Going Back to School with National Service

The familiar sights and sounds of back to school are in full swing across the nation. 

And as students returned to their classrooms, Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) AmeriCorps and Senior Corps members joined them on this journey ... and will follow them from preschool until graduation and beyond to help them reach their educational and career goals.

No one will dispute the importance of education in the lives of America’s youth – it is the cornerstone upon which all the other building blocks of success are laid. 

With this in mind, CNCS allocates more than half of our budget to support educational initiatives with results-driven service to strengthen schools while meeting community needs. 

How do we do that?

We participate in early learning programs at preschools and community centers to help kids and their parents get the family off to a good start. We work with schools as tutors to provide extra help that keeps students on track in their studies. We support STEM, after-school, and summer school initiatives to help children explore new fields and maintain the knowledge they’ve gained in the classroom. 

Our members counsel and mentor students to help them improve attendance, stay on the path to high school graduation, and pursue college studies. And we help opportunity youth who want to overcome the challenges they’ve faced, find ways to complete unfinished studies, and develop the skills they need to join the workforce. 

To make this possible, more than 44,000 AmeriCorps members and nearly 45,000 Senior Corps volunteers provide support through in-school and after-school programs to support at-risk youth in rural, urban and tribal areas.

National service programs serve millions of students in almost 12,000 schools, including 1 out of every 4 low-performing schools and 1 out of every 10 charter schools.

This service delivers proven results. Rigorous independent evaluations have demonstrated that CNCS programs improve school readiness, increase reading and math achievement, improve school attendance and behavior, and increase access to college and careers. Last year, AmeriCorps and Senior Corps literacy and math programming documented improved academic achievement of more than 540,000 students in rural, urban, and tribal schools across the country.

And that just scratches the surface of the service we do in education. You can learn more by reading the Education fact sheet on our website.

Founding Father Benjamin Franklin once said, "An investment in knowledge pays the best interest." And that's an investment we're happy to make.

In service, 

CNCS Office of External Affairs

The Impact of National Service

National Service Members Continue Response to Harvey, Irma

More than 1,400 AmeriCorps members and Senior Corps volunteers have responded to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma recovery efforts. The photo above shows an AmeriCorps NCCC FEMA Corps member working with the agency's disaster services team receiving a hug after providing survivor registration information in Texas. You can learn more about the CNCS response to these disasters in our newsroom.

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Service Projects Across Nation Commemorate 9/11 Day On Patriot Day, Americans commemorated the 16th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the United States by participating in service projects across the nation during the September 11th National Day of Service and Remembrance. CNCS partners with 911Day.org, the nonprofit that began the 9/11 Day observance, and hundreds of businesses, nonprofit groups, faith-based organizations, and schools nationwide to observe the day as a national day of unity. Other key 2017 partners include the American Legion Auxiliary, My Good Dead, Points of Light, and Youth Service America. Read more

Foster Grandparent Program Connects Seniors with Children  The Foster Grandparent Program may be the perfect fit for you. FGP is for men and women ages 55 and older who volunteer to spend time with children while earning an hourly stipend. Volunteers are assigned to classrooms at schools, Head Start programs or alternative education programs. There are volunteer opportunities in Juniata, Mifflin, Snyder, Union and Northumberland counties. Foster grandparents work one-on-one or in groups with children who have special needs, but volunteers do not need to have prior experience. Volunteers complete an orientation training, which provides necessary information to fulfill the duties.  Read more

Americans Brought Back New Orleans. They Can Do the Same for Houston. (AmeriCorps)     Flying into my home town of New Orleans on a National Guard helicopter shortly after Hurricane Katrina’s floodwaters receded 12 years ago, I saw devastation so great that I wondered how many of the hundreds of thousands who fled — nearly half the population — would ever return. I had no idea then that a tragedy that caused more than $100 billion in damage and took 1,800 lives would lead to the rebirth of our city and bring it back even stronger. A little-known part of the story of the rebirth of New Orleans is the role national service played. Read more

Watch: AmeriCorps Muck & Gut Texas Homes

Each week, we will provide a social media shareable to use on your networks. Today we share a FEMA video featuring AmeriCorps muck and gut crews working to help Texas homeowners recovering from Hurricane Harvey. AmeriCorps members and Senior Corps volunteers are serving with state and local agencies to provide much needed support for shelter operations, volunteer management, and the mucking and gutting of flood-damaged homes.  If you would like to learn more about how to support relief efforts for Hurricane Harvey and Irma, visit the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) website.

National Service in the News

Heartland, YouthBuild Partner to Help At-Risk Students Transition to College (AmeriCorps)

The McLean Chronicle, Illinois

There are scores of success stories from YouthBuild, a 23-year-old McLean County-based charter school program that offers area at-risk students a chance to transition into adulthood with a path toward success. But Alicia Lenard, YouthBuild’s director of organizational advancement, said she has long seen a gap within the program — particularly for students eligible to pursue post-secondary education. YouthBuild has a partnership with AmeriCorps, and students oftentimes receive scholarships. “Our students leave YouthBuild with potentially $8,000 in school money, but because of that lack of confidence — or maybe lack of experience — surrounding post-secondary education, the money just sits when they could be bettering themselves and moving forward,” Lenard said.

