Rural Fellows is a unique program designed to connect college students to rural Nebraska communities to give hands-on working experience to students while promoting meaningful change for the communities that make Nebraska so strong.
Each summer since 2013, college students from Nebraska and beyond have spent their summers living and working in rural communities across Nebraska and the Midwest. These students, known as Rural Fellows, complete projects focused on supporting communities make progress toward strategic and specific goals that help the community thrive.
Rural Fellows commonly focus on creating impact in:
> Community, workforce and economic development
> Business development
> Early childhood education
> Community marketing and communications
> Entrepreneurship
> Mental health services
> Inclusive leadership development
> And more!
To better prepare students and communities for the Rural Fellows program experience, all selected student and community fellows receive a three-week interactive and transformational inclusive leadership, team and community development training hosted by diversity and inclusion researcher and consultant, Dr. Helen Fagan, and her team. Additionally, all fellows receive individualized coaching by qualified coaches throughout the summer.
Students and communities are supported through this experience by guidance and a community visit from Rural Prosperity Nebraska (RPN) staff, as well as numerous connections to experts across the NU system. Rural Fellows is partnered with a team of researchers who strive to conduct and develop research in a rural Nebraska community context to better guide how communities plan to grow and develop.
For more information or to apply: https://ruralprosperityne.unl.edu/rural-fellows