Author Archives: Amy Potthast

07.10.09
by

House Subcommittee Rejects Full Funding of the Kennedy Serve America Act

David Obey (D-WI), Chair House Appropriations Subcommittee

David Obey (D-WI), Chair House Appropriations Subcommittee

Update, July 17th: The full House Appropriations Markup on the 2010 Labor, Health, and Education Appropriations Bill maintained the subcommittee’s recommendation to fund the Corporation for National and Community Service at $90 M less than Obama’s requested budget amount.

The House Appropriations subcommittee disappointed service supporters yesterday by offering a lower funding figure than needed to implement the Kennedy Serve America Act.

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health & Human Services, Education and Related Agencies approved only $1,059,016,000 in funding for the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) as a part of the fiscal year 2010 appropriations bill.

This figure is $90 million short of the President’s full budget request of $1.149 billion, and does not fully fund the Edward Kennedy Serve America Act. Implementation of the Act is dependent on appropriations, but the Appropriations Continue reading →

07.10.09
by

2008 Peace Corps Writers Awards Announced

Book cover: Last Days of Old Beijing by Michael Meyer

Yesterday, RPCV John Coyne announced this year’s Peace Corps Writers awards, including categories in fiction, nonfiction, travel writing, poetry, memoir, photography, children’s writing, and Peace Corps experience.

Peace Corps Writers annually presents awards for books by Peace Corps writers. Winners of those awards have included Joanne Omang, Norm Rush, Nancy Scheper-Hughes and Paul Theroux.

The winning books published in 2008 are:

Paul Cowan Non-Fiction Award
The Last Days of Old Beijing: Life in the Vanishing Backstreets of a City Transformed
By Michael Meyer (China 1995-97)
Walker & Company

Maria Thomas Fiction Award Continue reading →

07.10.09
by

New, Stimulus-funded AmeriCorps Programs Getting Off the Ground

New short-term AmeriCorps programs, funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, are getting off the ground.

President Obama signed his stimulus bill, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, on February 17th, 2009. It included additional $201 million in funding for the Corporation for National and Community Service for AmeriCorps State and National, and AmeriCorps VISTA programs.

Funding has gone to existing programs to increase the number of open positions, and it’s also gone to organizations already running AmeriCorps programs, to create brand-new, short-term corps.

One example of a new stimulus-funded AmeriCorps program is the Oregon Community Action Corps — now accepting applications for 24 full-time AmeriCorps positions serving throughout the state of Oregon. OCAC will operate out of the American Red Cross Oregon Trail Chapter here in Portland, which also operates the state’s largest AmeriCorps State program, the Oregon State Service Corps and our largest VISTA program Clara Barton VISTA Corps (both are currently recruiting, also).

AmeriCorps members with the Oregon Community Action Corps (OCAC) serve individually or in small teams at Continue reading →

07.09.09
by

Extending Noncompetitive Eligibility to All Former, Full-Time AmeriCorps Members

A movement to extend one benefit of AmeriCorps VISTA and Peace Corps service to other service corps alums.

When AmeriCorps VISTA members and Peace Corps Volunteers finish their service, they are eligible for a year of noncompetitive eligibility when applying for jobs in the Federal government. AmeriCorps State and National members are not eligible for this benefit, though there’s mounting support to change this discrepancy.

Having noncompetitive eligibility status means you can apply for federal jobs posted with a special status (“noncompetitive appointment eligibility”) in addition to federal jobs that are open to the public. Additionally, Federal managers are free to hire you without holding a competition, so hiring and selection processes are expedited for people who’ve already demonstrated a commitment to public service.

With noncompetitive eligibility status, you don’t gain any entitlement to Federal employment but your special status does give federal agencies the option of directly selecting you for a vacant position if you are rated as “qualified” for a particular Continue reading →

07.02.09
by

Funding the Kennedy Serve America Act: Appropriations Process Begins Soon in Congress

Obama signs the Serve America Act, 4/09

Obama signs the Serve America Act, 4/09

Beginning in early July, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees will mark up the fiscal year 2010 Labor, Health & Human Services, and Education Appropriations bills.

The Kennedy Serve America Act, enacted in April, authorized the expansion of national service, but offered no promises in terms of how much funding Congress would give the Corporation for National and Community Service to implement the Act. According to the organization Voices For National Service, President Obama’s budget request for the Corporation for National and Community Service totaled $1.149 billion, including funding for:

AmeriCorps: to create 10,000 new AmeriCorps positions (the first step towards the Serve America Act’s goal of 250,000 annual members by the year 2017). Learn why funding these positions is important for local communities throughout the United States.

  • $372.5 million for AmeriCorps State and National grants to support 74,861 members, $101 million or 37% increase over the FY09 enacted level. Continue reading →