AmeriCorps State and National 101 

and FY 2021 Competition Overview

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10/29/2020
Agenda

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AmeriCorps State and National (ASN)

Eligible Programs

ASN Members

Program responsibilities

How to apply
AmeriCorps

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Awards grants to non-profits, faith 

& community-based 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 1 million 

men and women have provided 

service as AmeriCorps members.
ASN Grants

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Provide partial funding to support ASN projects/programs. 

Grant recipients must contribute cash or in-kind match funds.

Solely for program expenses and not for general organizational 

expenses.

Fund programs in six focus areas - education, healthy futures, 

economic opportunity, veterans and military families, 

environmental stewardship, and disaster services. 

Include an allotment of AmeriCorps member positions and 

funds that are directly tied to the number of members.
ASN Grants

Activities designed for ASN members must demonstrate an 

evidence-based or evidence-informed approach to 

strengthening communities and solving community problems

Allow an organization to better address community needs by 

utilizing ASN resources to build capacity or deepen the impact 

of the service to individuals or communities

Broaden the scope of the service activities to reach previously 

underserved communities

NOTE: Funds cannot supplant resources that organically exist in 

a community. 

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How does an organization become 

an ASN Program?

There are 2 ways an organization can become an ASN grantee:

Apply directly to AmeriCorps

OR

Submit an application to a State Service Commission 

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Single-State ASN Programs

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If your program wishes to address community needs in only one 

state, your organization must apply to your state’s State Service 

Commission for AmeriCorps funding.

https://www.nationalservice.gov/about-cncs/contact-us/stateservice-commissions
State Service Commissions

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Comprised of governor appointed boards who oversee the 

implementation of service and volunteer initiatives in their 

state. 

Employ staff that manage, monitor and evaluate the 

programs. 

Provide Corporation funding to single-state programs through 

grant competitions.

Provide feedback to the Corporation on the multi-state 

programs operating in their state.
Multi-State ASN Programs

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Address community needs in at least two states

Have relationships with entities in different states that will 

operate the local programs

Consult with State Commissions in each of the states where 

they operate programming

Submit grant applications directly to AmeriCorps
Indian Tribes

Federally recognized Indian Tribes may apply for funding via 

one of several mechanisms: 

Apply directly to the Corporation for National and Community 

Service

 Via the Indian Tribes Notice of Funding 

Opportunity (NOFO)

 Via the main AmeriCorps NOFO 

Submit an application to a State Service Commission

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AmeriCorps Members

• Individuals enrolled for a specific term 

of service with an AmeriCorps program

• Members are not volunteers or 

employees

• Members have a contract with the 

program

• Members must commit to a specific 

term of service

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ASN Member Terms of Service

Service Term Minimum Hours 

Served

Full-time 1,700

Three Quarter-time 1,200

Half-time 900

Reduced Half-time 675

Quarter-time 450

Minimum-time 300

Abbreviated-time 100

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Examples of ASN Member Activities

 Training citizens in disaster 

preparedness

 Providing recovery and/or 

mitigation

 Improving the housing situation for 

economically disadvantaged 

people. 

 Improving the school readiness of 

pre-k children

 Improving the academic 

performance or academic 

engagement of K-12 students

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 Responding to disaster events 

 Improving the environmental 

condition of distressed public 

lands and waterways

 Enhancing the quality of life for 

homebound or older adults and 

individuals with disabilities 

 Increasing access to food 

resources for economically 

disadvantaged individuals

 Engaging veterans and military 

families in service or providing 

service to these individuals.
Prohibited Activities

Activities that staff, volunteers and members may not engage in 

while charging time to the AmeriCorps program, accumulating 

service or training hours, or otherwise performing activities 

supported by the AmeriCorps program or CNCS

The full list of prohibited activities can be found in the 

AmeriCorps Regulations, section 2520.65.

