Delaware
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County Executive Meyer announces start of National Health Corps Community Health Fellowship Program
New Castle, DE – New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer announces the launch National Health Corps (NHC): Community Health Fellowship and invites nonprofits and New Castle County residents to learn about the program and apply to become involved. NHC’s mission is to foster healthy communities by connecting those who need it most with health and wellness education, benefits, and services, while developing tomorrow’s compassionate health leaders.
NHC: Community Health Fellowship is an expanded iteration of NHC Delaware, which was founded in Delaware in 2021 with New Castle County COVID Cares Act funds and national direct AmeriCorps funds through the Health Federation of Philadelphia (HFP). AmeriCorps and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)joined forces to launch Public Health AmeriCorps and support the recruitment, training, and development of the next generation of public health leaders who will be ready to respond to the nation’s public health needs.
The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the urgent need to further enhance public health resources across the country. This effort starts with investing in a future workforce to help local communities respond to and recover from COVID-19. NHC: Community Health Fellowship has three main objectives:
- Decrease health disparities through addressing social determinants of health, including underlying structural oppression in communities plagued by histories of racial and economic inequities;
- Provide community members training and experience in community health worker, digital navigator and medical interpreter roles for a culturally representative, well-trained public health workforce
- Improve organizational efficiencies, community engagement and reach of services addressing social determinants of health.
This year, New Castle County will match with ARPA funding and as a charter program of President Biden’s Public Health AmeriCorps, the NHC: Community Health Fellowship program will offer 15 full-time service apprenticeships at nonprofit health organizations, as well as be enrolled into Delaware Technical and Community College’s Community Health Worker Program. Some members, whose host site service include digital health navigation and/or medical interpreter activities, will also take digital health navigation and medical interpreter
NHC Delaware: Community Health Fellowship program welcomes people with all different interests and future goals. The most important quality in an NHC member is a readiness to bring the best they have to offer - their creativity, energy, enthusiasm, and readiness to learn - to serving their communities.
NHC members also need to meet certain eligibility criteria. These include:
- Members must be at least 18 years of age by the start of service
- Members must be U.S. Citizens, U.S. nationals, or lawful permanent residents
- Members must have achieved a high school diploma or GED by the start of service
- Members must be current residents of New Castle County, Delaware
- Members must not have previously served four AmeriCorps State or National terms
Corps Members will commit to35+-hours full time per week and 1,700 hours over the course of 42-52 weeks. They will receive a stipend of $25,500 over the course of their service term (the equivalent of $15 per hour); health, vision and dental insurance; , child-care reimbursement (if needed); transportation reimbursement for commuting to required training days; mental health, financial and life counseling; student loan forbearance with no interest during the service term; and CHW, Digital Health Navigator and Medical Interpreter certificates.
All members will also earn a $6,435 Federal Education Award at the successful completion of their Service Term, which can be widely applied to education and training opportunities.
NHC Delaware: Community Health Fellowship also welcomes inquiries and Host Site Applications from 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations who would like to partner by hosting an NHC Member in a full-time, unique, direct service community health position, where they will apply their training, while contributing to critical unmet needs with your target population, and within your mission.
Like the 2021 pilot NHC program, the NHC: Community Health Fellowship places its AmeriCorps members in local, public health nonprofits to fulfill unique positions. Previous roles have included those such as COVID-19 Responder, Care Coordinator, Case Manager, Health Educator, Outreach Coordinator, and Patient Navigator.
Pilot Program Host Site Organizations Included:
- Christiana Care Healthcare System
- Food Bank of Delaware
- Lutheran Community Services
- Westside Family Healthcare
TO APPLY
To Apply as an AmeriCorps candidate for the full-time positions with local nonprofits, please click here:
Learn More about National Health Corps
Learn about the NHC-DE Community Health Fellowship
Apply to the NHC-DE Community Health Fellowship
To apply as a Host Site Organization, please use these links to provide required information and contact Program Director Tonya Richardson at: tonya.richardson@newcastlede.gov
Why Serve Delaware?
New Castle County is home to the State of Delaware's 2021 pilot expansion of the National Health Corps program.
Unlike its sister sites around the country, NHC Delaware will operate this pilot using federal CARES Act funds, and, therefore member service activities for this pilot will solely focus on ongoing COVID-19 response efforts occurring community-based and community health organizations around the County. Member work will include capacity-building work including roles as Care Coordinators, Health Educators, Case Managers, Patient Navigators and Outreach Coordinators at some of the state’s most well-known and innovative nonprofit organizations, who are already meeting the needs of Delawareans in the throes of the pandemic.
Last winter County Executive Meyer, along with Senator Chris Coons, Senator Tom Carper and Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester announced this new program. Another difference in the NHC-Delaware pilot is that, unlike many AmeriCorps programs around the country and even among the other sites in the National NHC Network, the Delaware program will only accept applications from applicants who are already residents of New Castle County. County Executive Meyer believes that this key difference in application requirements exponentially improves the program’s ability to become a workforce development and career exploration opportunity for New Castle County residents. The other requirements to apply are identical to the National program: that applicants have earned their High School Diploma or GED, and are at least 18 years old.
This is an unique opportunity to contribute to the national, regional and local response to COVID-19's devastating impact on all Americans. It is also an opportunity for New Castle County residents to explore opportunities in community health, health advocacy and many other important roles in the field of public health.
![(From left to right: Lanier Williams [Food Bank of Delaware Driver] Penelope Velasco [NHC Member], and Alfred Mapp, [longtime loyal Food Bank of Delaware volunteer]](/sites/default/files/styles/blog_post_800/public/2022-02/Penelope%20at%20Food%20Bank.jpg?itok=FXpfgQCf)
