THE PUBLIC & SCHOOL PARTNERSHIP
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School-Based VISTAs & Sites
Community-Based VISTAs & Sites
 
 

PUBLIC & SCHOOL PARTNERSHIP MAIN OFFICE

Logan, UT – Utah State University
​The PSP office provides support and training to PSP VISTA members and Site Supervisors. The main office is in charge of all hiring and budgeting, and it also coordinates national days of service events.
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Director

Mark Larese-Casanova

Responsibilities: As the PSP Project Director, Mark oversees grant writing and budgeting, reporting, placements and partnerships, university and federal processes, employee training and supervision, and other responsibilities relate to effectively managing a nonprofit organization. 

Bio: Mark is originally from Connecticut and received Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Wildlife Conservation and Management from the University of Connecticut.  He began his career as a seasonal intern for the U.S. Forest Service where he learned the value of service to communities and agencies. Since 2003, Mark has devoted his career at Utah State University to developing partnerships with non-profit organizations and state and federal agencies to build educational capacity. He developed, taught, and directed several education programs from multidisciplinary K-12 field trip programs to statewide training program for adults.  Through these programs, Mark has trained tens of thousands of youth and thousands of adults.  Utah Master Naturalist, Mark's flagship program, trained over a hundred volunteer naturalists, Americorps members, K-12 teachers, and agency professionals every year.  To further build educational capacity in his field, Mark has shared his experience directing and evaluating programs through professional presentations, fact sheets, and peer-reviewed publications.​
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Program Coordinator

Aubrey Call

Responsibilities: Aubrey coordinates many of the functions that help PSP run as a VISTA project, including: supporting sites and VISTAs, onboarding VISTA members, exiting VISTA members, navigating university and federal processes and systems, VAD development, VISTA recognition, reporting and time card intake and tracking, and conducting site visits. Aubrey is also a Site Supervisor for one of PSP's VISTA Leaders. 

Bio: Aubrey served as an AmeriCorps VISTA member with PSP from at Cache High School and she is excited to be a part of this program again. She loves being a part of something where she knows she is making a difference. With AmeriCorps VISTA, she is able to leave work knowing she is helping in some way. Aubrey enjoys spending time with her friends and family and playing the guitar when she has some free time. She truly believes, “Life is better when you’re laughing.”
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VISTA Leader

Lindsey Burbank-Pete

Responsibilities: The VISTA Leader contributes to the work of PSP office team by serving as a liaison between the VISTA Members and the PSP administrative team. The VISTA Leaders serve as advocates for VISTA members, supports them in their service endeavors, guide them through various systems, and engage in other tasks to ensure VISTA members have a successful and satisfying service term.
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Bio: Lynn is originally from the Navajo Nation, specifically from Many Farms, Arizona. She was born and raised on the Navajo Reservation all her life, so her Dine' (Navajo) roots and cultural background has shaped her to be the person she is today. She is the eldest child of four, the first grandchild to earn a college degree and comes from a family of ranch hands. She attended Dine' College for quite a while, then transitioned to USU- Blanding where she graduated in 2019. Just recently, she completed her VISTA term in February 2023 and is now back as one of your VISTA Leaders.
For fun, she likes to try new foods and cook for friends and family by introducing new recipes or sharing some of her native foods. At times, she and her husband enjoy traveling, visiting new places, and capturing photos of nature or wildlife. There's so much more about her, but she'd love to become coworkers & friends by getting some SWIG, Pollo Azteca, or maybe letting her show you how to make fry bread.
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Event Coordinator

Tina Peralez

Responsibilities: The Event Coordinator supports the PSP office and VISTA members by coordinating service projects, quarterly conferences, recognition ceremonies, and other events. The Event Coordinator also assists with community and social media outreach.

