{"id":1488,"date":"2021-01-29T16:09:18","date_gmt":"2021-01-29T16:09:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.augsburg.edu\/riversidehub\/?page_id=1488"},"modified":"2026-08-05T18:05:05","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T18:05:05","slug":"community-partner-cohort","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.augsburg.edu\/riversidehub\/community-partner-cohort\/","title":{"rendered":"Community Partner Cohort"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-1210 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.augsburg.edu\/riversidehub\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/122\/2019\/06\/Proclamation-Photo_Bethany-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.augsburg.edu\/riversidehub\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/122\/2019\/06\/Proclamation-Photo_Bethany-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.augsburg.edu\/riversidehub\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/122\/2019\/06\/Proclamation-Photo_Bethany.jpg 720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/>Connecting Twin Cities congregations, community partners, and 91成人 students together in the work of mending neighborhoods. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You and your partner organization will spend 9 months building trust, learning together, discerning direction and designing collaborative ways to support thriving in your neighborhood through relational and financial investments. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After the cohort concludes, RIH will work to partner you and your community partner with an Augsburg student intern 10 to 12 hours a week. The community partner will be the internship site while the congregation will fund and supervise the position.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Who: <\/strong>Congregations with at least one established community partnership who want to<br \/>\ninvest relationally and financially in that relationship by co-designing an internship<br \/>\nfor an Augsburg student.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Where: <\/strong>A minimum of 3 in-person meetings and 3\u20134 Zoom sessions (Jan\u2013Jul 2027), plus ongoing in-person and virtual support sessions (Sep 2027\u2013May 2029).<\/p>\n<p><strong>When: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>October 9 &#8211; 11, 2026: Ecosystem Mapping Retreat<\/li>\n<li>January 2027 &#8211; July 2027: Relationship &amp; internship development<\/li>\n<li>September 2027 &#8211; May 2029: Student Internships<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>How:\u00a0<\/strong>Congregations, community partners, and 91成人 come together to co-design two-year Augsburg student internship to deepen partnerships and\u00a0meaningful community change.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><strong>What RIH provides:\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>RIH facilitates work with churches and community partner organizations to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Build trust, learn together, discern direction, and design a two-year internship focused on the mending<br \/>\nwork you want to do in your community.<\/li>\n<li>Place an Augsburg student intern with your community partner.<\/li>\n<li>Provide ongoing support for the church and community partner relationship.<\/li>\n<li>Equip church leaders with coaching and problem-solving skills for internship supervision.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Augsburg student interns stay with you for two years (Fall 2027\u2013Spring 2029), <\/strong>working during the academic year: September\u2013December and February\u2013May.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>What your congregation provides:<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>As a church, you will provide:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Internship supervision and oversight<\/strong> \u2014 for the work you and your partner organization plan together.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Internship funding<\/strong>, which:\n<ul>\n<li>Matches federal student work-study pay at $15.97\/hour (about $6,132 per year at 12 hours\/week).<\/li>\n<li>Represents a $12,000 commitment over two full years.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">This internship is a new way for congregations to meaningfully support their community partner through investments of both money and time \u2014 and to support and invest in young adult leaders.<\/p>\n<h4>Internship funding at a glance<\/h4>\n<p><strong>Pay rate:<\/strong> matches federal student work-study at $15.97 \/ hour.<br \/>\n<strong>Annual cost:<\/strong> about $6,132 per year for an intern working 12 hours \/ week.<br \/>\n<strong>Two-year commitment:<\/strong> $12,500 distributed across two years.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>About Augsburg student interns:\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Every student intern is part of the Bonner Community Leaders (BCL) program, part of the nationally<br \/>\nrecognized Bonner Foundation network. BCL empowers Augsburg students through civic and<br \/>\ncommunity-based work. Across the two- to four-year program, students engage in meaningful paid<br \/>\ninternships with community partners (10\u201312 hours per week), focusing on collaborative, co-creative<br \/>\nprojects. BCL serves first-generation college students who want to build deep relationships with a cohort of justice-minded peers and staff who support them throughout their academic journey.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Expenses:\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>$500 &#8211; October 9-11 Retreat: $500 for a team of 3 from your congregation (additional team members as capacity allows). Covers camp lodging for 2 nights and meals for 3 days.<\/li>\n<li>$5,000 &#8211; Relationship &amp; Program Development<\/li>\n<li>$12,500 &#8211; Internship Funding. Distributed September 2027 through Spring 2029<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If financial cost is the primary barrier to considering a partnership with RIH, please reach out to us. Fees are not intended to be prohibitive, but to help support the sustainability of this work by supplementing the costs of offering these programs.<\/p>\n<h2><b>Frequently Asked Questions:<\/b><\/h2>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What dates should interested congregations be aware of?<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">July 1 &#8211; Fall Retreat Registration Opens (online)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">August 18 &#8211; Fall Retreat Sign-up Deadline<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Oct 9 &#8211; 11 &#8211; RIH Fall Retreat at Camp Friendship in Annandale, MN<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nov 15 &#8211; Community Partner Cohort Registration deadline<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">January 2027 &#8211; August 2027 &#8211; Community Partnership Cohort begins<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What is happening at the fall retreat?