Axed by Trump Administration, Now Named AmeriCorps Member of the Year

From left to right: Kirsten Rhude, Callie Grones and Deanna Erickson at the offices of the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve in Superior. Callie Grones is being honored as an AmeriCorps Member of the Year during the Governor’s Service Awards. Her position was temporarily terminated when the Trump administration canceled grant funding for AmeriCorps in 2025. Danielle Kaeding/WPR

Working for AmeriCorps at the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve in Superior has been transformative for Callie Grones.

Since 2024, the 23-year-old Kimberly native has been splitting her time between the Reserve and the Friends of the Lake Superior Reserve as a community outreach coordinator for the nonprofit group. For her, it’s been a great opportunity to connect with the land and people after graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

“I’ve gotten twice as much out of it from my own personal growth, not only as a professional, but as someone who really cares about the environment,” Grones said.

And it shows.

Grones has coordinated more than 100 volunteers to remove invasive species and conduct beach cleanups that collected nearly 600 pounds of trash. She also coordinated meetings as part of an effort to return fire, or “ishkode” in Ojibwe, to Wisconsin Point, a sand spit on the shore of Lake Superior. The Indigenous practice of managing forests through fire hadn’t regularly occurred there since local tribes signed the 1854 Treaty with the U.S. government.

But Grones’ work was abruptly halted in April last year when the Trump administration dismantled AmeriCorps and fired her as part of cost-cutting efforts through the Department of Government Efficiency initiative. Wisconsin was among two dozen states that sued the administration over the move and its cancellation of $400 million in grant funding to state and community projects.

“I had developed this connection with this place. The idea of not being able to come back to my work and these people, I felt nervous and sad if that was going to be the case,” Grones said.

AmeriCorps member Callie Grones helps out with the first prescribed burn on Wisconsin Point in more than a century. Photo courtesy of Deanna Erickson/Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve

Despite her unceremonious termination, Grones is now one of three being recognized as an AmeriCorps Member of the Year during the Governor’s Service Awards in Madison on Wednesday.

Kyle Clower, executive director of Serve Wisconsin, said the awards honor outstanding national service members addressing needs in their communities.

“Callie’s service was just outstanding for the large impact that she’s had in numerous ways through her work … and then her resiliency when the grant terminations happened, continuing to serve and make a difference,” said Clower.

Will Mowchan, a board member with the Friends group, recalled Grones reacting with resolve when she received an email telling her to return equipment and leave her host site.

“It stunned her, of course,” Mowchan said. “Then she had this powerful reaction from deep inside. She just said, ‘I am home. I’m not going anywhere.’”

Mowchan said board members and Reserve staff raised or found funds to pay her salary until a federal judge reversed the dismantling of AmeriCorps and termination of grants last June. AmeriCorps and the Office of Management and Budget did not return requests for comment. The Trump administration’s disruption of AmeriCorps programs and volunteers has had lingering effects in Wisconsin. Last year, Serve Wisconsin administered around $14 million in federal AmeriCorps funding that was authorized for 868 positions across 25 programs, said Clower.

“We had a couple of our programs that were longstanding programs not come back because of the disruptions,” Clower said. “The lack of stability and federal funds made it so that they weren’t sure that they could operate an AmeriCorps program during the year.”

Now, he said Serve Wisconsin funds 20 programs that are authorized for 697 positions, and around 650 members are currently serving. Clower said the drop in positions is due to federal funding decisions, as well as the loss of programs. He said College Possible Wisconsin and the state’s Farm to School program were among those that did not continue as AmeriCorps programs for a mix of reasons, including uncertain funding.

For fiscal year 2027, President Donald Trump has proposed eliminating AmeriCorps and cutting more than 90 percent of its budget with the intent to wind down programs. The agency’s budget request has a stated goal of “returning responsibility to fund national service and volunteerism to the private and nonprofit sectors.”

A U.S. House appropriations subcommittee has proposed $1.22 billion for the agency, a 2.6 percent cut from its fiscal 2026 budget.

As lawmakers deliberate over the agency’s funding, Grones will wrap up her service by the end of August.

Deanna Erickson, director of the Lake Superior Reserve, said AmeriCorps members like Grones have provided incredible value to the community.

“There are many other small communities that likewise benefit from service members who do a lot of work to help care for people, or in our case, care for land and water as well,” Erickson said. “That, I think, is something that the people of Wisconsin collectively value.”

As for Grones, she was excited to learn that she’s been named an AmeriCorps Member of the Year, and she hopes to continue working on environmental stewardship in the region.

“I feel like I’m making a difference every day,” Grones said. “That’s something that really fulfills me.”

Axed by the Trump administration, Wisconsin native named AmeriCorps Member of the Year was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.