FAQ / Media Kit

Table of Contents

What is ServiceNation?

ServiceNation is a national campaign to increase service opportunities, solve chronic social problems through service, and promote a culture of service in America. ServiceNation is a vision of a new America, an America where citizens unite to take responsibility for strengthening communities and building a better future, and where service is a core ideal of citizenship. The ultimate vision of ServiceNation is an America in which, by 2020, 100 million citizens will volunteer time in schools, workplaces, and faith-based and community institutions each and every year (up from 61 million today), and that increasing numbers of Americans annually will commit a year of their lives to national service.

Who is organizing ServiceNation?

The ServiceNation organizing committee is composed of the four groups below:

You can contact us at info@bethechangeinc.org

Does ServiceNation support mandatory national service?

No. We support the idea of voluntary community and national service. We are working to both inspire more Americans to volunteer their time and to encourage our leaders to create service opportunities for every American who wants to serve their community and country. We do not support mandatory national service requirements.

Who is part of the ServiceNation coalition?

ServiceNation has brought together a coalition of more than 100 organizations that collectively reach some 100 million Americans. These organizations include AARP, the NAACP, the Boys & Girls Club of America, the United Way of America, Habitat for Humanity International, and the Special Olympics, among many others. A full list of the ServiceNation coalition can be found here.

What was the timeline of the ServiceNation campaign?

  • September 11-12, 2008: ServiceNation summit in New York City, where leaders from every sector of American society gathered to endorse a broad set of policy of goals and a citizens' Declaration on Service (see summit facts below). To open the summit, the presidential candidates participated in a forum on citizenship and service moderated by TIME Magazine's Richard Stengel.
  • September 27, 2008: Day of Action, when communities across the country will participate in events emphasizing the importance of service and its impacts.
  • January 18, 2009: MLK Day "New Era of Service" Breakfast brought hundreds of citizens and leaders to Ballou High School in Washington DC to discuss the future of the service movement.
  • April 21, 2009: The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act was signed into law.

Summit Facts

ServiceNation's summit was on September 11-12, 2008, and took place in the New York City Hilton (1335 Avenue of the Americas).

The summit brought together about 500 leading Americans who sparked the conversation on national service and helped build enthusiasm and momentum for the ServiceNation campaign. As of July 15, there were over 60 members of the Leadership Council, including Glenn Close, Sam Nunn, Martin Luther King III, and Kal Penn. You can view the most up-to-date leadership council list here.

The summit was co-chaired by Caroline Kennedy, Alma Powell (Chair of America’s Promise Alliance), Richard Stengel (Managing Editor of TIME magazine), Vartan Gregorian (President of Carnegie Corporation of New York), and Bill Novelli (CEO of AARP). Mayor Michael Bloomberg made the opening remarks. California Governor Arnol Schwarzenegger and Senator Hillary Clinton gave the closing remarks.

On the night of September 11, after a Day of Service, presidential candidates Senator John McCain and Barack Obama both spoke individually at the Presidential Forum on Service.

You can read full transcripts of the summit here.

What is Mission Serve?

Mission Serve, led by Director and Operation Enduring Freedom-veteran Ross Cohen, is the ServiceNation coalition’s civilian-military initiative, connecting the civilian and military communities through a broad array of service and volunteer partnerships designed to address the challenges of our nation and our military communities.

The initiative has two strategic goals:

  1. To engage civilians, active duty and retired military personnel, and military families in service to meet the many critical needs of our nation and, in particular, the needs of the military community (service members, veterans, and their families).
  2. To better integrate our nation’s military community into service alongside the civilian community.

What is Service as a Strategy?

Service as a Strategy is a partnership between ServiceNation and Cities of Service to help mayors leverage the power of volunteer service to solve local challenges.

Service and volunteering are powerful tools that can help communities work towards solving a broad range of challenges. Local governments more than ever are incorporating coordinated service initiatives into their overall efforts to solve problems at the ground level. Find out more here.

Can I get the ServiceNation logo?

Yes, you can grab our logo in JPEG format.