III 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 158 

Designating April 20, 2007, as ‘‘National and Global Youth Service Day’’. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 18, 2007 

Ms. MURKOWSKI (for herself, Mr. AKAKA, Mr. ALEXANDER, Mr. BAUCUS, Mr. 

BAYH, Mrs. BOXER, Mr. BROWN, Mr. BURR, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. 

CASEY, Mrs. CLINTON, Mr. COCHRAN, Mr. COLEMAN, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. 

CORKER, Mr. CRAIG, Mr. DODD, Mrs. DOLE, Mr. DOMENICI, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. FEINGOLD, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. GREGG, Mr. HAGEL, Mr. 

KENNEDY, Ms. LANDRIEU, Mr. LAUTENBERG, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. 

LIEBERMAN, Mrs. LINCOLN, Mr. LOTT, Mr. MARTINEZ, Mr. MENENDEZ, 

Ms. MIKULSKI, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. NELSON of Nebraska, Mr. NELSON

of Florida, Mr. OBAMA, Mr. SALAZAR, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. SPECTER, Ms. 

STABENOW, and Mr. STEVENS) submitted the following resolution; which 

was considered and agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Designating April 20, 2007, as ‘‘National and Global Youth 

Service Day’’. 

Whereas National and Global Youth Service Day is an annual 

public awareness and education campaign that highlights 

the valuable contributions that young people make to 

their communities; 

Whereas the goals of National and Global Youth Service Day 

are to— 


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(1) mobilize the youth of the United States to identify and address the needs of their communities through 

service and service-learning; 

(2) support young people in embarking on a lifelong 

path of service and civic engagement; and 

(3) educate the public, the media, and policymakers 

about contributions made by young people as community 

leaders throughout the year; 

Whereas National and Global Youth Service Day, a program 

of Youth Service America, is the largest service event in 

the world and is being observed for the 19th consecutive 

year in 2007; 

Whereas young people in the United States and in many 

other countries are volunteering more than in any other 

generation in history; 

Whereas children and youth not only represent the future of 

the world, but also are leaders and assets today; 

Whereas children and youth should be valued for the idealism, energy, creativity, and unique perspectives that they 

use when addressing real-world issues such as poverty, 

hunger, illiteracy, education, gang activity, natural disasters, climate change, and myriad other issues; 

Whereas a fundamental and conclusive correlation exists between youth service and lifelong adult volunteering and 

philanthropy; 

Whereas, through community service, young people of all 

ages and backgrounds build character and learn valuable 

skills sought by employers, including time management, 

decisionmaking, teamwork, needs-assessment, and leadership; 


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Whereas service-learning is a teaching and learning strategy 

that integrates meaningful community service with academic curriculum; 

Whereas service-learning supports young people in mastering 

important curriculum content by helping them make 

meaningful connections between what they are studying 

and the challenges that they see in their own communities; 

Whereas high quality service-learning has been found to increase student academic engagement, academic achievement scores, civic engagement, character development, 

and career aspirations; 

Whereas a report by Civic Enterprises found that 47 percent 

of high school dropouts reported boredom as a primary 

reason for dropping out; 

Whereas service-learning has been found to increase students’ 

cognitive engagement, motivation to learn, and school attendance; 

Whereas several private foundations and corporations in the 

United States support service-learning as a means to develop the leadership and workforce skills necessary for 

the competitiveness of the United States in the 21st century; 

Whereas a report by America’s Promise found that 94 percent of young people want to be involved in making the 

world a better place, but 50 percent say there should be 

more volunteer programs for people their age; 

Whereas the same report found that one-third of young people say they lack adult role models who volunteer and 

help others; 


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Whereas a sustained investment by the Federal Government, 

business partners, schools, and communities could fuel 

the positive, long-term cultural change that will make 

service and service-learning a common expectation and a 

common experience for all young people; 

Whereas National and Global Youth Service Day engages 

millions of young people worldwide with the support of 51 

lead agencies, 40 international organizations, and 110 

national partners; 

Whereas National Youth Service Day inspired Global Youth 

Service Day, which occurs concurrently in more than 100 

countries and is now in its 8th year; 

Whereas a growing number of Global Youth Service Day 

projects involve youth working collaboratively across national and geographic boundaries, increasing intercultural 

understanding and promoting the sense that they are 

global citizens; and 

Whereas both young people and their communities will benefit greatly from expanded opportunities to engage youth 

in meaningful volunteer service and service-learning: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) recognizes and commends the significant 

3 contributions of the youth of the United States and 

4 encourages the cultivation of a common civic bond 

5 between young people dedicated to serving their 

6 neighbors, their communities, and the Nation; 

7 (2) designates April 20, 2007, as ‘‘National and 

8 Global Youth Service Day’’; and 


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1 (3) calls on the people of the United States 

2 to— 

3 (A) observe the day by encouraging youth 

4 to participate in civic and community service 

5 projects and by joining them in such projects; 

6 (B) recognize the volunteer efforts of the 

7 young people of the United States throughout 

8 the year; and 

9 (C) support the volunteer efforts of young 

10 people and engage them in meaningful learning 

11 and decisionmaking opportunities today as an 

12 investment in the future of the United States. 

Æ 


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