Front Porch Forum

Michael Wood-Lewis had the pleasure of meeting with Professor Diana Kyser's Entrepreneurial Leadership class at the University of Vermont Grossman School of Business last night. Students were well prepared with questions, leading to a lively discussion. Special shout out to the student who uses FPF routinely to secure jobs, supporting their education!

Each week, Front Porch Forum selects one posting to share across all the Forums. It's called the "Best of FPF" series and it's meant to inspire members to bring their own voices to their Front Porch Forums. They are selected for their humor, storytelling, or community-building. Postings are shared with permission by the original author. Here's this week's: Ann took solace in a lovely winter scene and shared it on the South Hero Forum. We thought it was well worth a share: "To whoever was playing ice hockey alone at 5 pm today (Sunday) -- pretty far out, halfway between Apple Island Marina and Paradise Bay -- thank you. It was beautiful to watch and lifted my mood."

“I was really pleased to see that the top vote-getter of all of the next step recommendations is more community conversations,” Sarah Copeland Hanzas said. “People are yearning for ways to connect across their community, whether that’s meeting your neighbors or just even connecting with people who you may have nothing in common with.” https://lnkd.in/eAtmJP9J Thanks, VTDigger for covering the important topic of civic health!

Over half of all Vermonters will qualify for free tuition at Community College of Vermont. If your family income is less than $75,000, and you don't already have a bachelor's degree, this program is for you! Spring semester classes start next week. Learn more in this interview clip with Scott Giles, VSAC President and CEO. vsac.org/802Opportunity

Front Porch Forum is seeking two part-time Marketing Interns for the summer! Do you love Vermont? Are you great at interacting with the public? Are you a fan of the community-building work of Front Porch Forum? This summer internship may be just right for you! Read here to learn about this part-time, paid summer opportunity to grow Front Porch Forum through in-person engagements at festivals and farmers' markets. https://lnkd.in/gkhcdzgu #vermont #summerintern #marketing #summerjob #community #college

We appreciate being highlighted in this 2024 report from Center for Media Engagement - The University of Texas at Austin. Fostering civic engagement and building community isn't new - but ever harder to accomplish. We're so grateful to #vermonters for grabbing hold of the experience and tending to their neighbors each day on FPF. https://lnkd.in/esFF_R9Z

We're grateful to the Boston Globe Media and Aidan Ryan for helping to tell Front Porch Forum's story. This "model of civility" is only possible with our 240,000 members. Thank you! (Can't access? Find the article on our "News Page." https://lnkd.in/eFgq-K_U) https://lnkd.in/eGK4RF-b

Be like Gumbo this holiday season - when you see the United States Postal Service delivery human. The data is clear … … they need a lot of support (and dare I say love). One estimate I saw said, 200 million packages *per week* through Christmas will be delivered. The rush starts the week of December 10th, but maybe our gratitude should start earlier. I grew up in Rural America and now I’m raising my son here. Things have changed so much. We used to joke that trends took 5 years to make it to us in the 80’s and 90’s. Today - we have as much access to things as someone who lives down the street from Target. As a Media Expert in Rural America - one thing has become so clear to me in the last six months: Telling the stories that amplify what is so special about living rural will strengthen our workforce, our businesses, our communities, our schools, and our states.

Over 3,000 nonprofits in Vermont use Front Porch Forum as a way to connect with their community - recruiting volunteers, announcing events, and supporting Vermonters. We encourage you to celebrate #GivingTuesday with a donation or appreciation of these organizations that make such a difference locally. Front Porch Forum invites you to support our work to keep this community service accessible in every town across the state. It is our mission to help neighbors connect! https://lnkd.in/ekK_-c2z Thanks!

Enjoy a little "How I Built This" listen about Front Porch Forum thanks to David Goodman at VTDigger. Learn something new about how FPF started, navigating tricky conversations, and the importance of social capital. https://lnkd.in/ejWcB8je