By CNCS Staff
National Service News Week In Review
Through our many programs, initiatives, and projects, we are continuing to find ways for our friends and neighbors to get involved and stay involved in our communities.
This week, we examined the advances of the Social Innovation Fund and highlighted the contributions of one of our Senior Corps volunteers. And we prepared for a big moment this coming Tuesday when we will focus on Employers of National Service.
Connecting to Careers: As part of the historic 20th anniversary of AmeriCorps celebration at the White House on September 12, President Obama announced Employers of National Service.
The initiative seeks to connect AmeriCorps and Peace Corps alumni with leading employers from private, public, and nonprofit sectors. Some major companies have already signed up to Employers of National Service, including Comcast and NBC Universal, CSX, Disney, the City of Nashville, and more. And we are well on our way to reaching our goal of welcoming 100 employers to this effort by the end of the year.
On Tuesday, December 9, we want you to join our Employers of National Service Day! Visit NationalService.gov/Employers to learn more about this exciting new initiative.
Finding Solutions: Since its inception five years ago, the Social Innovation Fund (SIF) has shown how evidence-based solutions help advance innovation and entrepreneurship. Show Me The Evidence, a new book released by the Brookings Institution Press this week, examines the SIF and its role in evidence-based social policy.
Enriching the Lives of Students: Senior Corps RSVP volunteers transform the lives of students of all backgrounds, ages, and walks of life. Army veteran Noah Borenstein has devoted nearly 2,000 hours to his work with the Montgomery County RSVP program in Pennsylvania. Among his many duties, Borenstein tutors GED students as part of the Adult Literacy Program.
Developing relationships, he says, is an important part of the learning process.
“We created an interest in learning difficult concepts that these adults did not believe they could achieve,” he said. “Tutoring has enriched the lives of both student and tutor.”
National Service in the News
National Service
The case for national service
The Washington Post, November 27, 2014
Data from existing programs show a striking imbalance between the desire to serve and the opportunities to do so. McChrystal cites AmeriCorps, a program to encourage service in schools, nonprofits and other civic organizations.
Civic Engagement Can Help Millennials Get Jobs
The National Journal, December 1, 2014
There is data to back up this theory. Volunteering can improve a young person’s odds of employment by 27 percent, according to the Corporation for National and Community Service.
AmeriCorps
City Year Columbus
Business First of Columbus (OH), December 2, 2014
For twenty years, City Year Columbus has worked to increase the high school graduation rate in our community. City Year AmeriCorps members are placed in targeted Columbus City Schools classrooms to provide one-on-one and small group coaching with an emphasis on supporting literacy, math, attendance and behavior for students
AmeriCorps NCCC
Campbell serving in AmeriCorps program
Port Orchard Independent (WA), December 2, 2014
Port Orchard resident Hunter Campbell was inducted into a 10-month term of service in the National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC), an AmeriCorps program last month. Campbell arrived at AmeriCorps NCCC’s Southwest Region Campus in Denver on Oct 8 to receive training for 10 months of full-time service with the program.
AmeriCorps VISTA
Helping Others
Casper Star-Tribune (WY), December 3, 2014
This project was coordinated by AmeriCorps VISTA Meg Fullam. The AmeriCorps VISTA project is carried out through the Montana Campus Compact in which a member is placed in full-time service positions to address education-related issues through the resources of higher education institutions.
Senior Corps
Volunteering A Win-Win for Seniors and Rural Communities
Rural Assistance Center, November 18, 2014
On a national scale, the National Senior Corps Association (Senior Corps) unifies seniors interested in volunteering through any of three organizations under the NSCA umbrella: Foster Grandparents, RSVP (Retired and Senior Volunteer Program) and Senior Companions. About 337,000 American seniors in all 50 states volunteer in Senior Corps programs.
Social Innovation Fund
GHHI Announces Open Competition
Green and Healthy, December 2, 2014
The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI), in partnership with the Calvert Foundation (Calvert), received a $1.011M award in October 2014 from the Corporation for National Community Service’s (CNCS) Social Innovation Fund (SIF) to continue GHHI’s work in utilizing housing as a platform for health—specifically asthma.
National Service Blog
Celebrating our Giving Tradition on #GivingTuesday
Nationalservice.tumblr.com, December 2, 2014
In the homes that AmeriCorps members help rebuild, in the support that older Americans receive from Senior Corps volunteers, and in the students whose lives are transformed by the Social Innovation Fund, I see how the spirit of giving moves our country forward.