Message From the Director
Dear colleagues,
The Easter bunny hopped in early and brought AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors lots of great news!
The first of the good news comes in the form of a FY22 enacted budget that includes increased funding levels for all three of our programs. That’s great news because the additional funding for RSVP will allow us to support outreach efforts as grantees reengage and rebuild their volunteer pools. Equally great news is that the additional funding for Foster Grandparent and Senior Companion programs will enable us to increase the volunteer stipend by 15 cents per hour. We are developing additional guidance to accompany this increase and your portfolio managers will be able to provide you support throughout this process.
None of this would be possible if it were not for your continued efforts to engage volunteers in innovative initiatives that better support your communities while enhancing the experiences of your volunteers.
I hope that you also listened to our call about President Biden’s FY 2023 budget request. If you missed it, you can read AmeriCorps’ FY 2023 Congressional Budget Justification. Please remember this is the proposed budget and the first step in a long process. While you’re on our website take a look at the recently released AmeriCorps Strategic Plan 2022-2026.
In addition, our virtual convening plans are underway for the spring and summer. We’re planning interactive activities and engaging speakers for these sessions beginning in May to celebrate Older Americans Month, and then spanning over the summer months. Find more information below and save the dates.
Given our recent challenges, all this good news comes with new opportunities and demonstrates how valuable our programs are to local communities. This is an exciting time to be a part of the national service family.
In service,
Atalaya Sergi, Director AmeriCorps Seniors
AmeriCorps Seniors 2022 Virtual Convening: Summer Series
Save the dates for this this year’s AmeriCorps Seniors 2022 Virtual Convening: Summer Series. Our time together will focus on your incredible innovation and resiliency, particularly during the past year. We are excited to create a space for discussion around sustaining program advances, future innovation and growth, and practical strategies for program implementation and management.
In recognition of Older Americans Month, AmeriCorps Seniors will kick off the convening on Wednesday, May 11 with conversations focusing on how AmeriCorps Seniors projects and older American volunteerism combat ageism in communities across the country.
Mark your calendars for the following convening topics:
- Wednesday, May 11 – Thursday, May 12, 1-4 p.m. ET: Older Americans Month and Ageism. -Register
- Tuesday, June 21 – Thursday, June 23, 1-4 p.m. ET: Impact, Sustainability, Partnerships, and Innovation
- Tuesday, July 19 – Thursday, July 21, 1-4 p.m. ET: Financial and Grants Management
- Tuesday, September 20, 1-4 p.m. ET: Reflection and Celebration
Budget Updates
Fiscal Year 2022
On March 15, 2022, President Biden signed the Fiscal Year 2022 Omnibus appropriations bill, which included $1.15 billion for AmeriCorps. This represents a $29.5 million increase over the prior year. This budget provides the resources needed for AmeriCorps to continue to meet community needs related to the pandemic, advance racial and economic equity, develop active and civically engaged members of society, and help our nation come back stronger. These priorities support and build on the recent and unprecedented investment made by the American Rescue Plan Act as well as the AmeriCorps Strategic Plan.
As a result of the increase in funding for AmeriCorps Seniors’ Foster Grandparent and Senior Companion Programs, we will be implementing a permanent stipend increase of 15 cents per hour for volunteers who receive stipends. This increase is approved for all federally funded and non-federally funded Volunteer Service Years. With this increase, we recognize the need for guidance regarding quarter 3 (April 1 start date) awards that haven’t been made, quarter 4 (July 1 start date) application submissions that are currently under review, and American Rescue Plan awards that include stipend volunteer opportunities. While additional guidance is forthcoming, your portfolio managers will be able to provide support throughout the process. For RSVP, the increase in funding will be used to support outreach efforts as current grantees reengage and rebuild their volunteer pools.
Fiscal Year 2023
On March 28, 2022, President Biden released his Fiscal Year 2023 budget, which includes annual funding appropriations proposed for AmeriCorps. He proposed a robust budget for national service and volunteerism providing $1.34 billion for AmeriCorps - a 16 percent increase over last year. It provides increases across every program and support account. On the heels of the recent increases in the FY22 enacted budget, the FY23 budget request reflects the Administration’s strong support for national service and a continued vote of confidence in the value and importance of the impact older Americans are having on critical community needs. The release of this budget is the first step in budget process that will result in a final enacted budget for FY 2023 which starts next October.
