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[Points of Light Initiative, 1989]
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Records of the White House Office of Speechwriting (George H. W. Bush Administration)
Tony Snow Subject Files
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Originally Processed With FOIA(s):
FOIA Number:
S
FOIA
MARKER
This is not a textual record. This is used as an
administrative marker by the George Bush Presidential
Library Staff.
Record Group/Collection:
George H.W. Bush Presidential Records
Collection/Office of Origin:
Speechwriting, White House Office of
Series:
Snow, Tony, Files
Subseries:
Subject File, 1988-1993
OA/ID Number:
13897
Folder ID Number:
13897-013
Folder Title:
[Points of Light Initiative, 1989]
Stack:
Row:
Section:
Shelf:
Position:
G
18
29
2
5
DRAFT 3/31/89
Office of National Service
POINTS OF LIGHT INITIATIVE:
A NATIONAL COMMUNITY SERVICE TRUST
I.
Introduction
-
At a time when much of our nation is enjoying one of
the longest periods of economic prosperity on record,
an increasing number of people are beset with more
painful characteristics of poverty than ever before.
They must deal with joblessness, drugs and violent
crime, homelessness, teenage pregnancy, youth suicide,
illiteracy, broken families, the indignities of welfare
and the disconnection from society. Others are
affected by ill health and loneliness. Quality of life
is also threatened by our many environmental
difficulties, from polluted air to waste-strewn
streets.
At the center of many of our worst domestic problems
are good people living in almost totally disintegrated
communities. They are disconnected from a healthy,
close-knit, caring, strong and supportive community and
family. As a result, they are desolate, alone,
alienated, disoriented, powerless, unloved, insecure
and unhappy. Most debilitating and immoral of all,
they are left without the self-esteem that empowers a
person to act in his or her best interest.
As problems have overwhelmed communities, it has become
clear that the Federal government by itself is a
critical but insufficient resource to solve a large
number of the nation's social and environmental
problems. Throughout the country, however, we are
seeing glimmers of hope as a result of creative
initiatives by Americans concerned about America and
other Americans.
As we prepare for the Twenty-First Century, the
President has a unique opportunity to issue a challenge
and a call to service to all the people of our country,
young and old, urban and rural, public sector and
private sector, corporations and churches, foundations
and schools. However, since it's their country to
inherit, we should be led by our youth in this effort.
This should be a challenge to make a difference, to
give of oneself for the betterment of another, a call
to serve the community and in doing so, serve the
nation, with the hope that as we approach the year
2000, the cycles of poverty and hopelessness will be
broken by the selfless efforts of the people who care
and that the environment will be on the road to
restoration, insuring purity and beauty for generations
to come.
-
The long-term economic impact of such a national
commitment could ultimately result in helping to solve
the budget imbalance by encouraging and training to
become productive those who would otherwise be
dependent on the Government, by mentoring, and tutoring
our youth toward the goal of maximum education and
thereby, optimum productivity and reconnecting those
who are lost to society and to jobs and fulfillment.
-
Considering that our nation began with a commitment to
country, community and each other, it is timely for us
now to make those values more meaningful in our lives.
II. Analysis
A.
Foundation
-
To assist in that effort, it is recommended that
that a foundation be established, to be called the
Points of Light Initiative Foundation. It is
expected that the Foundation would be funded from
both the private sector and the Federal
Government. The President would serve as Chairman
of the Foundation and be personally involved with
its activities.
-
The President would be joined on the Board of
Directors by twenty-four innovative and creative
leaders with proven accomplishments in community
service representing business, foundations,
education, religious groups and other service
organizations. There would also be an Advisory
Board consisting of twenty-five additional persons
involved in various aspects of community service.
-
There would be a President of the Foundation and
an Executive Staff. However, it is contemplated
to be small with the intention of avoiding the
creation of a large bureaucracy.
-
The Foundation's overall objective would be to
enhance community service generally, and augment
its potential as a means of addressing critical
social and environmental needs in our country.
