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FOIA Number: 2013-0661-F FOIA MARKER This is not a textual record. This is used as an administrative marker by the William J. Clinton Presidential Library Staff. Collection/Record Group: Clinton Presidential Records Subgroup/Office of Origin: Political Affairs Series/Staff Member: Joan Baggett Subseries: OA/ID Number: 2786 FolderID: Folder Title: [Americorps National Service] Stack: Row: Section: Shelf: Position: S 28 4 1 2 AMERICORPS COMING SOON TO COMMUNITIES EVERYWHERE AmeriCorps is the new AmeriCorps domestic Peace Corps where thousands of young people will the new National Service soon be getting things done through service in exchange for help financing their movement that will higher education or repaying their student loans. get things done. Starting this fall, thousands of AmeriCorps members will fan out across the nation Watch for to meet the needs of communities everywhere. AmeriCorps, coming And the kinds of things they will help get done can truly change America-things like soon to your community immunizing our infants tutoring our teenagers and find out more Youth Corps members keeping our schools safe with the President at the restoring our natural resources by calling: White House for the signing and securing more of AmeriCorps National independent lives for our ill Service legislation. and our elderly. 1-800-94-ACORPS. The Washington Post Youth Service Corps THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2, 1993 Officials Prepare The winning service groups will then pick the By the end of this month, a toll-free hot line (1. students who will work for them. Some students For Recruiting Blitz 800-94-ACORPS) will begin giving potential appli- will go to work next summer, with the big kickoff in cants basic information about the AmeriCorps pro- September. gram and help link students to specific programs in "One of our objectives is to create a national ethic particular cities. By Mary Jordan of service," said Eli Segal, president of the Corpo- Each Cabinet-level agency also will be eligible to Washington Past Staff WINIT ration for National and Community Service that apply for AmeriCorps funds. oversees AmeriCorps. Former inner-city gangsters and Stanford Uni- All states have or will set up a community service Congress approved $300 million for national ser- commission to help select and monitor the Ameri- versity honor students are among those expected to vice in 1994. The White House hopes funding will Corps programs. The commissions also will help sign up in the new year for one of President Clin- escalate, and that likely will depend on whether the distribute the federal funds. About $11 million in ton's new programs: youths performing community program's initial reviews are good. federal money has been set aside for the state com- service to pay for college tuition. According to Clinton, youths who "look like missions, and they are expected to get some local In January, radio and television advertisements America" will be selected. Most are expected to be funding too. are to begin telling thousands of students how they between the ages of 17 and 25. Some will get in- The national office will cost an additional $14 can enroll in AmeriCorps and get paid for work volved in environmental work, others in public safe- million a year to operate. How it fares in its first ranging from comforting AIDS patients to tutoring ty, education or health programs. year is considered crucial for the eventual success preschoolers. In addition to AmeriCorps, two smaller service of AmeriCorps. In interviews last week with AmeriCorps leaders, programs are part of the national service corpora- Some critics of the program say they worry it will details of one of Clinton's most visible campaign tion. One is the Civilian Community Corps (CCC). not attract middle- and upper-class students be- promises emerged for the first time. All 20,000 of modeled after the popular 1930s pregram that gave cause the pay is so low. Others are concerned about the students to be selected next year will earn an people jobs on public works projects, such as plant- just the opposite, that only well-off students will be $8,000 wage (roughly $4.25 an hour), plus health ing trees and fixing parks. able to join. And many are waiting to see if worth- and child care benefits. If they successfully com- The CCC will involve 800 students, and all will be while work will get done. plete the 12-month program, the youths also will housed on military bases. Former military person- get $4,725 in college or vocational school tuition or nel will work as instructors. Youths participating in loan forgiveness. The government will write a this program do not have to have a high school de- check to the school of their choice. gree and will be selected as early as February. Program officials expect a blizzard of applications "The focus will be on civilian needs," said CCC from students, even though the compensation will director Donald Scott. Students will work at "cre- be considerably lower than proposals