Multi Generational Mobility Navigation Fellow

The MI Mobility Fellows (MMF) Program is a 11-month, highly selective fellowship designed to strengthen Michigan’s transportation and mobility ecosystem. Fellows from across the country are placed in host organizations where they gain hands-on experience addressing real mobility challenges. This program aims to make Michigan’s mobility future more inclusive, accessible, and sustainable—improving the way people, goods, and ideas move across the state. 

Program Duration: December 1, 2026 – November 12, 2027 

Fellow Compensation: $60k per year + benefits 

Organization Name and Website: StartupZoo (regional co-lead with Western Michigan University) — https://startupzoo.org 

Organization Location (City and State): Kalamazoo, Michigan 

Supervisor Name and Title: Carl Brown, Executive Director, StartupZoo — day-to-day supervisor. 

Position Title: Multi Generational Mobility Navigation Fellow 

Position Description and objectives/goals: Hosted at StartupZoo, the regional co-lead with Western Michigan University (WMU) in the Southwest Michigan Healthy Aging Mobility Hub, the fellow will launch and operate an accessible, no-wrong-door mobility navigation and coordination service that helps older adults in the Kalamazoo–Battle Creek corridor complete trips to healthcare and essential services using the region’s existing public, paratransit, shared, and human-service transportation. The fellow designs and runs the service, convenes transportation and human-service providers and community partners through StartupZoo’s aging-services network, supports a Mobility Advisory Panel of older adults and caregivers, and measures results. Where a technology platform is needed, the fellow helps identify and coordinate a third-party mobility-technology partner or startup that builds and owns it; the fellow does not build software. The position works alongside a second fellow at WMU focused on medical logistics and advanced air mobility readiness.

Objectives and goals: • Stand up a working navigation-and-referral workflow shared across transportation and human-service providers. • Deliver two applications of the model — healthcare/pharmacy access and social/nutrition/community access — and assign each to a continuing owner. • Convene and support a Mobility Advisory Panel that guides use-case selection, accessibility, and equity. • Establish baselines and document trip-completion, access, and user-experience outcomes (targets: 75+ mobility plans, 60+ completed trips or service connections, 15–20% faster trip identification, 80%+ of users reporting an easier process). • Identify and engage a technology partner to build and own the request platform, and document the model for extension to additional rider groups such as WMU student-to-downtown mobility.

Skills/Background Preferred (Technical or otherwise - a list is fine): • Recent bachelor’s or master’s degree (conferred Dec 2024–Dec 2026) in public health, gerontology, urban or transportation planning, social work, public administration, community development, or a related field • Strong interpersonal, facilitation, and organizational skills; comfort working directly with older adults, caregivers, and community organizations • Ability to coordinate multiple partners and keep a project moving • Community engagement or service coordination experience • Basic data collection and analysis; clear writing • Familiarity with transit, human services, or aging services is a plus • Genuine interest in mobility, aging, and equity; no software-development or engineering background required

Primary Working Location (Office address and others covered if applicable): Please note that fellows are required to work onsite, a minimum of 2 days a week. This may increase depending on the needs of the organization. StartupZoo, 229 E. Michigan Ave., Suite 335, Kalamazoo, MI 49007 (primary). Also covered: the Western Michigan University campus in Kalamazoo and community partner sites across Kalamazoo and Calhoun counties (aging-services organizations, senior-living communities, and transit partners) as project activities require. The fellow will work onsite a minimum of two days per week, with additional onsite days for community engagement.

Is a hybrid schedule offered? Yes — a hybrid schedule is offered, with a minimum of MMF - March 2026 Updated Pg. 2 two onsite days per week and additional onsite time for community engagement as needed. Primary Working Hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. (approximately 40 hours per week), with occasional flexibility for evening or weekend community events.

Any other useful information (links, reports, etc.): StartupZoo: https://startupzoo.org Western Michigan University, Office of Research and Innovation: https://wmich.edu/research This position is one of two in the Southwest Michigan Healthy Aging Mobility Hub, a regional hub led by Western Michigan University with StartupZoo as nonprofit co-lead; the second fellow, hosted at WMU, focuses on medical logistics and advanced air mobility readiness. StartupZoo and WMU are also partners on the OFME-funded Kalamazoo Innovation District pilot (launching September 2026), which supports companies building products that improve mobility and quality of life for the region’s aging population