By Wendy Spencer

National Service News Week In Review

I am in my third city in four days — and let me tell you, I am fired up about what I am seeing on the ground.

I met with mayors, cabinet secretaries, corporate leaders, and hundreds of Senior Corps volunteers and AmeriCorps members — and the enthusiasm for our mission and what we plan to accomplish in the coming year is exhilarating.

Keep reading on to see my journal entries for the week from Syracuse, Austin, and Denver.

As a member of our national service family, you are our most effective messenger. Please do me a favor and share this message to your friends and family, especially those who live in the communities we are spotlighting this week.

Monday: Fostering Student Improvement in Syracuse

I joined Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner to announce that our Senior Corps Foster Grandparents Program will place a volunteer in every first and second grade classroom in the Syracuse City School District.

This all started last summer when the Board of Education agreed to invest $350,000 to expand the Senior Corps Foster Grandparents program. And I am proud to announce that our agency will match this local investment dollar-for-dollar, bringing the total investment to $700,000.

With this funding, we will recruit and support a major expansion of Foster Grandparent volunteers to ensure more students in Syracuse are getting the support they need.

Thursday: Making the Most of Mayoral Momentum

More than 200 Senior Corps volunteers and AmeriCorps members showed up at Austin City Hall to help us announce the third-annual Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service to take place on April 7, 2015.

We had a “who’s who” of mayoral participation: Mayor Chris Coleman of St. Paul, MN, president of the National League of Cities; Mayor Ralph Becker of Salt Lake City, incoming president of the NLC; Mayor Nelda Martinez of Corpus Christi, president of the Texas Municipal League; and our host, Mayor Lee Leffingwell of Austin.

During his introductory remarks at the National League of Cities conference, Mayor Coleman told thousands of our nation’s local leaders, “Every day, in cities across the country, volunteers from programs such as AmeriCorps and Senior Corps tackle tough problem

Thursday: Launching Operation AmeriCorps

I am really excited about our new funding opportunity, Operation AmeriCorps.

For the first time, tribal and local leaders – representing U.S. cities, counties, towns, and school boards – will be able to design a comprehensive project that could utilize all three AmeriCorps programs to tackle a local challenge.

So, do you have an idea that could be a game-changer in your community?  I encourage you to think of ways national service can be part of the solution. Visit NationalService.gov/Operation-AmeriCorps for more information.

Friday: Forging Partnerships in Denver

Today, I am in Denver where I met with Mayor Michael Hancock and swore in an amazing tribal leader as a new AmeriCorps VISTA member.

Lucille Echohawk, a citizen of the Pawnee Nation, has worked in the Indian child welfare field for more than twenty years.  She is co-founder of Native Americans in Philanthropy, the Denver Indian Center, and the Denver Indian Family Resource Center, and served as board chair for the three organizations.  As an AmeriCorps VISTA member, she will be focusing on resource development supporting the enormous Native American urban population in metro Denver.

Tomorrow, I will deliver remarks at the 43rd annual conference of the Association for Research of Nonprofits and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA). I am excited to share the exciting work we are embarking on to spur new partnerships and collaborations, find innovative solutions, and foster creativity.