floated during ating green space in parks, tree-planting projects Clinton's campaign. and erosion control," among other projects, Scott The first step is next month's media campaign, said. which will include spots on MTV, an effort that pro- The other part of the service corporation is gram officials hope will help make AmeriCorps as VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) formed well known as the Peace Corps. In April and May, in 1964 and located a few blocks from the White nonprofit service groups such as Teach for Amer- House at 1100 Vermont Ave. NW. VISTA's 3,400 ica, which brings recent college graduates into volunteers will earn the same as AmeriCorps stu- needy elementary school classrooms, will be select- dents. and will do much the same kind of community ed to participate. work. USA TODAY THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2. 1993 Launching national service policy How to get information By Dennis Kelly now gearing up the process of with the education award. USA TODAY making it work. Programs that qualify will Regulations for the program have to meet the educational, People who think they'd WASHINGTON - They will be published in January. human, environmental or pub- like to apply for one of the aren't officially taking applica- Local and national groups then lic safety needs of their com- 20,000 national service slots bons yet for President Clinton's will compete for grants begin- munities. What those are will available next year can get national service plan - but ring in the spring and learn be up to commissions forming information now, but appli- they're already getting thou- who gets funded between May in each state - a "bottom-up" cations won't be officially sands of letters of interest. and August. By the end of 1994, approach that Segal says will taken for a while The people running the Cor- the Clinton administration ex- let communities decide what To get Information on poration for National and Com- pects to have 20,000 working in kinds of service are in their AmeriCorps, call the Corpo- munity Service - just a few community service jobs and best interest. ration for National and blocks from the White House earning awards of $4,725 per Still, Shirley Sagawa, nomi- Community Service at 202- say that's an indication of year in the program toward a nated as managing director of 606-5000 and then, If you high interest the program has college education or vocational the corporation, says the corpo- have a touch-tone phone, generated But 11 also leaves training. ration will help provide the dial 4 at the list of menu op- them nervous about expecta- The $1.5 billion program in- program a "national identity." tions. You can leave your nons the program has created. tends to have 100,000 partici- That will include a common name-and address and There are moments of real pants over three years. oath taken by participants, a you'll be sent a brochure. anxiety about all that is expect- SEGAL: Feels pressure to get The part of the national and logo, as well as training and This month, the corpora- ed We feel a real need to get service program working soon community service coΓpoΓa- monitoring of program quality. tion will announce a toll- this done quickly," says Eli Se tion devoted to Clinton's plan is The corporation even plans to free 800 number. Then In gal. president of the corpora- workers fixing up dilapidated called AmeriCorps. Anyone 17 hire some investigative-jour- May and August when 300 tion. the newly christened um- homes or escorting the elderly or over will be able to earn the nalist types as "circuit riders" to 400 non-profit groups are brella group overseeing to grocery stores in crime-in- $4,725 award toward college or to help ensure programs are selected to offer the nation- Clinton's national service plan fested neighborhoods. They vocational training by working delivering on promises. al service jobs, the toll-free and a host of existing commu- see college students working in with the non-profit groups that She says the program will number will get you to an nity service agencies "We've Head Start and early childhood are awarded grants in the ap- also work hard to ensure that operator who can tell you got to go back to Congress and education programs, all the plication process, or by work- program participants "look about programs In your ask for appropriations (again) time earning money that will ing with one of two existing ser- like America." That's meant to area. Local and national next year The fear IS how help pay their college bill vice agencies, the Civilian allay concerns that Ameri- agencies that win grants will much needs to be done and Those daydreams have been Community Corps or Volun- Corps would be dominated ei- do the hiring how much we need the local there ever since Clinton touted teers in Service to America, ther by low-income groups Those interested also dan communities to buy into this." national service as one way to better known as VISTA. forced into national service as write the corporation at But the vision for Clinton's help