Become a TerraCorps Service Site

TerraCorps is a nonprofit organization working at the intersection of land conservation, sustainable farming, and local food systems to build local nonprofit capacity while growing the next generation of emerging leaders committed to making a difference at the community level.

We believe in the power of local organizations to best understand and serve their communities. We also know these same organizations are consistently working with insufficient staff and volunteer capacity to deliver their core interventions at necessary scale.

To respond to this community need, TerraCorps operates as an AmeriCorps program intermediary and administrator, facilitating access to federal resources that are often out of reach for community-based organizations. Each year, we work with our network of 40+ partner organizations in Massachusetts and Rhode Island to recruit a new cohort of up to 52 AmeriCorps service members. Service members are paired with a site supervisor, an experienced professional, who provides them guidance and mentorship while they learn to manage community programs and projects over an 11-month service term.

Service members, partner organizations, and the communities they serve all benefit from the TerraCorps service model. Service members gain professional skillsets, real world experience, and networking opportunities that can help them launch their careers. Partner organizations receive an immediate capacity boost that strengthens their ability to fulfill their missions and improves their sustainability. Communities are the beneficiaries of the improved and expanded services that our partner organizations are able to deliver through their partnership with TerraCorps.

One of the most valued aspects of the TerraCorps service model is that it allows our partners the flexibility to align service members’ activities with local needs and priorities while they serve in one of the five following available roles:

• Land Conservation Coordinator
• Land Stewardship Coordinator
• Community Engagement Coordinator
• Youth Education Coordinator
• Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator

Read more about the five coordinator roles.

Learn about service member benefits.

TerraCorps invites organizations with missions and programs focused on land conservation, sustainable farming, rebuilding local food systems, and other mission synergies to apply to become a Service Site and host one or more service members for an 11-month service term.

To qualify to be a Service Site, organizations must:

• Be a Massachusetts or Rhode Island based 501(c)(3) non-profit community-based organization (or fiscally sponsored by a 501(c)(3), or in Rhode Island exclusively, a municipal land trust (under IRC Section 115); or qusai-public organization such as a conservation district; or the URI Cooperative Extension.
• Have sufficient staff to supervise, train, and mentor a service member, preferably a minimum of one full-time staff member. (Note: We may consider proposals from organizations with a part-time staff member, or a board of director-level equivalent volunteer if they can demonstrate sufficient commitment to support a service member.)
• Provide the service member with professional office space and equipment needs and any special equipment needed to perform their service activities. (Note: This includes a personal computer and internet access. Teleservice or remote service is not permitted.)
• Have liability insurance that covers the service member while performing service at the organization and in the field.
• Have board-adopted nondiscrimination and sexual harassment policies that will be applicable to the service member. (Note: Policy templates are available.)
• Provide a drug-free workplace.
• Have a willingness to make reasonable accommodations for service members with varying abilities.
• Pay Service Site administration fees prior to the service member’s start date.

AmeriCorps service members may not engage in the below activities directly or indirectly by recruiting, training, or managing others for the primary purpose of engaging in one of the said activities. Individuals may exercise their rights as private citizens and may participate in the activities listed below on their initiative, on non-AmeriCorps time, and using non-AmeriCorps funds. Individuals should not wear the AmeriCorps logo while engaging in any of the below activities on their personal time:

1. Attempting to influence legislation.
2. Organizing or engaging in protests, petitions, boycotts, or strikes.
3. Assisting, promoting or deterring union organizing.
4. Impairing existing service contracts for services or collective bargaining agreements.
5. Engaging in partisan political activities or other activities designed to influence the outcome of an election to any public office.
6. Participating in, or endorsing, events or activities that are likely to include advocacy for or against political parties, political platforms, political candidates, proposed legislation, or elected officials.
7. Engaging in religious instruction; conducting worship services; providing instruction as part of a program that includes mandatory religious instruction or worship; constructing or operating facilities devoted to religious instruction or worship; maintaining facilities primarily or inherently devoted to religious instruction or worship; or engaging in any form of religious proselytization.
8. Providing a direct benefit to
   • A business organized for profit;
   • A labor union;
   • A partisan political organization; or
   • A nonprofit organization that fails to comply with the restrictions contained in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 related to engaging in political activities or substantial amount of lobbying except that nothing in these provisions shall be construed to prevent participants from participating in advocacy activities undertaken at their own initiative; and
   • An organization engaged in the religious activities described above in prohibited activity 7, unless AmeriCorps assistance is not used to support the religious activities.
9. Conducting a voter registration drive or using AmeriCorps funds to conduct a voter registration drive.
10. Providing abortion services or referrals for receipt of such services.
11. Any activity prohibited by applicable Executive Order/Memorandum.
12. Such other activities as AmeriCorps may prohibit.

