Pictured from Left to Right: Samantha Lukasiewicz (Manager at Americorps), Bobby Tillet (Director of Member Services, The Corps Network), Wendy Stout, PhD (Director of the Virginia Tech Coastal Collaborator Center), and Alexander Vanik (Program Development Officer at Serve Virginia).
The Virginia Tech Coastal Collaborator (VTCC) welcomed approximately 75 participants to Fort Monroe on July 29 for a symposium introducing the region’s newest pathway into the coastal workforce: Virginia Coast Corps.
The Virginia Coast Corps is a new Virginia Cooperative Extension workforce program developed by Virginia Tech Coastal Collaborator in partnership with The Corps Network, Serve Virginia and Americorps. It will enroll students, young adults, and veterans in paid, hands-on service conservation and resilience work – restoring coastal ecosystems, building living shorelines, maintaining public recreation access, and responding to disaster impacts – while building a skilled pipeline into Coastal Virginia’s growing conservation and resilience economy. The program is funded by a planning grant from The Corps Network and an implementation grant from Serve Virginia/Americorps, and the first cohort is set to launch in 2026.
Held against the backdrop of Fort Monroe National Monument’s waterfront, the symposium brought together local and state government leaders, nonprofit partners, academia collaborators, prospective host sites and prospective corps members to preview the program’s structure — five six month (900 hour) and ten summer (250 hour) placement opportunities for members serving with coastal employers — and the workforce outcomes it’s designed to deliver: industry-recognized credentials, hands-on field experience with conservation and resilience employers, career mentorship, and potentially a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award scholarship award upon completion. Unlike an internship, which is typically short-term and career-exploratory, a CVCRC term is a full commitment to service — members are placed directly with a host organization, taking on real conservation and resilience work in coastal communities.
Symposium Attendees heard from Serve Virginia about the power of service and volunteerism
to spark change, strengthen lives, and produce lasting impacts for communities throughout Virginia.
The program will be led by VTCC Director, Dr. Wendy Stout in collaboration with Director of Student Success, Jess Hoopengardner of the College of Science who will oversee student engagement and recruitment for the program and local extension agents who serve coastal Virginia communities. “Coastal resilience and conservation are among the most pressing challenges facing our Virginia coastal communities,” said Dr. Wendy Stout, VTCC Director. “That’s why we’re training the workforce that will solve them. This is what bringing Virginia Tech’s capacity to the coast looks like in practice — preparing students to solve the coastal issues of tomorrow.”
The CVCRC advances VTCC’s broader mission of bringing the full capacity of Virginia Tech to coastal systems and the communities that depend on them. The VTCC is supported by Fralin Life Sciences Institute and Virginia Cooperative Extension connects Virginia Tech’s interdisciplinary research and Extension expertise with coastal stakeholders across the Commonwealth.
Fort Monroe offered a fitting setting for the symposium: a waterfront site with direct public access and space to convene the region’s coastal resilience partners for future programming.
Symposium Attendees were treated to a VIP tour of Historic Fort Monroe
Interested students are encouraged to apply for the first CVCRC cohort launching in Spring 2027. Members will earn a living stipend, gain hands-on experience in coastal conservation and resilience work, earn industry credentials and potentially receive an AmeriCorps Segal Education Award upon completion – all while building the skills and credentials needed for a career on the coast. To learn more or apply, email wstout@vt.edu.