My name is Charlie Kelley and I was hired to be the Program Assistant to the Michigan Rural Network through the AmeriCorps Program. I am very excited to be a part of the development of the network and to benefit from the wealth of resources associated with the AmeriCorps Program.

I graduated from Northern Michigan University in December of 2009 where I studied Economics and Human Geography. While I was working on my degree I had the opportunity to intern at Northern Initiatives, a leading rural economic development nonprofit, where I researched building stronger entrepreneurial communities in rural areas. While this has made me familiar with the issues and challenges facing rural communities, it has also shown me the great opportunity and wealth of assets and resources rural communities to help solve these problems. These resources can be leveraged to preserve the things that make rural Michigan a great place to live and work while increasing the quality of life for its residents.

Over the year of my service I am excited to see how the network develops and grows.