Research and Evaluation Digest: National Service and Civic Engagement, Research Grantee Spotlights, and more

AmeriCorps sent this bulletin at 03/09/2023 01:00 PM EST
AmeriCorps

Research and Evaluation Digest
March 9, 2023

Celebrating AmeriCorps Week

AmeriCorps Week 2023

AmeriCorps engages 200,000 Americans each year in sustained, results-driven service through its national service programs. AmeriCorps Week is our opportunity to recognize the commitment of the millions of Americans who serve their country through AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors. As AmeriCorps' Office of Research and Evaluation observes AmeriCorps Week, reflect on the vital role we play in generating accurate and timely research to further the AmeriCorps mission:

Explore the Civic Engagement and Volunteering Dataset

The Current Population Survey Civic Engagement and Volunteering Supplement is the most robust survey of volunteerism and civic engagement in the United States. Data from the survey can support evidence-based programming by offering a snapshot of the state of civic life and volunteerism across the nation. 

AmeriCorps' Office of Research and Evaluation will share findings through webinars, reports, and research briefs. Read our latest findings focused on formal and informal volunteering and visit our “Trends Over Time” datasets. 

Research Grantee Spotlights

University of Nevada, Reno

Community Conversations participatory research grantee, Jennifer Willett, Ph.D., formerly at the University of Nevada, won the Marie O. Weil Best Article Award from the Journal of Community Practice for her co-authored article "Making the Invisible Visible: Documenting Slow Violence through Photovoice with Youth in Nevada.” 

Willett and former Research for Change youth researcher Najeh Abduljalil, now at Cornell University, will be presenting on their work in April as part of our upcoming "Reigniting Civic Life" webinar series.  

Learn More

Tufts University

Greater Boston based community organizations have partnered with Tufts University, an AmeriCorps research grantee, to study the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on civic infrastructure. Penn Loh, principal investigator on the grant, and colleagues mention the value of AmeriCorps research grants in their recent article examining community-university partnerships. 

 

Learn More

Register Now: Research and Evidence Webinar

Wednesday, March 15, 2:30-4 p.m. ET

In recent decades, scholars and practitioners have called for more expansive definitions of civic engagement that are inclusive to all the activities people engage in to make a difference in their communities. In our first webinar, "What is Civic Engagement? Exploring New Paradigms," we will introduce several frameworks for conceptualizing civic engagement, present novel findings from the longitudinal survey about civic engagement trends in the United States, and share insights on how civic engagement emerges through local mutual aid efforts. We’ll conclude with a reflection about how national service can contribute to this broader understanding of what counts as civic engagement.

Register

Recording Available: Novel Strategies to Measure the Return on Forestry Risk Mitigation

On Wednesday, Jan. 18, we hosted the "National Service: Novel Strategies to Measure the Return on Forestry Risk Mitigation" webinar. AmeriCorps partnered with the Nevada Conservation Corps and ICF to discuss a novel return-on-investment study. The webinar slides, recording, and transcript are now available. 

Watch the Recording

Highlight from the Evidence Exchange

State of the Evidence 2017 - cover page image

2017 State of the Evidence Annual Report (Updated)

Visit the Evidence Exchange