Tag Archives: AmeriCorps

04.02.09
by

AmeriCorps Week 2009: May 9 to 16

picture-1If you are involved with AmeriCorps service — as a program director, current member, or alum — this is a great year to step out into your community to spotlight national service during AmeriCorps Week.

With so much national attention focused on AmeriCorps in the past year, people of all ages have heard of AmeriCorps programs and are eager to get involved.  Hearing about your experiences, and getting to ask questions of you, may be the tipping point for jumping in and applying.

To help them map a path to national service, you can play a pivotal role in educating your community about the value of service.

AmeriCorps Week, coming up in mid-May, is a great time to make a presentation at a local school, chat with your faith community’s social groups, staff a table on-campus, host an event, or bring up the notion of AmeriCorps with peers during your regular volunteer projects. Remember, people of all ages participate in national service!

Other ideas for getting involved in AmeriCorps Week are on the program’s website.

You can also order the (free) AmeriCorps Presentation Kit for:

  • Tips on speaking to groups
  • Stickers, bookmarks, and posters
  • Facts and figures on AmeriCorps
  • A DVD with a PowerPoint slideshow on AmeriCorps and a video of AmeriCorps members in action

Also you can take part in an AmeriCorps Week Web Chats to help with your project planning.

    add to del.icio.us :: Add to Blinkslist :: add to furl :: Digg it :: add to ma.gnolia :: Stumble It! :: add to simpy :: seed the vine :: :: :: TailRank :: post to facebook
04.01.09
by

How to Apply to AmeriCorps

I'm Ready to ServeTo clear up some confusion about how you get into AmeriCorps.

AmeriCorps is a network of programs throughout the United States (and its territories — yes, you can serve in Puerto Rico!) that provide the chance for you to serve in your community full-time for a year on a range of critical issue areas.

Programs also allow nonprofit organizations, government agencies, and schools to host you — in order to extend their capacity to fulfill their mission, and so you can initiate and run new projects that they haven’t been able to get off the ground, and/or to leverage the support of community volunteers whom you recruit and engage.

When do AmeriCorps applications come open?

The short answer is, it’s not too late to apply now and in the coming months.

Because AmeriCorps is a network of programs, the longer answer is that application dates vary by program. Different programs operate on different cycles, with new AmeriCorps members starting at different times.

Most programs that I know of open up their application process in spring and early summer; and incoming AmeriCorps members start in the fall (usually starting sometime between August and October).

Of course some programs, like City Year and Teach For America, offer many deadlines throughout the school year. Continue reading →

03.24.09
by

Answering the Call from Citizens Who Want to Serve

AmeriCorps muscleThese days the fate of national service seems tied more than ever to the greater economic struggles our nation is facing. Citizens want to serve in their communities, and this week the Senate is debating legislation that would make it possible for more people to serve than ever before.

September 11th and 12th of last year, the Service Nation Summit convened hundreds of leaders, service corps alumni, and celebrities to talk about the need for expanded national service opportunities, to meet the growing demand among people of all ages to serve full-time in their communities.

While Summit participants were still returning home in the glow of that inspiring event, Lehman Brothers—just blocks from where the Summit took place in mid-town Manhattan—crumbled, and the bottom began to fall out of the economy.

This week, the U.S. Senate will take a hard look at the Serve America Act, a piece of legislation announced at the Service Nation Summit by Senator Orrin Hatch (while his partner Sen. Edward Kennedy, convalescing at home, joined him in spirit).

Little known in September was just how desperately needed this legislation would become by the time it saw the floor of the Continue reading →

03.11.09
by

Tips for Recruiting New Corps Members with Disabilities

Ways that national service programs picture-8can recruit members with disabilities.

Many national service programs have begun recruiting new members for the upcoming year. As you begin this process, here are some ways to recruit potential members with disabilities:

Make a statement!

When developing your program’s recruitment materials (including posters, emails, and online) and applications it is important to include a statement regarding your organizations commitment to inclusion. For example: Continue reading →

03.09.09
by

New Podcast: Kiff Gallagher’s Music National Service Initiative

picture-4The New Service podcast today features Kiff Gallagher, founder of Peacelabs Music and the Music National Service Initiative (MNSI).

Today’s guest is Kiff Gallagher, founder of Peacelabs Music and the Music National Service Initiative. Listen to the podcast.

In 2008, The Aspen Institute named MNSI’s MusicianCorps — a developing AmeriCorps-type program that will enable musicians to serve in low-income schools — one of the top ten public policy proposals that would strengthen the United States.

Before turning his attention back to music, Kiff served on the legislative team that developed AmeriCorps during the early Clinton Administration, and went on to work at the Corporation for National and Community Service.

He’s also worked in the field of corporate social responsibility and sustainability as an advisor at Odwalla, and president of the Social Venture Network. More recently he’s served on President Obama’s National Arts Policy Committee and as an advisor on Obama’s Transition Team.

The program has a public event coming up at the Kennedy Center on April 22, co-hosted by Music National Service and Center for American Progress.

I talked with Kiff Gallagher about the need for music and arts education in the schools, about his role in developing the national service legislation that shaped AmeriCorps in 1993, and the future of the Music National Service Initiative.

The podcast features the music of flamenco guitarist Mark Ferguson, from his debut album Quemando Chante, available on iTunes.

Here’s a link to our podcast; also check out this story about Kiff Gallagher on NPR.

add to del.icio.us :: Add to Blinkslist :: add to furl :: Digg it :: add to ma.gnolia :: Stumble It! :: add to simpy :: seed the vine :: :: :: TailRank :: post to facebook