young people earn money Those hired get a $7,400 per the only way to pay for college 1100 Vermont Ave. N.W., national service program IS for college. year stipend - about mini- or by students from high-in- Washington, D.C. 20525, certainly heady stuff. But the daydreaming has mum wage - plus health care come families getting subsidies Attn: AmeriCorps: The Dallas Morning News Texas' Leading Newspaper Dallas. Texas. Monday. February 28, 1994 6 Sections HF 25 Cents National service's time has come This is one of the best-kept So, in Los Angeles, Mr. Segal met with represen- secrets in the country." said tatives of government agencies, schools, the United Bruce Corwin, the chairman of Metropolitan Theatres Way and others looking for bright-eyed help in Corp., as he listened to Eli Seg- teaching literacy or cleaning up streets, even in al, the man President Clinton helping old ladies cross them without being chose to create and run mugged. in the spirit of the times, local sponsors national service programs. "I will put up 15 percent of AmeriCorps costs. RICHARD want to put this up on my AmeriCorps members will be paid twice for a REEVES screens." year of their time and energy. First they will get A generous offer, consider- something like the minimum wage for 40 hours a ing that Metropolitan owns 800 screens in movie week. Then they will receive grants of $4,725 toward theaters across California And it is true that the college tuition or other skill training for each year new National and Community Service Trust Act, of service. (There will also be summer corps pro- grams for 3,500 students 8 year.) signed into law by the presió. nt in September, has The total budgeted (but not yet appropriated) for gotten lost in the clouds of megia attention to the service programs over the next three years is Whitewater. Bosnia and Tonya Harding. $1.5 billion. That would cover total service corps But President Clinton- has bis domestic Peace meinbership by then of 100,000 if Congress can be Corps. "A dream," he said. In case anyone might persuaded each year that every project is serving a miss the conrection, be used the same pen Presi- larger (profitable) purpose than just reinforcing dent John Kennedy used to sign the executive the idealism of the young and the good of the order that created the Peace Corps back in 1961. community. Now Mr. Segal, a businessman who was Mr. But I suspect that Mr. Clinton and Mr. Seg_1 are Clinton's campaign chief of staff, is on the road right. This is the best they can get now. If Ameri- campaigning for himself - for his agency, offi- Corps works - that is, if local communities approve cially the Corporation for National and Community of the work done - it will expand. possibly. one Service. The corporation's management mandate day. into universal national service. includes the 3,400 members of VISTA (Volunteers in The first syndicated column I wrote, 15 years ago Service to America). created by President Lyndon this month, argued that such national service was Johnson in 1964, and a new 800-member Civilian an idea whose time had come. 1 was wrong then - Community Corps, young people working in and often later too - but something like this is bet- national forests and parks. What's new is ter than nothing "National service can AmeriCorpa tell us what it is to be an American," said AmeriCorps will begin recruiting 20,000 young Mr. Segai, and I still hope he and the rest men and women in May. Before that, Mr. Segal and of us can make that happen - show one a very small staff will be out collecting applications another that there is more to life in these from non-profit organizations putting together pro- United States than marketing and grams to employ AmeriCorps members. Govern- consuming. ment agencies from states as big as California to small towns in Idaho can also apply for AmeriCorps Richard Reeves' column is distributed workers, but emphasizing private-sector involve- by the Universal Press Syndicate. ment was the price of winning conservative support for national service. The idea that every unit of the society must be geared to the needs and whims of the "private sector." must "pay for itself" or, even better. be a "profit center" has become imbedded in the American mentality these days. Doing good or investing in the future is no longer enough; govern- ment has to make money. too. SEASONS OF SERVICE "I challenge a new generation of young Americans to a season of service There is so much to be done enough, indeed, for millions of others who are still young in spirit to give of themselves in service, too." President Bill Clinton, Inaugural Address CORPORATION T he President's national service legislation created the new Corporation for FOR NATIONAL National and Community Service. Formed in conjunction with the White House Office of National Service, built upon the foundation of the former SERVICE Commission on National and Community Service and ACTION, and incorporating the new Civilian Community Corps, the Corporation is positioned to revitalize service in every region and community