Bio: ​Tina was born and raised in south Texas and received her degree in Psychology from Utah State University with an emphasis in Sociology. With a strong passion for education, she worked as an AmeriCorps member serving lower social-economic status schools during her time at USU. After graduation, she wanted to continue to serve her community and became an AmeriCorps VISTA. During her free time, she loves to express her creativity through playing guitar, baking and painting. Tina's life passion is to spread Mental Health Advocacy and Awareness.​
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VISTA Leader

Carole Justice

Responsibilities: The VISTA Leader contributes to the work of PSP office team by serving as a liaison between the VISTA Members and the PSP administrative team. The VISTA Leaders serve as advocates for VISTA members, supports them in their service endeavors, guide them through various systems, and engage in other tasks to ensure VISTA members have a successful and satisfying service term.
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Bio: Carole is one of PSP’s VISTA Leaders. Carole first served as a VISTA as part of a University Year for Action program while earning her Bachelor’s degree in Social Work. Later, she received a Bachelor’s degree in Education, a Master’s degree in Educational Administration, and a Juris Doctor degree-Law. Carole utilized the skills and training she received during her first VISTA year throughout her career that spanned the fields of education, health care, justice systems, and nonprofit management. Aware of the benefits of national service, Carole created a number of AmeriCorps and VISTA programs for schools, community nonprofits and tribal governments in Washington State, in Wyoming and for the Wind River Indian Reservation where she performed work for twenty-seven years.
Carole’s son is a USU Aggie (Class of 2019). His studies there brought her to the beautiful Cache Valley where she enjoys the mountains, music, flowers, trees, and Tai Chi at the Cache Valley Senior Center.
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SCHOOL-BASED AMERICORPS VISTA MEMBERS & SITES

Cache County, UT – Cache County School District Schools
​VISTA members at PSP's school-based sites engage in various service activities, ranging from securing food and other basic needs resources for students, to coordinating grade- and attendance-tracking systems, to developing systemic interventions to support students and their families, and much more!
 
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Mountain Crest High School

Sienna Williams 

Bio: Sienna grew up in northern Utah and is very excited to be doing her year of VISTA service at the same high school that she attended as a teenager. She graduated from Southern Utah University with Bachelor’s degrees in Sociology and Family Life & Human Development. While in college she discovered her passion for learning about, fighting against, and trying to create solutions for social issues. She is excited for this VISTA experience to give her a chance to connect with the community and to help make a difference to the people living in it. In her free time, she loves to play instruments, create art, watch funny movies, and go have a beach day at the lake. 
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Logan High School

Ta'Mariah Jenkins 

Bio: Born in Anchorage, Alaska Ta'Mariah Jenkins is an individual who continually strives to conduct a high level of involvement for herself as a Utah State University student and to her peers She believes that education is a privilege and an opportunity that must be taken full advantage of! Since her college career began, she has been in over 10+ USU-affiliated organizations, and 5+ state of Utah programs, and loves working within the community. Her favorite quote is " Without commitment, you'll never start. Without consistency, you'll never finish - Denzel Washington. Ta'Mariah's goal in the future is to obtain her master's in Political Science. She is looking for a career in education on a government level or working in a corporate position at a company. Some things she enjoys are reading, fishing, and working towards growth for herself and others.
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Bridger Elementary School

Aubree Chase

Bio: Aubrey is someone who loves to be outdoors all year long. She loves to snowshoe, hike, kayak, and go hunting with her dog and husband. She is an alumni from Southern Utah University with a Bachelor degree in Psychology. She loves working with kids and plans to continue her education in school psychology. 
 

Community-Based VISTA Members & Sites​

Northern Utah -- Multiple placement sites
PSP's community-based VISTA members serve in non-profit organizations across northern Utah. These VISTAs focus on a wide variety of service activities. They ensure the sustainability of organizations and programs; recruit, train, and coordinate volunteers; secure funding and partnerships; develop new and improve upon existing programs; increase outreach and awareness; develop and implement new programs; plan and implement annual events; and much more! 

