The Chaffee Housing Trust (CHT) is a rural nonprofit affordable housing developer that works with low-income households to purchase a home using the Community Land Trust (CLT) model, as well a providing affordable rentals for potential homeowners in transition. The CHT works
with over 100 low-income clients per year from the first contact through qualification, credit counseling, mortgage application, home purchase, and post-purchase counseling. Client services are offered in both English and Spanish, with fully bilingual native Spanish speaking HUD Certified Housing Counseling staff. The CHT develops affordable homes directly through projects owned and managed by the CHT, or through partnerships with developers and other agencies. The CHT works collaboratively with other housing agencies, local government, employers, and stakeholders to partner on projects and services.

The CHT is in a growth stage as demand for affordable homes grows, and opportunities increase. To scale operations, additional capacity building is needed to set the organization up for immediate and future success.
The CHT serves both Chaffee and Lake Counties. In Lake County, one-third of residents identify as Hispanic with many mono-lingual or primarily Spanish speaking residents. Many live in inadequate housing in mobile-home parks outside of the City of Leadville away from schools,
services and employment, paying high lot rents. To serve these clients equitably, the CHT has created the Promotore Program.

The Promotores Program expands CHT’s capacity in client services including hiring and training bilingual locals, or Promotores, so they can learn how to help other residents review their financials, work on budgeting, and give advice on repairing their credit. This program is
modeled after the use of Promotores in Latin America in the delivery of healthcare. Talking about finances can be very sensitive. Experience has shown that to effectively serve clients, trust must be established. CHT wants to utilize people who already have a common understanding of the community and its residents and give them tools and training that will benefit themselves and their fellow community members, as well as extend our reach to potential clients.

To establish the Promotore Program, the CHT is seeking Interns and/or Americorps VISTA’s to build capacity by developing the program in an iterative fashion. This includes working with staff to develop and refine training plans and materials, recruit Promotore Candidates, and
accompany them through the process, continuously measuring effectiveness and refining the program. In parallel, financial education workshops are being held regularly to broaden reach, provide community education, and develop readiness for ownership. Additionally, Interns and/or Americorps VISTA’s will work on developing or improving systems
for information tracking for clients, projects, and financial management and projection.

There are two ways to engage candidates for these positions:
Americorps VISTA’s have worked for the CHT in both Chaffee and Lake Counties. This program is the most accessible way for those interested in getting into the affordable housing field as it provides a monthly stipend (+/- $900/mo.), health insurance, and a post-service education award of $7,000. The CHT can provide housing in Buena Vista.

The CHT has provided unpaid Internships to college students. Similar to VISTA’s, interns would be eligible for stipends and housing, but currently there is no mechanism to provide health insurance.
Intern/VISTA Duties: Member will work with staff to:
• Grow current Homeownership Program client services activity including outreach, education, information tracking, virtual tools, and process & outcome evaluation;
• Develop Promotores program capacity including partnerships with similar or complimentary local and regional agencies, developing and implementing training processes, tools for use in the field, and Promotore competency;
• Improve and expand social media capacity in English & Spanish, as well as traditional marketing and messaging to improve communications with potential clients, partners, funders, stakeholders and supporters.
• Adoption and implementation of Salesforce-based information management system (HomeKeeper) to track and manage housing stock and clients;
• Attain HUD certification as a housing counseling agency;
• Adoption and implementation of project management system (Microsoft Project) to manage current projects and support Project Managers;
• Assist with project development and support, working with local government, housing agencies, and citizen advisory groups.
Skills & Capacities – Candidates should possess or be willing to learn/improve their skills in:
• Microsoft Office experience (Word, Excel, OneNote, Powerpoint)
• Mailchimp, Wix, Facebook, Instagram
• Salesforce-based software
• Public speaking including teaching, training, and presentations
• Ability to communicate effectively orally in group settings and one-on-one
• Effective writing skills including persuasive argumentation and narrative reporting
• Desire to grow the organization to positively impact the community it serves
• Desire to develop novel programs, pilot practices, measure performance, and apply organizational learning to revise and improve processes
• Ability to work with and support staff, partners, and clients in a team setting and autonomously, including a flexible and self-paced schedule
• Motivation to take on challenges with a focus on immediate steps in pursuit of higher goals and aspirations

This position will set up the Intern/VISTA for further employment in the affordable housing field as there is high demand for individuals with the above capacities and experience. The CHT is well established in the field locally and regionally, with numerous partners and a cohort of
colleagues who support upcoming professionals and can provide new opportunities

Interested candidates should contact: Read McCulloch, Executive Director
(719) 239-1199, read@chaffeehousing.org