AmeriCorps VISTA Monthly Updates

Quarterly Sponsor Call

Join us for our next sponsor call on Wednesday, May 24 at 3 p.m. ET. Staff will share information about the AmeriCorps VISTA living allowance, upcoming in-person training events, and the FY 2022 VISTA progress report supplement. Staff from the AmeriCorps VISTA training unit will also provide details about the upcoming sponsor convening scheduled for Monday, Aug. 21 to Wednesday, Aug. 23, in Lombard, Ill. The event will focus on recruiting, orienting, supporting, and celebrating AmeriCorps members in the VISTA program. It will be useful for new sponsoring organizations or new staff in existing sponsoring organizations. There will be details on the agenda, target participants, and logistics.

The webinar ID and passcode: 
Webinar ID: 161 025 4452 
Passcode: 614205 

U.S. Department of Education Calls Colleges and Universities to Action to Support P – 12 Students

The US Department of Education, as part of their partnership with AmeriCorps and the Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins University through the National Partnership for Student Success, has published a Dear Colleague Letter calling upon institutions of higher education to increase their support to local P-12 students and communities by placing more higher education students in evidence-based, community service roles such as tutors, mentors, and college or career coaches in school-based and out-of-school time programs.

By doing so, institutions can join the National Partnership for Student Success Higher Education Coalition alongside a leading cohort of 26 early adopter colleges and universities that have already set public goals as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s effort to place an additional 250,000 adults in high-impact roles supporting P-12 students. The NPSS has several tools and resources specifically designed to support colleges and universities, including a guide outlining how to leverage partnerships between higher education and P-12 systems to support students through federal work study roles, profiles of collaborative programs in action, and two upcoming webinars on Wednesday, May 31 and Wednesday, June 7.

If you have questions or are looking for additional resources or want to have your program highlighted on the NPSS website, email P12education@cns.gov.

New Training Resource

We are excited to announce that AmeriCorps VISTA and Public Health AmeriCorps are collaborating to provide public health training resources to members serving in the health field. 

As of April, current and future members who have the healthy futures focus area marked on their AmeriCorps VISTA assignment description will have access to the same supplementary no-cost training resources as Public Health AmeriCorps members operating through AmeriCorps State and National. These resources include the foundational public health training designed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a virtual speaker series, and additional professional development opportunities. 

To access the foundational public health training, members must make an account in CDC TRAIN and to use these instructions to make their account. The Public Health AmeriCorps team will email eligible members with information on additional professional development opportunities such as the virtual speaker series events. As a reminder, all these resources are optional for eligible members serving in AmeriCorps VISTA.   

Please refer to the FAQ document and reach out to Public Health AmeriCorps if you have any additional questions. 

Teleservice and Virtual Service Site FAQ: Updates

AmeriCorps VISTA updated the teleservice policy on Sunday, Jan. 1, and allowed for a grace period until Friday, March 31, to permit members and sponsors to align with the policy.

As of Saturday, April 1, the period to request a placement outside of the policy has closed and all project sponsors who place new members, re-enroll currently serving members, or request to extend a service term must follow the teleservice and virtual service site policy. 

AmeriCorps VISTA has updated the FAQs to reflect that the grace period has ended. To locate these updated documents, please visit AmeriCorps VISTA sponsor page under VISTA sponsor resources, and select “Manage Members” from the drop-down menu. 

The document name is AmeriCorps VISTA teleservice and virtual service site policy update FY 2023. 

Please reach out to your portfolio manager with any questions.

Member Service Gear 

Order Your Recruitment Kit

Recruitment promotional items are now available to support your recruitment and outreach efforts. To place an order: 

1. Create an account on the AmeriCorps promotional items website
2. Use Item Name or SKU Number to easily search for each item:
   • AmeriCorps Recruitment Flyer - AMC0250 (Max order is 100)
   • AmeriCorps VISTA Bumper Sticker  - AMC1016 (Max order is 50)
   • AmeriCorps VISTA Round Button - AMC10002 (Max order is 50)
   • AmeriCorps VISTA Ink Pen - AMC1014 (Max order is 100)
   • AmeriCorps VISTA Hand Sanitizer - AMC1126 (Max order is 50)
3. After filling your basket, click “Check Out.”
4. Enter your shipping address. No PO Boxes will be accepted.
5. Click “Continue to Review.”
6. In the Order Justification box, please include the following: Name of your organization + SPONKITFY2