To learn more about President Biden’s budget , please read our FY 2023 Congressional Budget Justification and view the budget chart on the AmeriCorps.gov budget page.
National Volunteer Week is April 17-23
During National Volunteer Week, AmeriCorps shines a light on the enduring contributions of volunteers and encourages all Americans to discover their own power to make a difference.
Join with us and celebrate National Volunteer Week:
- Share why you are thankful for your volunteers on social media with posts or videos
- Showcase how AmeriCorps volunteers are making a difference in your communities
- Encourage volunteering by promoting AmeriCorps Volunteer Search or opportunities within your organization
Follow the digital conversation about National Volunteer Week and the days leading up to it on AmeriCorps' Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Make sure you share that you're celebrating National Volunteer Week on social media. Don’t forget to use #NVW and tag @AmeriCorps in your posts.
Learn more about how you can get involved: americorps.gov/volunteer.
Need resources?
Access our Social Press Kit to use our one-stop shop for all National Volunteer Week communication resources including social media graphics, templates, and other outreach tools.
DUNS transition to the SAM.gov Unique Entity Identifier
The Office of Grant Administration sent an important email on March 15 to all grantees about the government-wide transition from the DUNS to the SAM.gov Unique Entity Identifier. Please add your organization’s UEI to your eGrants organizational attributes to avoid award processing delays. This important action can be done by eGrants users with the “grantee administrator” user role. Please visit our website for more information and bring questions to your portfolio manager.
Pathfinder Update
Pathfinder will be updated on Friday, April 15. Grantees with complete station rosters will have their contact information included in the Pathfinder.
Steps to correct or update your Pathfinder information:
- Review contact information. See Handbook Appendix A. 22 - Steps to Review and Update Project Contact Information for guidance. Handbooks can be found on the Foster Grandparent, RSVP, and Senior Companion grantees page.
- Review station rosters to confirm each location is in the approved geographical service area.
Any updates made between Friday, April 1 and Monday, June 30 will be posted in the next update on Friday, July 15.
VETSERVE 2022
With the tagline of VETSERVE 2022, the Veterans Administration Center for Development and Civic Engagement is using National Volunteer Week (April 17-23) to highlight projects, events, and activities that organizations are leading that improve the lives of veterans and enrich communities. This public awareness campaign is designed to promote and encourage volunteerism and civic engagement within the veteran community and is a tremendous opportunity to showcase how AmeriCorps Seniors engages veterans in service and how we serve veterans. It also presents a tremendous opportunity for projects to recruit new veterans to serve in your communities and to develop new partnerships with other community organizations to recruit and/or serve veterans.
As part of this campaign, Thursday, April 21 is being designated as a National Day of Service for veterans with the hashtag, #VETSSERVE2022, to acknowledge how veterans are great civic assets to our country. We encourage you to share your stories using #AmeriCorpsSeniors #VETSERVE2022 on social media, in your newsletters, and in other promotional materials that you may be using.
Let’s demonstrate the great service being engaged in by veterans through AmeriCorps Seniors programs.
You can also also be sure to share your stories with the VA.
$25K Grants Available to Age-Integrate National Service
Generations Serving Togetheri s a new incentive grant program from Encore.org to bring older and younger generations together to solve problems and bridge divide through national service. All organizations that receive AmeriCorps funding and want to start a new intergenerational initiative or expand a current program are encouraged to apply. The application deadline is Friday, April 22, 8 p.m. ET.
National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is Saturday, April 30
The National Prescription Drug Take Back Day aims to provide a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposing prescription drugs, while also educating the general public about the potential for abuse of medications. For more information, see the U.S. Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration National Prescription Drug Take Back Day page.
Elder Justice Corner
Beware of IRS Scams and Child Tax Credit Scams
Many people received their advance Child Tax Credit payments this year, but scammers are taking advantage of this new program to try to trick you out of money or personal information. They’re pretending to be from the IRS, contacting people by phone, text, email, and social media — and sending people to official-looking websites that look just like the IRS.
Before you respond to anyone who reaches out to you, here are a few things to know about the IRS and the Child Tax Credit:
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Check your eligibility for the tax credits, if you haven’t gotten any advance payment this year, you can still sign up by following the IRS’ instructions.
- The IRS used information from already filed tax returns to automatically sign people up for the Child Tax Credit.