3
1.
The Foundation should fully recognize the
abundance of voluntary activities already to
be found in communities across the nation,
and embrace the natural pluralism and
diversity of aims in these efforts;
2.
The Foundation should seek to raise awareness
of existing efforts, and enlist wider
participation in them by the nation as a
whole;
3.
The Foundation should strengthen these
efforts, supplementing them with new
approaches where appropriate, and demonstrate
their ability to address pressing social and
environmental needs;
4.
The Foundation should identify and bring into
wider use new techniques and initiatives that
make effective use of those of all ages
engaged in community service.
-
To translate these principles into effective
action will require an agenda with two major aims:
a sustained national appeal for wider
participation by all citizens in existing and new
efforts, and specific initiatives designed to
showcase best practices, new ideas and programs.
B.
Continuing National Call to Action
-
With the bipartisan support of leaders in
government, business, churches, charitable
organizations and education, it is recommended
that the President:
1.
Lead a national media campaign whose key
point would be to motivate people to
community service. It would be designed to
complement and reinforce the diverse range
of national, state and local community
service campaigns that currently exist. It
would urge all Americans to become more
involved in local activities, support
community service efforts wherever they are
found, and raise the "level of effort" of
existing voluntary activities across the
country.
4
2.
Suggest that since they will be our
successors, it is most appropriate that our
young people lead this effort to give
original values a greater role in American
life.
3.
Suggest to state leaders that community
service be incorporated into elementary and
high school curricula and that much like in
75hrs.
Atlanta, Georgia presently, a minimum number
of hours of community service be recommended
as a condition precedent to high school
graduation provided that time spent on such
service would be in addition to, not in lieu
of, time spent studying.
4.
Suggest to college and university presidents
that applicants be judged on the basis of
quality and quantity of community service in
addition to standardized test scores and high
school class ranking, that students be given
degree credit for approved community service
and that certain institutions recommend a
semester of community service as part of
their degree program.
5.
Suggest to businesses and corporations that
community service be considered in assessing
job applicants, that career advancement of
employees be influenced by community service
and that employers encourage employees to
devote an average of five hours per week in
community service. As an inducement,
consideration might be given to allowing one-
fifth of that service to be on company time.
This service would appear to work best in
conjunction with a program developed by the
corporation in which the employees could work
as a team. We suggest that Federal, State
and local government employees adopt similar
practices.
6.
Suggest that corporations, churches, and
other non-profit organizations work with
welfare recipients to reconnect those
individuals to society and to guide them into
community service in accordance with the
provisions of the Family Support Act (Welfare
Reform) of 1988.
5
C.
Existing Programs and New Initiatives
-
As the response to the President's challenge
creates a significant number of new volunteers, it
is important that these newcomers to community
service have a role to play and a need for their
services that would be both stimulating and
fulfilling.
-
The President's challenge should encourage
citizens to identify social problems most
concerning them and to attempt to find an
organization working on a solution or to develop a
solution themselves.
-
It is important that corporations, churches and
organizations seek to mobilize their constituency
to community service. These institutions should
identify the most pressing social problems in
their area and develop program structures seeking
solutions. Utilizing teams from these
organizations to execute the programs can be a
most effective way to motivate individuals and to
inspire continuity. People working together can
have a greater impact.
-
Inquiries to the Foundation from interested
persons should be directed to existing
organizations. For example, Volunteer and its 380
offices are apparently able to register new
volunteers and match them through their data
system with appropriate organizations.
The Foundation would help by:
1.
Encouraging the television networks and local
stations to feature creative and innovative
community service initiatives so that other
individuals, institutions and groups would be
inspired to replicate those programs in their
local communities or, indeed, be inspired to
community service in general.
2.
Developing a National, State and local system
that would recognize unusual initiatives,
programs that have succeeded in solving
social problems, and extraordinary dedication
and present awards to those responsible. The
medium of television again and the
involvement of the President could be most
effective in maximizing recognition.
6
3.
