issues playing out in our region.
Learn more about the YWCA Carlisle & Cumberland County at .