If you think you should have received funds and aren’t getting payments automatically, it might be because you didn’t file a tax return for 2019 or 2020. You’ll need to sign up for these payments if you didn’t file.
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The IRS (and other government agencies) will never text, email, or contact you on social media asking for your personal or financial information.
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The IRS does not use robocalls and will not call about something urgent or threatening. The IRS will also not call to ask taxpayers to give or verify financial information to get your Child Tax Credit payments.
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The IRS will never ask for a payment by gift card, wire transfer, or cryptocurrency. The IRS and other government agencies will also never ask you to pay to get financial help.
If you have questions, start at the IRS website to get answers. If someone says they’re from the IRS and contacts you about the Child. Tax Credit, report it to the IRS and ReportFraud.ftc.gov. If you think a scammer has already garnered any of your personal or financial information, visit IdentityTheft.gov to get a recovery plan.
Training Corner
All Grantees Tuesday Talk: Partnership Strategies
Tuesday, April 19, 1 p.m. ET
Join us on Tuesday, April 19, 1 p.m. ET for a special Tuesday Talk highlighting partnership strategies. This webinar will feature an AmeriCorps Seniors grantee and discuss how innovative relationships within your community support stronger projects and cultivate critical community impact. The grantee will share their community partnership success story and advice about identifying partnership needs, generating solutions, initial execution, and opportunities for growth.
We have extended this Tuesday Talk by 30 minutes to hold two very important breakout room conversations:
- Welcoming American Rescue Program Senior Demonstration grantees and providing early project technical assistance
- Networking opportunity for Native and Tribal serving projects
New Fraud Awareness Training
A new on-demand Fraud Awareness course for AmeriCorps grantees and sponsors is available. The course’s goal is to demonstrate how to effectively mitigate the risks of fraud associated with AmeriCorps grants through better prevention, detection, and reporting measures. The Fraud Awareness course covers:
- best practices in fraud prevention, emphasizing the importance of strong internal controls like separation of duties, formal written policies and procedures, and adequate documentation and monitoring practices;
- indicators of the most common types of fraud associated with AmeriCorps grants as well as the consequences of committing grant fraud; and
- interactive knowledge checks to help learners engage with the material and allows AmeriCorps to reliably track course completion.
The Fraud Awareness course is available on Litmos. We encourage program offices to promote the availability of this course during monthly calls. For questions or support related to the Fraud Awareness course, please email serviceresources@cns.gov.
Upcoming Deadlines and Reminders
Reporting Deadlines
Quarter 3 (Start Date: Friday, April 1)
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Performance Progress Reports Annual Due: Saturday, April 30
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Federal Financial Report (Budget Year 1 or Year 2) Due: Saturday, April 30
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Federal Financial Report Final (Budget Year 3) Due: Saturday, July 30
Quarter 4 (Start Date: Friday, July 1)
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Performance Progress Reports Annual Due: Saturday, July 30
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Federal Financial Report (Budget Year 1 or Year 2) Due: Saturday, July 30
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Federal Financial Report Final (Budget Year 3) Due: Sunday, Oct. 30
Project Progress Reports Annual resources are on program pages under "Grantee Resources". Filter for “submit a progress report.”
Review Handbooks and Litmos for additional guidance.
Meet the Team
AmeriCorps Seniors is excited to introduce you to Ariel Brown and Christine Mulvin.
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Ariel Brown is honored to join AmeriCorps Seniors as an American Rescue Plan program officer. Ariel will be supporting the grants team. Ariel volunteered for two years with AmeriCorps and is passionate about national service. Previously, Ariel worked as an evaluation specialist and a communications and youth engagement specialist in the public sector. Being an AmeriCorps alumna has truly shaped Ariel’s commitment to national and community service and she looks forward to making an impact through her new role as a program officer. |
Christine Mulvin is excited to join AmeriCorps Seniors as an American Rescue Plan program officer. She came to AmeriCorps Seniors by way of the AmeriCorps’ Midwest Regional Office. She also spent over 20 years working for health foundations supporting organizations with program development and implementation, communications, and data and evaluation. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and a Master of Technical and Scientific Communication from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Outside of work, she can be found on a volleyball court cheering on her sons or at the theater with her daughter. She is looking forward to working with the American Rescue Plan grantees and furthering the mission of AmeriCorps Seniors. |
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