Advocate’s Guide to AmeriCorps & Appropriations
Each year, 200,000 AmeriCorps members and AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers address locally-identified needs in rural and urban communities across all 50 states, DC, and territories. They are responding to natural disasters, tutoring students, combatting hunger and homelessness, connecting veterans to services, fighting the opioid epidemic, and much more.
Despite being a model of efficient and effective government, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has taken steps to dismantle AmeriCorps. Since Wednesday, April 16th, the Administration has:
- Terminated close to $400 million in grants – 41% of the grant funds the agency provides to local communities – which will impact over 1000 local nonprofits and community organizations and 32,465 AmeriCorps members and AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers.
- Issued stop work orders to 750 AmeriCorps NCCC and FEMA Corps members, abruptly ending their service term with no notice.
- Dismissed nearly 85% of agency staff, disrupting key functions, such as program operations, member enrollment and deployment, and grant disbursement.
We need your help. Urge your lawmakers to protect AmeriCorps.
How Can I Help?
If you believe AmeriCorps makes a difference in your community, we urge you to contact your lawmakers and share how funding – and the AmeriCorps members and AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers it supports – is being leveraged in their district/state to solve urgent local needs.
Join us in calling on Congress to protect and invest in AmeriCorps. This webpage is our “Advocate’s Guide to AmeriCorps and Appropriations.” It will be updated with new and refreshed resources on a rolling basis.
If you have any questions or would like to schedule a call to discuss key messages or engagement opportunities, please email Shanelle Oliver, Director of Advocacy & Outreach, at soliver2@cityyear.org.
Fast Action Tools:
Additional Effective Strategies for Engaging with Congress
It is up to us to convince our lawmakers that funding for AmeriCorps is more than nice, it’s essential. We encourage you to look for every opportunity to communicate the impact of your service program through direct engagement with your legislators, which could include in-district meetings, site visits, special events, editorials, social media, blog posts and more.
Suggested Talking Points and Materials:
It is critical that you proactively emphasize the importance of funding AmeriCorps in all messages.
- Talking Points and Background: This guide breaks down the current funding situation and provides talking points that you can customize. (updated February 4, 2025)
- Tips for Handling Tough Questions: Prior to connecting with your lawmaker, review our tips for how to respond to questions about AmeriCorps funding.
Meet with your member(s) of Congress.
When lawmakers have to make difficult budget decisions, it is imperative that they know which federal programs are making a difference in the lives of their constituents. A meeting with your member of Congress or their senior staff is one of the most valuable ways that you can explain the impact your program is having in the communities they represent and the important role AmeriCorps funding plays in those results. Scheduling a meeting with the district/state office is easy and allows you to establish a relationship that can be deepened over time.
- Best practices for requesting to meet with a member of Congress
- Template for requesting a district meeting
- 2025 Congressional Calendar (House and Senate)
Host a site visit for your member(s) of Congress.
A site visit to a service location is a key way to demonstrate the essential services your organization provides and the real-life benefits of fully funding AmeriCorps. While hosting a site visit for your legislator or their staff requires more planning, it is an excellent way to cultivate a relationship that will benefit your program and AmeriCorps in the long term.
- Best practices for requesting a service site visit
- Site visit request template
- 2025 Congressional Calendar (House and Senate)
Write to your Senators and Representatives.
A well-crafted letter from your executive leadership or a local champion(s) is another useful way to communicate AmeriCorps’ unique value to your community and the importance of federal funding. Activating your board members, service partners, community leaders, and/or philanthropic investors and having them sign onto a letter in support of AmeriCorps funding will elevate the impact of your message.
Write an op-ed or Letter to the Editor.
Members of Congress closely monitor constituent interests and concerns via local news outlets. An opinion piece or letter to the editor that speaks to a broader audience, and underscores AmeriCorps’ vital importance to the local community, is a great way to get their attention and garner public support.
- Tips for Writing a Letter to the Editor (LTE)
- Template Letter to the Editor (LTE)
- Tips for Writing an Opinion Editorial
- Op-ed Template
Share these messages on your communications channels.
You can raise awareness of the value of AmeriCorps – and the importance of fully funding AmeriCorps – through social media, blog posts, email newsletters, and more. Be sure to tag @Voices4Service and use #Stand4Service so we can amplify any posts on social media!
Additional Resources:
Advocacy Starts at Home – In 2019, Voices for National Service interviewed Brian McNabb, Senator Bill Cassidy’s State Director (R-LA), to discuss the role of the district office, how to cultivate a relationship with district staff, and tips for leveraging an in-district meeting. There are many benefits to beginning your AmeriCorps advocacy in the Congressperson’s district, away from the chaos and distractions of Washington, D.C. Check out this short video series to make the most of engaging with your member of Congress at home, and building a connection based in your local community that will transfer to the halls of the U.S. Capitol.