across the country. T he Corporation supports a range of national and community service programs, providing opportunities for participants to serve full-time and part-time, as volunteers or as stipended participants, and as individuals or as a part of a team. From our youngest citizens engaged in service-learning activities in grades K-12, to our older Americans assisting those in need in their communities, the Corporation provides "seasons of service" for all Americans. A meriCorps is the President's national service vision of directly and demonstrably addressing the nation's education, human, public safety, and environmental needs at the community level. AmeriCorps offers opportunities for Americans age 17 or older to make a substantial commitment to serve their country and to earn education awards for college or vocational training in return. Up to 20,000 Americans of all backgrounds will serve full-time or part-time in the program's first year, beginning in the fall of 1994. Included in AmeriCorps will be the more than 1,000 young people serving in the new Civilian Community Corps. The CCC is a national residential service option in which participants are housed and trained together on military bases and deployed as teams to community service sites. The CCC combines the best of our military tradition with the best practices of local community service corps, providing participants with opportunities to solve real community needs while developing their own leadership skills and receiving invaluable training for future careers. Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) will also be an important component of AmeriCorps. VISTA is a full-time, year-long program for men and women age 18 and older who commit themselves to increasing the capability of low-income people to improve the conditions of their own lives. VISTA volunteers serve in rural or urban areas or on Indian reservations, sharing their skills and experience in fields such as employment training, 100 Vermont Avenue, NW literacy, shelter for the homeless, and neighborhood revitalization. Washington, DC 20525 Approximately 3,500 VISTA volunteers are currently serving, joining more Telephone 202-606-5000 Fax 202-606-4928 than 100,000 alumni who have previously served their country through VISTA. Getting Things Done. AmeriCorps, National Service Learn and Serve America National Senior Service Corps L earn and Serve America programs are school-based, and integrate service into daily academic life. Service-learning is a method by which young people learn and develop through active participation in service experiences that meet community needs, and foster a lifetime commitment to service. The K-12 Program supports school and community-based organizations that engage school-aged youth in service. Over 275,000 students in all fifty states participate in service activities which are integrated into their curriculum, providing structured time for service and time for the students to think, talk, or write about their service experiences. Higher Education Innovation Programs engage college students in meeting pressing community needs. Higher education projects support high-quality community service and service-learning initiatives at colleges and universities across the nation. Some are student-run; some are faculty-led; many are integrated with academic study. As essential parts of the college experience, these efforts will create a new generation of leaders committed to service. N ational Senior Service Corps utilizes the skills, talents, and experience of older Americans in addressing urgent issues facing the nation. Together these programs involve over 470,000 volunteers who serve in 1,223 local projects and devote an annual total of over 111 million hours of service to their local communities. The Foster Grandparent Program offers low-income persons age 60 and over the opportunity to serve one-on-one with children and young people who have special needs, including teen parents, boarder babies and those who are abused and neglected. Over 23,000 Foster Grandparents serve twenty hours a week in volunteer stations such as hospitals, public schools, day care centers and correctional institutions. The Senior Companion Program volunteers are low-income men and women age 60 and over. Senior Companions provide individualized support and assistance to other adults, primarily the homebound elderly. Their services help the homebound achieve and maintain their highest level of independent living. Approximately 13,000 Senior Companions provide disability assistance, home management assistance, and social and recreational companionship to approximately 32,000 individuals each year. The Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) is a network of 430,000 Americans, age 55 and up, who perform a wide range of volunteer services that meet real community needs and effectively use their skills, interests, and experience. RSVP is the Corporation's largest service program, providing communities with volunteers diverse in experience, interest, income, and education, and