The Case for Service

 

“Anybody can be great, because anybody can serve” – Martin Luther King, Jr

Our nation faces enormous challenges. But just as previous generations have triumphed over great adversity, ServiceNation believes that service can unite America in common cause and help build a better future. There is nothing that Americans can't achieve when they rally and dedicate themselves to the service of their communities and their country.

 

How can service help? Why is service important today?

• The current economic crisis affects not only unemployed older workers but also those graduating from school and unable to find a job. The youth unemployment rate is now more than 20%.
• National service can be a critical part of meeting President Obama's recovery goals. National service can address problems (many exacerbated by increased needs on the part of those who have lost jobs, cuts to state and local government and reduced philanthropic dollars to nonprofits providing critically needed services) in energy, education, health, infrastructure and other human and environmental areas.
• Full-time national service members are an important human resource for the nonprofit sector, helping organizations such as Habitat for Humanity and the Red Cross, among many others, recruit and manage unpaid volunteers.
• The country needs an “all hands on deck” strategy that creates jobs while addressing critical needs, much as the Civilian Conservation Corps did during the recovery from the Great Depression.

The Need

• A recent Northeastern University study has found that the percentage of teens employed has already dropped from 45% in 2000 to about 33% today.
• In low-income areas, teen employment hovers around 10 percent.
• The economic crisis will only continue to drive unemployment higher.

The Demand

• Last year, before the economic crisis, AmeriCorps turned away two applicants for every applicant it could accept.
• Teach For America last year had 24,718 applicants for 3,700 slots; already, this year TFA expects some 37,000 applications for 5,000 slots. Applications to City Year are up 180 percent over last year at this time.
• Peace Corps in 2008 had more than 13,000 applications for fewer than 4,000 spots, and nearly 20 countries are asking for new programs.
• Implementing Obama’s service plan, and passing the Serve America Act as the President called for in his February address to a Joint Session of Congress, would expand the number of national service positions by 175,000.

The Relative Cost

• The average full-time AmeriCorps position comes with a $12,500 grant from the federal government plus an education award of $4,735. The average infrastructure job created by the stimulus package signed by the President is projected to cost about $100,000, more than five times what a service job costs.
• The stimulus package totaled $790 billion. Adding 175,000 national service positions would cost just over $3 billion, or less than one half of one percent of the cost of the overall stimulus (or of the Wall Street bailout, for that matter).

The Leverage

• National service capacity and community service capacity are linked. In 2008, 75,000 AmeriCorps members mobilized and directed 2.2 million community volunteers.
• The average value of a volunteer hour in the United States is $19.51.
• National service investment catalyzes additional investment. In 2007, AmeriCorps programs leveraged more than $400 million in private sector and non-federal resources, almost a 1:1 match rate.
• Cost-benefit analyses of AmeriCorps programs have concluded that every $1 of investment results in between $1.50 and $3.90 in direct, measurable benefits: children tutored, playgrounds constructed, homeless men and women fed, hurricane victims housed.
• That does not include all the enormous indirect savings of helping kids graduate from high school and go on to tax-paying employment (a high school graduate generates $300,000 more lifetime tax revenue than a non-graduate), helping steer Americans away from paths that lead toward costly imprisonment and reliance on social services, or connecting the ailing with health services that prevent emergency room visits.

The Impact

• The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that if unemployment rises to 9 percent - a growing likelihood - the number of Americans driven into poverty will increase by 7.5-10.3 million.
• In 2007, AmeriCorps members served with 4,600 non-profits across the country, delivering critically needed services to people and communities in need.
• National and community service members perform important social services—from helping feed, clothe, house and find health care for those in need, to tutoring and mentoring youth, to reducing urban violence. Surging national service capacity (and by extension community service capacity) will reinforce the already-frayed social safety net at a time when increasing numbers of Americans will need it.
• Reinforcing service strategies that target high-school dropouts, promote energy efficiency, and reduce health care costs, among other things, will help President Obama achieve some of his broader goals for America.
• Adding the 175,000 national service slots called for in President Obama’s service plan (and the Serve America Act) to the 75,000 who are already serving will also help President Obama achieve his broader goal of helping young Americans attain the American Dream of a college education.

A Few Examples Of Service Impact

• Since 1994, more than 574,000 men and women have given more than 718 million hours of service to their communities and country through AmeriCorps.
• Last year AmeriCorps members (state and national):
  • mentored more than 210,000 children and youth, including 26,000 children of prisoners
  • provided meals, shelter, case management and other services to 1.4 million people recovering from disasters
  • provided independent living services to 50,000 seniors to help them remain in their homes
• In response to Hurricane Katrina, 12,100 AmeriCorps members have provided more than 4.2 million service hours and managed more than 368,000 volunteers.
• Since Katrina AmeriCorps NCCC has deployed 4,070 members to the Gulf Coast. They have assisted 3 million people, refurbished 9,500 homes, constructed 1,450 new homes, served 1.6 million meals, distributed 2,280 tons of food, and managed 227,000 volunteers. 1.8 million hours of service with an estimated value of $35 million.
• Last year, 680 AmeriCorps members helped Habitat recruit, train, and supervise more than 206,000 volunteers to build nearly 2,000 homes for low-income families. They also generated over $7 million in cash and in-kind donations.
• Last year 30,000 Foster Grandparents (Senior Corps) tutored and mentored more than 230,000 children and youth with special needs. 81% of the children demonstrated improvements in academic performance; 90% demonstrated improved self-image; and 59% reported a reduction in risky behavior.
• During its first 10 years, Community HealthCorps (which is 650 AmeriCorps each year), accomplished the following:
  • 411,150 individuals received and better utilized preventive and primary health care;
  • 321,230 encounters to improve utilization of health care of chronic care patients;
  • 170,500 encounters to link patients and members of the community with health and social services (e.g., housing, employment, child care).
• Students with an Experience Corps tutor make as much as 40% more progress in reading comprehension and vocabulary development as students without tutors. And, in schools with Experience Corps, HALF as many students were suspended as compared to schools without Experience Corps.
• From 2002-2006 YOUTHBUILD served 14,386 low income young Americans, with an average age of about 19 years. 90 percent had no high school diploma or GED. 76% went on to jobs or further education and 33% went on to get their GED or Diploma.
• After one year in the program, Citizen Schools students (4,500 kids from low-income backgrounds, who are behind academically) outperformed a comparison group on 6 out of 7 academic metrics, including attendance, suspension, and promotion. From being behind in 4th grade, Citizen School students outperform public high school students by the time they reach tenth grade.
• In Denver, the Mile High Youth Corps goes in and helps low-income households improve the energy efficiency of their homes (installing fluorescent lights, showerheads, and carbon monoxide/smoke detectors, adjusting thermostats, replacing toilets with high efficiency tanks, putting aerators on faucets, and educating residents about energy conservation). In the first six months of 2007, the Corps served more than 2,500 homes, saving homeowners nearly $300,000 and 1.1 million kWh of energy annually. The state of Colorado estimates average annual energy savings at $109.90 per home.