Transform Mid-Atlantic

At Transform Mid-Atlantic, we are dedicated to our mission of Engaging Campuses in Communities. This week, we’re excited to highlight Ronald Tavares, a TMA AmeriCorps VISTA member serving at Towson University.

An impactful part of Ron’s service experience has been working alongside the TMA VISTA cohort. He describes the cohort experience as an absolute blast, where members come together to share their challenges, celebrate collective victories, and lift each other up. Having previously served in the military, Ron finds that bringing people together in a shared mission feels deeply familiar, and he loves seeing the literal light in everyone's eyes as they build a true sense of community.

That passion for community translates directly into his daily work supporting fellow veterans on campus. Serving with Towson University's veteran center, Ron recently helped organize a celebration for graduating veterans. Seeing those students walk across the stage was a powerful reminder of why national service matters. For Ron, moments like that are all about breaking cycles, building lasting connections, and ensuring future veteran students have a strong network to lean on.

Thank you, Ron, for your dedication to the veteran community at Towson University, and thank you to the team at Towson for their incredible partnership!

At Transform Mid-Atlantic, we are dedicated to our mission of Engaging Campuses in Communities. This week, we’re excited to highlight Erykah Joseph-Valentine (Erykah J.), a TMA AmeriCorps VISTA member serving with The Civic Circle in Silver Spring.

Erykah brings a strong background in public service and institutional support to her national service year. Having worked closely with systemic community needs on a broader scale, her experience this year has reaffirmed her decision to bring her talents directly to the local grassroots level.

For Erykah, participating in a year of national service means "really hitting the ground running and being closer to the ground in terms of the people who we actually look to serve."

By shifting her focus to the local level, she is able to make a direct, personal impact where it is needed most.

One of Erykah’s standout projects is building a curriculum tailored specifically for middle and high school students. This initiative is designed to ensure the content truly matches what students need, while uplifting student voices by listening to their feedback to create a program where they can take away real, actionable skills.

The program curriculum serves as a pinnacle point of her recent work. For Erykah, reflecting on the community's needs during a time when funding and awareness are at risk has made this the most insightful year she has ever done.

"This has been a great year and a year of true insight as to what it really looks like to be of service to communities." — Erykah Joseph-Valentine, TMA VISTA Member

A huge thank you to the team at The Civic Circle for their incredible partnership and dedication to empowering the next generation of citizens through this vital community work.

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At Transform Mid-Atlantic we are dedicated to our mission of Engaging Campuses in Communities. This week, we’re excited to highlight Karma Francis, a TMA AmeriCorps VISTA member serving at Morgan State University at the Plantation Park Heights Urban Farm in Baltimore.

Karma is in her second year of national service, a journey she describes as "bridge building." By leveraging her background in communications, she is helping to bridge the gap between the grassroots work of urban farming and the academic resources of Morgan State University.

One of Karma’s standout projects is the Morganale exhibition, a collaboration that brought together architecture and visual arts students to create a "canvas for storytelling." This project was designed to honor legacy by tracing the journey of land ownership and the evolution of the Park Heights landscape, while simultaneously showcasing resilience by capturing the spirit of the local community and the amazing impact of the Urban Farm.

By moving beyond simply identifying challenges, the initiative focused on building infrastructure and creating real-time solutions for food sovereignty.

The Morganale exhibition opened to the community on April 9th. For Karma, seeing the students bring this vision to life was "absolutely iconic."

"It was a very powerful reminder of what happens when we do bridge that gap between our universities and our communities." — Karma Francis, TMA VISTA Member

A huge thank you to the Mellon Foundation for funding this project, and to the team of farmers and partners—Farmer Chippy, Farmer Tiara, Farmer Block, and VISTA partner Farmer Liam—for making it all happen.

At Transform Mid-Atlantic, we are dedicated to our mission of Engaging Campuses in Communities. This week, we’re excited to highlight Mariam Kamal, a TMA AmeriCorps VISTA member serving at the International Rescue Committee Baltimore (IRC).

Mariam is working on a system to turn client feedback into permanent program improvements. By making sure refugee voices are heard and acted upon, she is helping build a community that is truly shaped by the people who live there.

Beyond the project work, the heart of service is the people you meet. When we asked Mariam about her experience with the VISTA cohort, she shared:

"It’s a chance to work with people who share a similar worldview and collaborate on a mission we all believe in. I’ve really enjoyed getting to know the people who run the program and learning from their journeys. It’s something I hope to incorporate into my own path."

We are inspired by the way our members learn from one another while building stronger, more inclusive communities. Thank you for your service, Mariam!

Learn more about our 2026 VISTA cohort: https://transformmidatlantic.org/2025-2026-tma-americorps-vista-members/

At Transform Mid-Atlantic, we are dedicated to our mission of 🤝Engaging Campuses in Communities, and this week, we are proud to feature a VISTA member who is living that mission every day through her service in Baltimore.

Shelby Donaldson is currently in her second year serving as the Strong York Road Schools AmeriCorps at Loyola University Maryland Over the past two years, she has become a vital bridge between the campus and the surrounding York Road corridor.

Recently, Shelby shared a story from the Walter P. Carter Food Pantry that highlights the real-world impact of these partnerships. A community member who cares for her grandson approached Shelby to express how much the pantry has helped her family over the years. Having a reliable, accessible place to get groceries—especially those items often missed at the store—has made a massive difference in her daily life.

For Shelby, hearing that gratitude firsthand validated the two years of work she’s put into the York Corridor. Knowing that other residents feel the same way serves as a powerful reminder of why community accessibility is so vital.

Shelby’s dedication ensures that the relationship between the campus and the neighborhood remains strong and responsive to local needs. Thank you for your incredible service, Shelby!



👉 Learn more about our 2026 VISTA cohort: https://transformmidatlantic.org/2025-2026-tma-americorps-vista-members/