ready to take on the challenges facing the country. NAI A EFRICE AmeriCorps National Service CORPORATION FOR NATIONAL AMERICORPS NATIONAL PRIORITIES SERVICE AmeriCorps is the new national service movement which will engage Americans of all ages and backgrounds, especially young people, in full or part-time service that gets things done in communities across the nation. AmeriCorps Members will perform service that will have a direct and demonstrable impact in four critical issue areas: education, public safety, human needs, and the environment. By the end of the year, up to 20,000 AmeriCorps participants will be getting things done by meeting the critical needs within these national priorities: EDUCATION School Readiness: furthering early childhood development Getting Things Done: Improving the quality and availability of child development programs by working in day care and Head Start centers and preschool programs Teaching literacy and other basic skills to parents of young children so that they can help their children learn Helping teen parents stay in school by proving needed services such as child care School Success: aiding the educational achievement of school-aged youth and adults who lack basic education skills Getting Things Done: Working in schools with high concentrations of low-income students Mentoring, tutoring, and providing after-school and summer learning opportunities Coordinating service-learning activities for K-12 students PUBLIC SAFETY Crime Prevention: reducing the incidence of violence Getting Things Done: Reducing crimes against youth by making schools safe, creating safe havens, providing training in conflict resolution, and involving youth in prevention 1100 Vermont Avenue, NW efforts Washington. DC 20525 Providing substance abuse counseling and education Telephone 202-606-5000 Developing specific crime prevention strategies targeted at key locations such as Fax 202-606-4928 playgrounds, public transportation points, and other public gathering places Getting Things Done. AmeriCorps, National Service Learn and Serve America National Senior Service Corps Crime Control: improving criminal justice services, law enforcement, and victim services Getting Things Done: Enhancing community policing efforts by working with local law enforcement Reducing specific crime problems such as drug dealing, domestic violence, crimes motivated by bias, crimes against senior citizens, and child abuse Improving services available for victims of crime and strengthening innovative criminal justice programs such as neighborhood courts and community restitution HUMAN NEEDS Health: providing independent living assistance, home-and community-based health care Getting Things Done: Providing independent living assistance and health care to the homebound elderly, people with disabilities, and people living with AIDS Improving the health of low-income communities by offering preventive health services through community health clinics Offering prenatal care, parenting education, and health care to families of young children through home visits Home: rebuilding neighborhoods and helping people who are homeless Getting Things Done: Helping people who are homeless by providing shelter support, assisting in moving into permanent housing, and related services Renovating and rehabilitating low-income housing Helping individuals move from public assistance and into self-sufficiency by providing job training, literacy tutoring, and other services ENVIRONMENT Neighborhood Environment: reducing community environmental hazards Getting Things Done: Revitalizing neighborhoods by creating and maintaining recreation areas, green spaces, and community gardens Eliminating environmental risks through education, testing, and cleanup Reducing waste through energy efficiency efforts, recycling, and other conservation measures Natural Environment: conserving, restoring, and sustaining natural habitats Getting Things Done: Conserving and restoring public lands, forests, rivers, streams and wetlands Making parks more accessible through trail maintenance, infrastructure improvements Sampling, mapping, monitoring, and recording air and water quality and status of groundwater, land, plan, and animal resources AMERICORPS WHAT IS AMERICORPS? AM I ELIGIBLE TO JOIN? WHERE WOULD I SERVE? CAMPUS TOUR '94 AmeriCorps is the new AmeriCorps Members AmeriCorps Members National Service Movement will be selected from all might serve right in their WANT TO KNOW initiated by President backgrounds and ages...and own communities or in any MORE ABOUT Clinton and passed by the AMERICORPS WILL LOOK other part of the country AMERICORPS???? Congress last September LIKE AMERICA You are Right now AmeriCorps is AmeriCorps will involve eligible if you are a U.S. conducting a nationwide HERE ARE SOME FACTS predominately college-age citizen or a legal resident competition to select young people and it will YOU NEED TO KNOW if you are 17 years or community-based programs create a massive domestic ABOUT HOW YOU CAN older if you are willing to which will run service projects