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Cache Employment & Training Center (CETC)

Austin Draper 

Bio: Austin Draper is a Utah native, who has been given so much by his community and wishes to give back. He writes poetry, hikes, and reads on occasion.​
​CETC website
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Stokes Nature Center

Alex Palmer 

Bio: Alex served a 6 month term with Utah Conservation Corps and wanted to continue serving through Americorps. Their favorite project was working in the Grand Teton National Park collecting and planting native seeds. Originally from Idaho, Alex could not live without the mountains. They grew up camping and visiting national parks with family. In their free time they can be found hiking all over the valley.​
Stokes Nature Center website
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Utah Assistive Technology Program (UATP)

Melinda Thornton

Bio: ​​Melinda is a returning AmeriCorps member, though she is new to the AmeriCorps VISTA program. A decade ago, she served 2 years with Salt Lake County's National program at Y.W.C.A. She has a Bachelor's and Masters of Social Work and loves working with people. In Melinda's spare time, she loves playing with her service dog,  Raven (see cute picture above). She can’t wait to meet any and all of her fellow PSP VISTAs!
​UATP website
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USU Education Outreach

Zoe Hill

Bio: Zoe is a driven and compassionate individual from Salt Lake City, Utah. She is currently pursuing a bachelor's degree in Psychology with a minor in Human Resource Management at Utah Valley University. With a strong desire to make a positive impact on society, she has gained experience working in non-profit organizations and collaborating with a diverse group of individuals. In her free time, she enjoys attending concerts, spending quality time with friends and family, and expressing her creativity through crocheting and cross-stitching.
USU Ed Outreach website
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Common Ground Outdoor Adventures

Anna Turner

Bio: Anna Turner is 23, and was born in North Carolina. She enjoys swimming, reading, and dog training. Her passion lies in advocating for persons with disabilities especially when it comes to workplace accommodations. Anna now lives in Logan with her family and is going to school majoring in Psychology with minors in both Social Work and Disability Studies. Together, with her service dog Vixen, Anna is looking forward to creating relationships that will last a lifetime.
​​Common Ground website
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Utah Assistive Technology Program (UATP)

Kenner Mecham 

Bio: Kenner is 23 years old. He is from a small town in northern Utah. Kenner is going back to school to become a computer engineer. He enjoys working with his hands and with computers. He also enjoys gaming on his pc and building pcs. His dream job is designing and building technology for making life easier. Kenner enjoys working for AmeriCorps and looks forward to a great year here.
​UATP website
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Zootah

Christopher Dalton

Bio: This is Christophers second year as a VISTA member and he is excited to start his new VISTA role at Zootah!
Zootah website
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Jump the Moon

Haleigh Hill

Bio: Haleigh likes playing story-based video games in her free time, especially if they have a killer soundtrack. Her favorite bands/music artists at the moment are Half Alive and mxmtoon!
Jump the Moon website
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Little Lambs Foundation for Kids

Rebecca Ellis 

Bio: Rebecca is one of the VISTAs working at Little Lambs Foundation. In her previous life (a.k.a pre-motherhood), she was a Mortgage Loan Officer. She is very excited to be returning to the workforce via being a VISTA with Little Lambs Foundation. She is grateful she can be part of this phenomenal organization and  serve the community here in Cache Valley. She was born in Nevada, lived in Wyoming, then moved to Utah when she was 11. She has lived in Cache Valley on and off since she was 14. She claims Cache Valley as her home as that is where she has raised her two children, Ethan and Elizabeth, for the past 12+ years. They love to play throughout this amazing community, and they take full advantage of all the community events this great valley has to offer. Plus, she loves to listen to audiobooks and watch movies.
​Little Lambs website
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The Family Place Utah

Taylor Erickson

Bio: Taylor was born and raised here in Cache Valley. Attending one of the high schools here in the valley she volunteered with the school as a stagehand. This progressed to her becoming the stage manager and quickly after the light manager for productions and events that took place at the high school. Before graduating she was able to get Certified as a Nursing Assistant. She used this on and off for 5 years gaining experience within the medical field. This is where she found her passion for serving others. In her spare time Taylor likes to go camping and dance around the house with her son
The Family Place Utah website
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Public & School Partnership
(435) 797-0633
pspvista.ut@gmail.com
Located in the USU IDRPP Building:
6505 Old Main Hill
Logan, UT 84322-6505
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The Public & School Partnership is housed in the Utah State University Institute for Disability Research, Policy & Practice
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  • About
    • Our Team
    • Calendar of Events
    • Other Ways to Get Involved >
      • Interest Survey
      • Smith's Inspiring Donations
  • AMERICORPS VISTA
    • Current Openings
    • Reporting
    • Training Resources
    • VISTA Member Recognition
    • Host a VISTA Member
  • Newsletters