This past year, we proved that national service and social innovation are tools that empower communities, strengthen families, and shape students’ futures.  As we bid farewell to 2014, let’s take a moment and reflect on some of our favorite moments from this year!

Celebrating AmeriCorps’ 20th Anniversary

All across the country, AmeriCorps members and alumni, elected officials, and friends of the national service family celebrated the 20th anniversary of AmeriCorps on September 12.   In Washington, D.C., President Obama, President Clinton, and CEO Wendy Spencer welcomed hundreds of AmeriCorps members to the South Lawn at the White House.  President George H.W. Bush participated in an AmeriCorps pledge ceremony at his home in Kennebunkport, Maine.  President George W. Bush and Laura Bush filmed a video that was shown at pledge ceremonies around the country.   We are so proud of the 900,000 Americans who have served through AmeriCorps since its inception and the thousands of incoming AmeriCorps members who have recently pledged to get things done for America.

Connecting Our Alumni to Careers

As part of the AmeriCorps 20th anniversary, President Obama announced Employers of National Service. The initiative seeks to connect AmeriCorps and Peace Corps alumni with leading employers from the private, public, and nonprofit sectors.  More than 100 companies or groups—such as Comcast, NBC Universal, Disney, CSX, United Way of America, the American Red Cross, and the Miami-Dade County Public Schools—have joined this monumental effort.

Announcing a Game Changer

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 to utilize all three AmeriCorps programs to tackle a local challenge.  This is thanks to a new funding opportunity we launched this year, Operation AmeriCorps.

Mayors Supporting Impact of National Service

Senior Corps volunteers and AmeriCorps members make a difference in communities every day.  During the second-annual Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service, more than 1,760 mayors in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico united to highlight the impact of national service and thank those who serve.  These mayors represent 110 million Americans – more than one-third of the U.S. population.

Expanding Opportunities to Serve

This year, we launched and expanded a number of new partnerships that improve lives, expand economic opportunity, and strengthen communities:

• Every day, our national service members use financial education, consumer counseling, and tax preparation services to lead low-income communities along the path of economic empowerment.  Shriver Corps, an exciting new AmeriCorps initiative launched this year, builds on this mission.  AmeriCorps VISTA members serving through Shriver Corps will help LIFT, a national nonprofit, become more efficient and more connected to the families and communities it serves.
• Funded by a $10 million grant from the Citi Foundation, a new CNCS partnership with Points of Light called ServiceWorks is engaging 225 AmeriCorps VISTA members in service projects over three years.  Members will help 25,000 underserved young adults in 10 cities develop the skills they need to prepare for college and careers.
• And through the AmeriCorps Urban Safety Corps, a great partnership we launched with the Governor of Michigan and Mayor of Detroit, national service participants have helped increase public safety and reduce blight in a number of high-need Detroit neighborhoods.  Since the program’s launch, these neighborhoods have seen crime decrease by 44 percent –a reduction that local officials credit for saving Detroit $62 million.

Finding and Funding Success

The Social Innovation Fund (SIF) is all about finding and funding what works. And the SIF’s new Pay for Success grant program offers innovative ways of partnering with philanthropic and private sector investors to create incentives for service providers to deliver better outcomes at lower cost—producing the highest return on taxpayer investments.   The inaugural class of Pay for Success grantees, which was announced this year, is tackling challenges within the SIF’s key focus areas: economic opportunity, healthy futures, and youth development.

Expanding Service in Classrooms

Senior Corps volunteers who serve through our Senior Corps RSVP and Senior Corps Foster Grandparents programs act as role models and give one-on-one attention to children and students across the nation.  This year, the Syracuse, NY school board agreed to expand the reach of Senior Corps volunteers.  Its plan will place a Senior Corps Foster Grandparent in EVERY first and second-grade classroom in the district.  That’s 167 classrooms!

Supporting Our Neighbors Before, During, and After Disaster

From forest fires and floods, to hurricanes and tornadoes, our national service participants provide critical support to millions of Americans affected by natural and man-made disasters.  In 2014, AmeriCorps members and Senior Corps volunteers deployed to, among many locations, Detroit, MI; Oso, WA; Clarksville, MO; and the California Bay Area.   They worked closely with State Service Commissions to coordinate response efforts.

Lifting Up Service in Kentucky

Through our $1 million investment in the Shaping Our Appalachian Region (SOAR) initiative, 52 AmeriCorps VISTA members will provide more than 100,000 volunteer hours over the next year to Eastern Kentucky families. As a result of this AmeriCorps investment, the community will get greater access to health care and healthy foods as well as job training and financial literacy skills.

Building Brighter Tomorrows

This year, we supported President Obama in announcing four new AmeriCorps partnerships that will bolster My Brother’s Keeper: an initiative that addresses opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color. Together, these partnerships represent a total of $24 million in investments in national service.