In addition to the above activities, the below activities are also prohibited:

Census Activities

AmeriCorps service members and volunteers associated with AmeriCorps grants may not engage in census activities during service hours. Being a census taker during service hours is categorically prohibited. Census-related activities (e.g., promotion of the Census, education about the importance of the Census) do not align with AmeriCorps State and National objectives. What Members and volunteers do on their own time is up to them, consistent with program policies about outside employment and activities.

Election and Polling Activities

AmeriCorps service members may not provide services for election or polling locations or in support of such activities.

Illegal Activities

AmeriCorps service members may not engage in any activity that is illegal under local, state, or federal law.

Unsafe Activities

AmeriCorps service members may not engage in activities that pose a significant safety risk to others.

Fundraising Activities

AmeriCorps service members may not engage in fundraising or grant writing activities that do not comply with AmeriCorps policy. Note: AmeriCorps service members may fundraise for projects directly related to their service projects and in accordance with AmeriCorps regulations.

If selected to be a Service Site, your organization must:

• Ensure that service member’s projects and activities align with the TerraCorps Mission and Vision Statements.
• Drive robust local recruitment effort, interview, selection, onboarding, and retention processes. (Note: TerraCorps supports all of these activities with marketing and automated systems and processes.)
• Provide a positive and constructive professional atmosphere for service members.
• Educate staff and board directors about AmeriCorps and TerraCorps including service member roles, supervisory structure, and prohibited activities.

The designated Service Site Supervisor at your organization is responsible for:

• Completing mandatory trainings for AmeriCorps site supervisors.
• Enforcing all AmeriCorps policies and prohibited activities in cooperation with TerraCorps.
• Overseeing Service Plan development in collaboration with service member.
• Conducting weekly check-ins with service member.
• Overseeing service member’s AmeriCorps reporting requirements.
• Participating in biannual evaluations and program assessments.
• Reviewing and approving service member timesheets.
• Providing mentorship on service member projects.
• Offering ongoing support for service member professional development.
• Accommodating service member attendance at all mandatory TerraCorps and AmeriCorps trainings and events.

Service Site Administrative Fees

TerraCorps operates in collaboration with AmeriCorps, the Federal Agency, and state service commissions. Our programs are contingent on federal funding that is awarded on a three-year competitive grant cycle and appropriated annually. AmeriCorps funding covers approximately 50% of the total cost to run the TerraCorps program, thus the remaining costs are funded through administrative fees paid by service site partners for each service member they host, and through TerraCorps’ other modest fundraising capabilities. For each service member an organization hosts, the service site pays a fee on a sliding scale based on the size of its annual operating budget (not including one-time capital acquisition costs).

The sliding scale for a 1700-hour service term starts with a base fee of $13,500 which is paid by service sites with the smallest operating budgets. Site partners with larger annual budgets pay the base rate, plus a graduated “capacity premium” that subsidizes the lower fees paid by the smallest site partners.

Regardless of the fee paid, all service site partners receive a significant value-add in the range of $12,000 to $25.000. In this way, being selected to be a TerraCorps service site is akin to receiving a grant aimed at growing your staff capacity. However, instead of receiving cash, you’ll host a TerraCorps service member who will provide your organization full-time dedicated support for an 11-month service term.

Example:

The total annual cost of a 1700-hour service member is $38,145 as follows:

• • $27,750 living stipend
  • $7,395 Segal AmeriCorps Education Award
  • $3,000 in health insurance, payroll taxes, workers comp insurance, and other benefits
• A service site with a $650,000 operating budget pays an admin fee of $15,500
• The value-add to the service site hosting one service member is $22,645 (i.e., $38,145 annual cost of service member – $15,500 admin fee)

For precise details on the service site admin fees in the 2026-27 Service Year, please consult the adjacent sliding scale.

Advanced Deposits

A $500 non-refundable advanced deposit is required to secure EACH service member position awarded to an organization. Advanced deposits are due two weeks from the date Service Sites receive their acceptance email notification. Nonpayment within this timeline may result in service member positions being granted to waitlisted organizations. Advanced deposits are credited towards the Service Site administrative fee.

The application deadline for the 2026-27 service year is now closed. If you are interested in partnering with TerraCorps, please keep us in mind for the 2027-28 service year. We partner with nonprofit organizations in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The service year runs September through July annually.