Working with corporations and organizations
to help them establish a system that would
identify potential community service leaders
and then train them.
-
It is hoped that over a period of time
corporations, educational, social and religious
organizations will assume the role of
institutional leaders and be at least as effective
in many efforts as individual leaders. Those
institutions are anticipated to be the most
significant extension of the Foundation and its
objectives, thereby negating the need for a large
staff.
-
Moreover, it is hoped that the Foundation can help
connect the many existing non-profit organizations
with the new institutional leaders and initiatives
to avoid unnecessary redundancies and to maximize
the effectiveness of this movement.
-
It is planned that the Foundation will, in
conjunction with certain existing organizations,
develop prototypical initiatives in certain
communities each year with the hope that if
successful they will be replicated on a national
scale. These may include the combination of
Enterprise Foundation, Habitat for Humanity,
Cities in Schools, COOL, and similar
organizations.
-
Such experiments will also encourage
entrepreneurial creativity that will hopefully
spread throughout the movement and ultimately
reduce the dependency on external funds. An
example of this principle would be a local
initiative owning a fast-food restaurant or other
type of service establishment manned by volunteers
and youth in training. The profits generated
therefrom might be used to seed many new
initiatives.
-
It is hoped that with the call to serve issued in
a continuous manner by the President, together
with an effective follow-up plan by the
Foundation, enough individuals and institutions
will come to community service so that they will,
indeed, have a positive impact on the quality of
life and economic profile of our nation.
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
March 31, 1989
MEMORANDUM FOR ROGER PORTER
FROM:
GREGG PETERSMEYER
MP
SUBJECT:
OFFICE OF NATIONAL SERVICE INITIATIVES
Attached for your review is the draft of the YES to America
initiative. Also attached is the initiative for the foundation
in which YES to America will be housed, the Points of Light
Initiative: A National Community Service Trust.
I look forward to our 1:30 p.m. meeting today.
DRAFT
3/31/89
Office of National Service
YES TO America
I.
PURPOSES.
- To call all young people to action so that by the year 2000,
every young American will be engaged in community service.
- To empower young people with the sense that the nation is
theirs to inherit and that it is therefore in their interest
to improve the lot of their fellow citizens.
- To expand the capacity of existing service organizations to
absorb young volunteers in meaningful service opportunities.
- To promote community service through the means of existing
programs in their communities and the creation of new
programs.
- To improve the quality of life in America by attacking the
most fundamental socio-economic problems in the country at
their source: the disintegration of communities and families
and the resulting sense of loss of self-esteem among young
people. Each young person should be made to feel a part of
the "social compact, with an obligation to do his or her
part to better his or her community.
- To ennoble young Americans and enrich their lives by
instilling in them a sense of concern, compassion and
obligation to others.
II. PRINCIPLES.
- All young people have gifts to give.
- All young people between the ages of kindergarten to 25
(students, drop-outs, minorities, poor, affluent, disabled
and delinquent) should engage themselves in community
service.
- Young people have as much ability as adults do to evaluate
their own community needs and to devise and implement
strategies to meet those needs.
- It is critical to the nation's future and to the character
of a young person to instill at an early age the notion that
service to others is a necessary part of any definition of a
"successful" life.
- Young people currently engaged in community service should
be honored and regarded as role models.
- Existing outlets for community service should be amplified
and also honored.
- Ultimately, the bulk of youth service programs should be
devised and implemented by young people themselves through
existing or new organizations.
- YES should tap and channel the energy and enthusiasm of
America's young people and awaken the public to the value of
community service.
- "YES to America" should provide a framework around which the
young people in America will feel united in a collective
effort to improve the quality of life in their respective
communities.
- Service to others builds self-esteem. Lack of self-esteem
is at the very heart of many of the problems of youth.
-
Young people should not be financially compensated by the
federal government for their service; however, their service
should be rewarded by awards, commendations and other forms
of recognition.