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At our fall retreat we will map the ecosystem of our neighborhoods, locate ourselves, our churches, and our next right work by understanding how our congregations fit into our neighborhood ecosystem and where God is calling us. At the end of the retreat, congregations will discern next steps, including joining the Community Partner Cohort.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Congregations interested in the retreat should recruit 3 people to attend. Room for additional team members may be available depending on interest and availability of spots at the camp. Some congregational teams may also consider inviting a community partner to be a part of their team at the retreat.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Community Partner Cohort mentioned hosting a student intern from Augsburg. What is involved with that opportunity?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The nine month cohort experience launching in January 2027 aims at strengthening the collaboration between a congregation and community partner and provides training and support towards the development of a student internship opportunity.\u00a0 After completing the cohort, congregations and their community partners would be prepared to host a 10-12 hours\/week Augsburg student intern beginning in the fall of 2027 and through the following two academic years. The community partner will be the internship site while the congregation will fund and supervise the position. RIH would continue to provide support to your team through this process. Congregations would be asked to make a financial commitment of $12,000-15,000 distributed over two years to support student compensation. The internship will be a new way for congregations to meaningfully support their community partner through investing funds and time. It will also be a way for congregations to support and invest in young adult leaders and become a critical part of the Augsburg teaching and learning community.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Why does programming look different this year?\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">RIH is rooted in a belief that <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">relationships are everything<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. We are also shaped by a belief that <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">context always matters.<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Our relationships and our context continue to be our greatest teachers in directing how RIH best stewards its gifts and resources for the mending of the universe &#8211; or our little corner of it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 9 years, our relationships and context have taught us a lot. RIH has worked to respond faithfully. The big ideas that launched this work have nurtured a growing community of practice of congregations and community leaders. These like-hearted folks are also working to root themselves in relationships within their context in ways that love neighbors and help neighborhoods flourish.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For many years we told partner churches &#8211; <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">trust the process. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Eventually it became clearer that what we really need to do is <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">trust the relationship. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Relationship is the location for love in action. And when we can grasp the gift of a highly interconnected web of relationships that embody God\u2019s creation, we can get closer to cultivating a way of being community that more closely fosters God\u2019s desire for us all.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Our Twin Cities community has a fresh imagination and lived experiences that back up this truth. Neighbors loving neighbors matters. Metro Surge reminded us that love is a verb and through our networks of relationships this love can stand up to the most powerful and exploitative threats to our mutual thriving. While the surge has ended, the impact and ongoing need remains for embodied \u201clove in action\u201d kind of neighbors, faith communities, schools, businesses, local leaders, institutions and more to stay rooted in relationship and explore ways we can keep showing up to contribute our part to a vision of flourishing and an experience of belonging.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All of this is reshaping how we&#8217;ll learn together in this next round. For years, &#8220;trust the process&#8221; looked like a single anchor program that ran for two years \u2014 formative for those who could commit, but it left little room for new people to join partway through, asked a great deal of our staff, and simply wasn&#8217;t feasible for many. Trusting the relationship asks something different of us: to meet congregations and leaders where they actually are. So we&#8217;ve built a more nimble infrastructure \u2014 small, medium, and large pathways, with more on-ramps into the deep neighbor work that shapes RIH and more focused learning along the way informed by important learnings from our Twin Cities context. The invitation hasn&#8217;t changed. The doors into it are now many.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What is the Riverside Innovation Hub and why is it part of 91成人?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The mission of 91成人 is centered on educating students to be informed citizens, thoughtful stewards, critical thinkers, and responsible leaders. It is guided by the faith and values of the Lutheran Church while also being deeply shaped by its urban and global contexts. An Augsburg education aims to engage its students in exploring the gifts that come from their own identity and passions, alongside an imagination for mutual thriving &#8211; their own thriving and the thriving of the communities they are part of.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Informed by Augsburg&#8217;s mission and shaped by the same vision of mutual thriving, the Riverside Innovation Hub has spent the past nine years educating and accompanying non-traditional Augsburg students &#8211; clergy, lay leaders, and community leaders across the Twin Cities and nationally. The Riverside Innovation Hub exists to accompany, equip, and activate people in loving their neighbors better &#8211; relationally, interdependently, and collaboratively &#8211; toward the mending of the world. This work is rooted in a belief that relationships are everything.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As part of Augsburg\u2019s Christensen Center for Vocation, RIH builds bridges for relationship and learning between churches, neighborhoods, Augsburg students, faculty and staff and other like-hearted collaborators who care about loving neighbors and mending our world. Congregations and leaders who partner with the Riverside Innovation Hub become a valuable part of the broader teaching and learning community of 91成人.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Connecting Twin Cities congregations, community partners, and 91成人 students together in the work of mending neighborhoods. 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