Greetings from DVN’s Americorps Public Ally!
By: Ashley Powell, Americorps Public Ally, DVN
My name is Ashley Powell and I am the Americorps Public Ally at the Domestic Violence Network. I am incredibly excited to be placed at such a wonderful organization, doing work that I am passionate about! Through this term of service, I am assisting DVN in training services and speaking to youth about healthy relationships, while building more partnerships with organizations that we have yet to reach. When I found out that I got placed (as we call it in Public Allies) at DVN, I literally jumped for joy like a maniac in my apartment, sending my cats running and most likely scaring my neighbors. I was so excited to have the opportunity to be a part of an organization that provides so many needed services to the community. It has been challenging, enlightening, and altogether phenomenal to be apart of a team that is so dedicated to teaching the community about what healthy relationships look like, and trying to create a less violent community.
While I am out in the community, I often receive questions from students and adults about this Americorps program. Many people have heard of Americorps specifically, but not Public Allies. This program is unique because of the support systems provided within the program. Not only do you have an amazing staff to help lead you through the process, but you also work with an entire cohort of Public Allies. Each Ally is placed at a different non-profit organization in the city, where they essentially act as an intern for that non-profit. All Public Allies spend their term of service working with the community on youth development, education, workforce development, environmental issues, arts programming and community health. With that in mind, Allies come together for trainings every Friday, covering a broad range of topics, such as professional development, social justice issues, and leadership. On top of that, we work on a team service project that sends Allies into an Indianapolis Neighborhood to connect with residents and form a project using Asset Based Community Development skills.
Ashley’s Public Allies Cohort
While I have been a part of Public Allies, I have developed close relationships with my cohort. It is amazing to have a whole group of people that you see every week that you can build relationships with. I feel as if I have one huge family to fall back on if I need support. Public Allies, so far, has been one of the most unique challenges I have put myself through. It’s amazing the amount of growth you can experience in just ten months (and I am only in month five!). I feel incredibly fortunate that I have gained the experience and knowledge from both the Public Allies program, and through this incredibly inspirational team here at Domestic Violence Network.
For more information about the Public Allies program visit: www.publicallies.org or send me an email at apowell@dvnconnect.org.
Written by Ashley Powell, DVN’s Americorps Public Ally