For Tiffany Block, Service+ program director, work is a delight.
She began working with Service+, a program that matches college students with nonprofits in Butler County. Tiffany commutes to work from the Cincinnati Metropolitan area, where she lives with her husband. She formerly worked for a profit technology college.
She said she loves working with college students. Once she saw the LinkedIn post about an open position, she applied and began her journey within the program at Miami University.
“[I] just hit the ground running,” Block said. “It’s become my dream job.”
Service+ is a part of AmeriCorps, a federal agency for volunteerism and community service. Block said the program pays students a living allowance stipend during their service and once the students meet all requirements, they receive an education award from AmeriCorps.
Block said one of the priority areas for Service + is environmental stewardship. She said members interned with Miami’s natural areas, Miami’s Office of Sustainability and the Institute for the Environment and Sustainability or “the Farm,” which explores sustainable agriculture.
Olivia Herron, Miami’s Director of Sustainability, said the sustainability volunteer opportunities Service+ mainly focus on Miami’s campus but their work in the university’s natural resources impacts Oxford residents.
“Seventeen miles of trails is a lot to keep up with,” Herron said. “It’s mostly families with their dogs [using them]. Students aren’t the ones who are primarily utilizing those, but they are being maintained by Service members.”
Block said members host events in Miami’s natural areas, such as hike-a-thons and honeysuckle clearing days. Members work on replacing bridges or stairs in the trails and local parks.
“[Service+ has] been taking a lot of work on the trails,” Block said.
Service + participated in a waste audit after one of Miami’s home basketball games in partnership with the city of Oxford and Rumpke. Another Service+ initiative is battery recycling. Block said the last pickup was over 4,000 lbs of batteries.
Block said the greatest challenges Service+ faces are limited grant access and staffing. Block said by the end of the year, Service+ will have 75 members. She hired two student workers to alleviate the staffing obstacle.
“I’m pretty much running this [program] by myself,” Block said.
Block said the program also struggles to secure new host sites for volunteers, but recruitment is on the rise.
“This is our third year,” Block said. “Word is out that we exist here at Miami, so I’ve actually had more applicants than I have space for.”
Service+ program aids professional development. Block said students attend life skills events. They learn how to run office machinery and use drills, preparing students for future careers.
“I have been blown away by the professionalism and the development that I’ve seen and the students I’ve seen in these [internship] positions,” Herron said. “[The Office of Sustainability] loved having them in our office.”
