National Service

Why National Service Matters

Last year, 61 million Americans of all ages and backgrounds volunteered in their communities. Now is the time for our country to harness the gifts of an increasing number of Americans willing to serve.

There are hundreds of service and service-learning programs equipped and ready for expansion. These programs include Citizen Schools, City Year, Jumpstart, Habitat for Humanity International, Teach for America, YouthBuild USA, and many more.

National Service and Public Policy

The Serve America Act, passed in 2008, recruits Americans of all ages to address some of the nation’s most pressing problems, from the high school dropout crisis to the lack of health care in our neediest communities. Building on the success of AmeriCorps, the act establishes an Education Corps who will work as instructors, mentors, and tutors in expanded learning time initiatives and after-school programs.

Join us in working to reauthorize and sufficiently fund national service programs, including AmeriCorps, and reverse the slide in funding for these programs. Funding for existing and new national service programs must return at the very least to original levels to ensure successful implementation of the Serve America Act.