Association of Farmworker Opportunity
Programs
Carla Ganiel, Senior Program & Project Specialist
AmeriCorps State and National
Topics
• What is AmeriCorps?
• Economic Opportunity Focus Area/Job Training
Programs
• Serving in AmeriCorps
Corporation for National & Community
Service (CNCS)
• Created in 1993 through the signing of the
National and Community Service Trust Act
• Nation’s largest grant maker supporting service
and volunteering
• Engages millions of Americans in service each
year
• Sponsors and promotes a variety of special
initiatives and days of service
What is AmeriCorps?
AmeriCorps
AmeriCorps State and National
• Awards grants to non-profits, faith & communitybased organizations, public agencies, Indian
tribes, and institutions of higher education.
• Provides opportunities for individuals –
AmeriCorps members – to serve communities
across the country.
• Since 1994, more than 900,000 men and women
have provided service as AmeriCorps members.
AmeriCorps State and National Grants
• Provide partial funding to support AmeriCorps
projects/programs. Grant recipients must
contribute cash or in-kind match funds
• Solely for program expenses and not for general
organizational expenses
• Include an allotment of AmeriCorps member
positions and funds that are directly tied to the
number of members
Focus Areas
• Disaster Services
• Healthy Futures
• Economic Opportunity
• Education
• Environmental Stewardship
• Veterans and Military Families
• Organizational Capacity Building
Economic Opportunity Focus Area
• 17% of AmeriCorps Portfolio
• Interventions Include
– Financial Literacy
– Job Training/Placement
– Housing Services
Job Training/Placement
• More than 60 grantees provide job
training/placement interventions
• More than 1,000 members provide services
• Currently, no programs focus specifically on farm
workers, but several focus on immigrants and
refugees
NFJP Service Locations
• Eastern Maine Development Corporation
– Bangor AmeriCorps Opportunity Collaborative
– Job Training
• Telamon Corporation
– LifeBridge AmeriCorps
– Financial literacy, job training, education, health
• Community Council of Idaho
– Idaho Healthcare for Children and Families AmeriCorps
– Health needs of children enrolled in Head Start
• OIC of Washington
– Washington Service Corps
– Education, disaster, health, veterans & military families
Lutheran Family Services of Nebraska
• Combines targeted pre-employment case
management and traditional workforce
development interventions
• AmeriCorps members provide individualized
services that program staff cannot
• Measures improvement on Client Goal
Attainment Scale after 90 days of case
management
Lutheran Family Services of Nebraska
• 2008 study in the American Journal of Psychiatric
Rehabilitation demonstrated that case
management teams blending members with
relevant academic credentialing and members
from beneficiary populations have improved
outcomes compared to those composed only of
professionally trained staff
• LFS actively recruits AmeriCorps members from
beneficiary populations
AmeriCorps Eligibility
• Age
– At least 17 years of age
– Out-of-school youth at least 16 years of age if focused
on developing economic self-sufficiency of members
ages 16-24
AmeriCorps Eligibility
Education
• High school diploma or equivalent
• Agree to obtain a high school diploma or
equivalent prior to using the Education Award
• Cannot drop out of school to enroll in AmeriCorps
AmeriCorps Eligibility
Citizenship
• Must be a citizen, national or lawful permanent
resident alien of the United States
Other
• Must satisfy criminal history check eligibility
Member Recruitment
• Programs develop qualifications and position
descriptions based on program design
• Many programs seek to recruit economically
disadvantaged individuals or members of the
target population served by the program
Benefits
• Living allowance (Minimum $12,530 for full-time
member)
• Education Award ($5,730 for full-time member)
• Health Care
• Child Care (if qualified)
Farm Workers and Family Members
• Part-time opportunities
• Residential programs
• Programs focused on helping members complete
GED or gain employment skills
• Programs serving immigrant communities
Volunteering as a Pathway to Employment
• CNCS study using data from the 2001-2012
Current Population Survey to explore the extent
to which volunteering can maximize chances of
finding employment
• Volunteering is associated with a 27% higher
odds of employment, statistically significant at
99.9% confidence level
Volunteering as a Pathway to Employment
• The association between volunteering and
employment had the strongest effect on
individuals without a high school diploma or
equivalent (51% increase in odds) and
individuals who live in rural areas (55% increase
in odds)
Additional Information
CNCS Website: http://www.nationalservice.gov/
Find and Apply for AmeriCorps positions:
https://my.americorps.gov/mp/login.do
Volunteering as a Pathway to Employment
http://www.nationalservice.gov/impact-ournation/research-and-reports/volunteering-pathwayemployment-report