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Literacy Tutoring Program at FiftyForward Gains National Recognition (Senior Corps)

WKRN-TV, Tennessee

A tutoring program is gaining popularity for helping students learn how to read. Friends Learning in Pairs, or FLIP, is a volunteer tutoring program sponsored by Fifty Forward. The program brings people like 82-year-old Neal Buchanan and 8-year-old Noah Dejesus together in an effort to help children learn to read. “I’m the son of a teacher.  I spent most of my life teaching and when I retired this was an opportunity to keep my hand in teaching because I love children,” said Buchanan.

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Local Seniors Keep Their Minds Keen Through Volunteer Work (Senior Corps)

Detroit Lakes, Minnesota

For some senior citizens, volunteering is a simple pastime used to fill space in lieu of a nine-to-five job. For others, though, it's practically a second career. Marion Jacobson, who turns 90 years old this November, laughs heartily--and often--speaks openly and could fill an entire resume with the volunteer work she's done. She's been volunteering for over three decades, after all. "My husband and I started getting involved back in 1984," she said. "I'll do it for as long as I can. I just love it."

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Adena Students Tackle 100-mile Challenge (Senior Corps)

The Chillicothe Gazette, Ohio

At least 100 students covering 100 miles. That's the goal of a new program being tried before the official start of the school day at the Adena Local Schools to get kids and staff members ready for the day, encourage physical fitness and eventually make stronger connections between the school and the community. "Basically, it's a very simple program where kids walk or run for 30 minutes in the morning before school starts," said Becky Clever of Integrated Services, which is partnering with the school district on the Morning Mile project. "Exercise in the morning has been proven to help them improve their overall health, improve their self-esteem, improve their behavior and focus in school. And with the epidemic of diabetes and other health problems, it's also to get something started in the community where the kids can be active."

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St. Cloud Schools Need Tutors Like Bunde to Help Students (AmeriCorps)

The Newsleaders, Minnesota

Marti Bunde wasn’t sure if she would enjoy working with children when she first became a tutor for the Minnesota Reading Corps program, part of AmeriCorps, but she said she quickly found she does. Her tutoring has made a difference in students’ reading success at Kennedy Community School. Bunde has been a reading tutor since November 2014, working at the Kennedy site. Because of program regulations, this will be the final year she is able to work with the program. She has worked with both pre-kindergarten (4-, 5- and 6-year-olds) and kindergarten through third-grade students. Last year Bunde, who works part-time, worked with about 20-25 students for 20 minutes each day. 

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As Overdose Deaths Rise, Colorado Plans Addiction-Prevention Efforts (AmeriCorps)

The Durango Herald, Colorado

With the opioid epidemic reaching unprecedented national levels and more heroin flowing into Southwest Colorado, additional addiction-prevention work is set to start this fall. In October, 12 AmeriCorps members will be hired across the state as part of the Colorado AmeriCorps Community Opioid Response Program, and two will be hired for a year to work in Southwest Colorado to organize prevention events and education. The program is funded through federal and state grants. AmeriCorps members will organize educational events taught by experts for doctors and other prescribers around the use of opioids, such as oxycodone. Members will also organize education around safe storage and disposal of medication for the community and events for students, said Kathleen McInnis, executive director of Southwestern Colorado Area Health Education Center.

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RSVP Volunteers and AmeriCorps Members Honor 9/11 Victims and First Responders with Food Pantry Donations

The Batavian, New York

Today members of Genesee County’s RSVP and AmeriCorps programs spent the day sorting donated nonperishable food items that they will deliver to three local food pantries. This was part of a coordinated a service project to help community members in need as a way to honor 9/11 victims and those who rose in service in response to 9/11. The donated food items were collected at RSVP volunteer stations, AmeriCorps host sites and County Government offices.

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Bevin Welcomes State AmeriCorps Members, Military, First Responders

The Franklin Favorite, Kentucky

Gov. Matt Bevin welcomed a new class of Kentucky AmeriCorps members pledging to "get things done" as they embark upon a year of service to the Commonwealth on Monday. The swearing-in ceremony was part of the Service for Peace "9/11 Salute to Our Heroes" event at Fourth Street Live! in downtown Louisville, which also recognized Kentucky's first responders and military heroes on the September 11th National Day of Service and Remembrance. "Tonight is an amazing evening of reflection and celebration of the American spirit," said Gov. Bevin, a U.S. Army veteran. "We are truly grateful to all of our servant leaders who are gathered here -- military personnel, first responders and AmeriCorps volunteers."

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AmeriCorps Names 2017 Harkin Award Winners at National Conference

CNCS

The annual excellence in AmeriCorps award winners were announced today by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency that administers AmeriCorps, during the 2017 AmeriCorps Symposium in Washington, D.C. This year, five winners were honored for their community impact and commitment to service. Created in 2014, the Tom Harkin Excellence in AmeriCorps Awards pays tribute to Senator Tom Harkin’s lifelong support for national service, while recognizing the outstanding and innovative AmeriCorps programs and members that are tackling the nation’s most pressing challenges.

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