- Citizenship is an integral part of a good education. The
nation's educational goals and the notion of community
service are complementary. Efforts will be made to "weave"
the notion of community service into existing curricula.
III. POINTS OF LIGHT INITIATIVE
- The YES initiative will be administered and coordinated
nationally by a Foundation, The Points of Light Initiative,
Inc. The Foundation will be chaired by the President and
its work will be directed by the Office of National Service
in the White House.
- The Foundation will serve as a "strategic planning center"
constantly surveying the dynamic service scene so as to keep
abreast of developments and implement a national plan.
- The Foundation will initiate and lead a public dialogue on
the issue of service through presidential speeches, public
hearings, forums, conferences, town meetings, etc.
- The Foundation will study and evaluate diverse existing
service programs with a view toward replicating effective
programs across the country.
- The Foundation will serve as a central clearinghouse for
national service information.
- The Foundation will provide technical assistance to people
and organizations, both public and private, who propose to
start programs.
- The Foundation will publicly recognize and honor outstanding
YES participants.
- The Foundation will set clearly defined, meaningful and
sound standards for YES programs.
IV. STATE LEVEL.
- The President will ask each Governor to appoint a YES
liaison to oversee and coordinate community service programs
and awards throughout the state. Such person will serve as
the liaison between his or her state and the Foundation and
will advise the Foundation of statewide community
activities.
- The liaison will report to the Foundation on statewide
youth-oriented community activities and receive
recommendations from the Foundation for statewide
initiatives.
V.
LOCAL LEVEL.
- Membership in YES will be open to all young people from
kindergarten through age 25.
- Every young person will be encouraged to participate,
including students, drop-outs, the poor, the affluent,
disabled and the delinquent, because every young person has
his or her own unique gifts to give.
- Programs and activities will be specifically designed to
maximize the particular skills and capabilities of discrete
age groups.
- Membership in YES will require a substantial commitment to
national service by all age groups. Examples of national
service programs include:
- High school based, part-time programs both during
school and after school, for credit or as an
extracurricular activity.
- Full-time summer service programs for both high school
and college students.
- College-based programs both for credit and as an
extracurricular activity.
- Full-time youth corps programs state and locally
sponsored or, sponsored by a public-private partnership
in a variety of modes such as:
Urban corps;
Conservation corps;
Specialty corps (Literacy Corps, Teacher Corps,
Health Care Corps).
-
VISTA, the Peace Corps and the Military.
-
Internship-type programs.
-
Post-Graduate School Opportunities (Legal Aid,
Teaching, recent graduates of Medical School serving in
Low-Income Clinics).
A.
YES CENTERS.
- All community-based organizations (e.g. schools, religious
institutions, businesses and civic organizations) will be
challenged to establish their own YES centers funded by
local resources and principally directed and staffed by
young people.
- The Foundation will provide packets and guidance on how to
set up local YES centers.
- YES Centers will:
- Encourage young people to devise their own programs and
policies to suit their own unique needs and
capabilities.
- Identify community needs and match those needs with the
talents and energy of the young people affiliated with
such centers;
- Direct young people to groups and projects which are in
need of services and will employ the young person with
a meaningful challenge;
- Arrange transportation where necessary;
- Train volunteers, mentors and team leaders where
appropriate;
- Attract members of the adult community as mentors, co-
workers and team leaders;
- Create and support new ideas for youth service;
- Evaluate service projects to assure that young people
have a meaningful service experience;
- Ensure that young people make a significant
contribution to their community;
- Award membership in the national organization;
- Encourage all community entities to recognize and
publicly honor the most outstanding efforts of youth of
every age in their communities;
-
Stimulate local fundraising efforts.
B.
THE ROLE OF THE SCHOOLS.
- Schools will be encouraged to weave community service and
citizenship into existing curricula.
- Community service builds self-esteem, leadership and, when
connected to classroom learning, increases student interest
in classroom education.
- The original mission of schools is to teach academic skills,
citizenship and leadership. A premium should be placed on
devising service programs that complement the learning of
basic educational skills (e.g., 3rd graders reading to
kindergarten students).