Peace Corps to change your country by and make up the AmeriCorps CHANGE AMERICA IIII GET THINGS DONE in caring for your National Service Network. our urban and rural community and if you are AMERICORPS communities across the ready to GET THINGS IS NOT JUST ANOTHER country AmeriCorps will DONE!!!! GOVERNMENT PROGRAM be launched in IT'S A GRASSROOTS SEPTEMBER OF 1994 WHEN WOULD I SERVE? MOVEMENT!!!! SERVICE and by the end of the AmeriCorps Members will year as many as 20,000 serve for one or two years in HOW DO I JOIN? young Americans will be exchange for education The AmeriCorps National meeting the critical benefits right after Service Network of needs of COMMUNITIES HIGH SCHOOL programs will be announced EVERYWHERE!!!! OR DURING COLLEGE soon AmeriCorps OR AFTER COLLEGE!!!! Members will be recruited HOW WOULD I SERVE? locally and nationally If you are an AmeriCorps WHAT DO YOU beginning this Member...your job will be MEAN BY EDUCATION summer and AmeriCorps all about community BENEFITS ? will be launched across the responsibility and In exchange for your country this fall educational opportunity service you will receive a AMERICORPS In exchange for college/ stipend/salary...health COMING SOON TO vocational tuition or student care and an education COMMUNITIES loan repayment. you will benefit of $4,725 per year EVERYWHERE!!!! have THE TIME OF YOUR TO FINANCE YOUR LIFE doing direct and TUITION OR PAY BACK WHAT DO I DO NOW? demonstrable service to YOUR STUDENT Learn more about meet the EDUCATION, LOANS!!!! AmeriCorps and how you PUBLIC SAFETY, HUMAN, might get involved by AND ENVIRONMENTAL calling the NEEDS OF YOUR AmeriCorps Hotline COMMUNITY!!!! 1-800-94-ACORPS TDD 1-800-833-3722 AMERICORPS COMING SOON TO COMMUNITIES EVERYWHERE RICO M AmeriCorps is the new domestic Learn more about Peace Corps where thousands of young AmeriCorps people will soon be getting things done and how you might SERVICE through service in exchange for help in get involved financing their higher education or repaying their student loans. by calling the Starting this fall, thousands of AmeriCorps Hotline AmeriCorps members will fan out across 1-800-94-ACORPS the nation to meet the needs of communities everywhere. And the kinds of things they will help get done can truly change America-things like immunizing our infants tutoring our teenagers bouth Carps members keeping our schools safe restoring our with the President at the White House for the signing natural resources and securing more Imeric ares National independent lives for our ill and our crrice legistation. elderly. CIVILIAN NATIONAL CIVILIAN COMMUNITY CORPS NATIONAL 10 AN AMERICORPS PROGRAM CORPS Fact Sheet AN AMERICORPS PROGRAM THE PROGRAM: A new residential service program, National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) expands opportunities for young Americans to work in teams to meet critical needs in urban and rural communities. Drawing on the best methods used by civilian service projects, NCCC adds the experience of the Armed Forces in motivating and training American youth. THE CORPS: C orps members live dormitory-style and train together at military bases. Training - using service learning methods - is focused on leadership, team building, citizenship and physical conditioning. Skills for specific projects are taught before corps members begin their community efforts. Corps members, working in teams of ten, are expected to provide leadership and day-to-day project planning. ELIGIBILITY: N CCC is open to young adults 18-24 willing to commit to an 11-month program of service. An 8-week sum- mer program is planned for ages 14-17. Corps members must be citizens or permanent residents of the U.S. Selection is based primarily on an application and personal references. Part of NCCC's mission is demonstrating the strength that diversity gives to an organization. SERVICES: N CCC focuses on projects that protect and conserve natural resources, promote public safety and help meet the educational and human needs of children, older persons and others in a community. Many corps members are trained for disaster relief and recovery projects. BENEFITS: C orps members receive lodging, meals, uniforms, health care, child care, job skill training and earn an $8,000 living allowance over 11 months of service. NCCC also provides an education award of $4,725; or, a corps member can choose a cash award of $2,362. The real compensation for corps members comes from having as much responsibility and as many challenges as they can handle. The NCCC experience is expected to help mem- bers become skilled leaders committed to their communities. ABOUT AMERICORPS: A meriCorps is the name for the new national service programs created by the Congress and President Clinton as part of the National and Community Service Trust Act of 1993. The NCCC is part of AmeriCorps. Up to 20,000 Americans will serve in AmeriCorps by early 1995. FOR MORE INFORMATION WRITE OR CALL: N CCC, 1100 Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20525 1-800-94-ACORPS, (202) 606-5000 Printed on Recycled Paper.