- School-based service can be a successful strategy to re-
engage students in learning. Students become more
interested in school when they are actively engaged in a
meaningful service project which reinforces classroom
learning. This is especially relevant to young people re-
entering school after dropping out or students lacking self-
esteem, motivation or students on the verge of dropping out.
- The success of a school-based community service initiative
is dependent upon the participation of parents, students,
and education leaders. The principal, faculty champion (s)
(member (s) of the faculty responsible for the project) as
well as the remaining faculty and parents, are all
imperative to a successful service experience for the
student.
- The education leaders and parents must constantly evaluate
and monitor programs to assure that the programs adequately
train the student for the community service experience and
account for what is being taught to ensure that the
community service project is meaningful and has the maximum
impact possible on the student and the student is making an
important contribution to the community.
C.
KINDERGARTEN - 6th GRADE.
- Activities of elementary school children will be organized
through their local schools. Elementary school teachers
will be asked to design activities appropriate for each age
level, such that each grade level participates regularly in
some community service, from drawing pictures to be sent to
children's hospitals to charging 4th graders to read to
kindergartners.
- The Foundation will make a YES education packet available to
teachers containing suggestions for programs and activities
for students as well as posters and teaching supplements for
the classroom.
D.
7th - 12th GRADE.
- Junior high and high school students will focus their
activities in YES centers and existing community
organizations. Such students will be expected to involve
themselves in these organizations or, alternatively, to
create new programs specifically tailored to their
individual interests and aptitudes.
- A teaching supplement will be available at these grade
levels as well as a means of further instilling the notion
of service in the consciousness of the young.
E. THE YES SUMMER INITIATIVE (Summer between 8th and 9th
grade)
- During the summer between 8th and 9th grade, young people
will be given an opportunity to work in a program jointly
designed by students, local governmental leaders and civic
leaders to harness the enthusiasm, creativity and energy of
young people and focus them on specific local problems.
- The aim of this summer initiative is to expose young people
to critical local needs and challenge them to find creative
ways of addressing them as a rite of passage to young
adulthood, a shared experience that would create an esprit
de corps among the young, as well as go a long way toward
alleviating pressing community problems. From this point
forward, the student will focus community service activities
beyond the school and into the community.
F.
HIGH SCHOOL - AGE 25.
- Young people in this age group will be asked to be team
leaders and mentors in local Yes Centers or to serve in
existing college or community-based programs or new programs
created by them to suit their individual needs and gifts.
VI. THE PRESIDENT'S YOUTH CORPS.
- The President, on the advice of Governors, will select two
college-aged young people from each state with a
demonstrated record of achievement in the field of community
service.
- The mission of the President's Youth Corps will be to travel
around their respective regions for one full year calling
other young people to action and suggesting ways that they
too might become involved in community service.
- Members of the Corps will be models to whom the President
can point in explaining what role he envisages for young
people in community service.
- The President's Youth Corps can also go into communities to
assist in program development and implementation where
needed.
- The Foundation will provide living expenses for the Corps
during their year of service.
VI. AUTHORIZATION.
- $25 million a year for four years to the YES to America
Foundation which will be matched by private funds.
Use of Funds.
1. Design, Marketing and Promotion
$11 million
(e.g. television and radio spots,
videos, pamphlets, posters, etc.).
2. Technical Assistance
and educational materials
$ 4 million
(e.g. fundraising counsel,
curriculum supplements).
3. Clearinghouse and Volunteer Network
$ 3 million
(e.g. toll-free number, computer system,
volunteer data base, newsletter).
4. Recognition of Outstanding Initiatives
$ 2 million
and Individuals, and Communication of their
Achievements through Mass Media.
5. Administrative Costs
$ 3 million
(e.g. staff salaries, equipment costs,
stationery, printing, postage).
6. Presidential Youth Corps
$ 2 million
(living expenses only).
TOTAL
$25 million