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Prohibited Activities

(1) Attempting to influence legislation; 

(2) Organizing or engaging in protests, petitions, boycotts, or 

strikes; 

(3) Assisting, promoting, or deterring union organizing; 

(4) Impairing existing contracts for services or collective bargaining 

agreements; 

(5) Engaging in partisan political activities, or other activities 

designed to influence the outcome of an election to any public 

office; 

(6) Participating in, or endorsing, events or activities that are likely 

to include advocacy for or against political parties, political platforms, 

political candidates, proposed legislation, or elected officials;

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Prohibited Activities

(7) Engaging in religious instruction, conducting worship services, 

providing instruction as part of a program that includes mandatory 

religious instruction or worship, constructing or operating facilities 

devoted to religious instruction or worship, maintaining facilities 

primarily or inherently devoted to religious instruction or worship, or 

engaging in any form of religious proselytization; 

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Prohibited Activities

(8) Providing a direct benefit to—

(i) A business organized for profit; 

(ii) A labor union; 

(iii) A partisan political organization; 

(iv) A nonprofit organization that fails to comply with the restrictions 

contained in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

except that nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent 

participants from engaging in advocacy activities undertaken at their 

own initiative; and

(v) An organization engaged in the religious activities described in 

paragraph (g) of this section, unless Corporation assistance is not used 

to support those religious activities; 

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Prohibited Activities

(9) Conducting a voter registration drive or using Corporation 

funds to conduct a voter registration drive; 

(10) Providing abortion services or referrals for receipt of such 

services; and 

(11) Such other activities as the Corporation may prohibit. 

AmeriCorps members may not engage in the above activities directly 

or indirectly by recruiting, training, or managing others for the primary 

purpose of engaging in one of the activities listed above. Individuals 

may exercise their rights as private citizens and may participate in the 

activities listed above on their initiative, on non-AmeriCorps time, and 

using non-CNCS funds. Individuals should not wear the AmeriCorps 

logo while doing so.

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ASN Program Responsibilities

Contribute cash or in-kind match funds

Recruit, interview, and select members

Provide regular training and supervision 

to members

Track and report on performance 

measures that capture significant 

program outputs and outcomes

Fiscal management and reporting

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ASN Grant Applications

Organizations submit grant applications to AmeriCorps via online 

eGrants system or to their State Service Commission’s 

competition.

http://www.nationalservice.gov/egrants/

Applications consist of a narrative, budget, and performance 

measures, plus a few supplementary items.

May not exceed 10 pages for the narratives or 12 pages for Rural 

Intermediaries and Multi-State applicants with more than 5 

operating sites.

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FY 2021 Notice of Funding Opportunity Documents

Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)

Application Instructions

Mandatory Supplemental Information

Performance Measure Instructions

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Application Deadline

Wednesday, January 6th, 2021

5:00 PM Eastern Standard Time

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Priority Areas

COVID-19 Recovery

Advancing Racial Equality

Economic Opportunity

Education

Healthy Futures

Evidence-Based Interventions

Veterans and Military Families

Rural Intermediaries

Faith-based Organizations

Reducing Childhood Poverty

Environmental Stewardship

Economic Mobility Corps

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FY 2021 NOFO Highlights

Additional NOFO priorities: COVID-19 Recovery, Advancing Racial 

Equality, Evidence-Based Interventions, Reducing Childhood Poverty, 

Environmental Stewardship, and Economic Mobility Corps.

Maximum cost per MSY is $16,300.

Maximum cost per MSY for rural programs and opportunity youth is 

$16,800.

Maximum cost per MSY for EAP programs is not more than $1,000 per such 

individual if at least 50 percent of the persons enrolled in the program are 

disadvantaged youth.

Minimum living allowance is $15,100.

Added Abbreviated Time service term (100 hours).

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FY 2021 NOFO Highlights

Eliminated two past performance indicators.

Applicants should include short, medium, and long-term outcomes in the 

logic model.

The threshold for reporting on www.FSRS.gov is $30,000.

AmeriCorps will review information accessible through SAM and FAPIIS 

systems for awards over $250,000.

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Additional Technical Assistance

Review recordings

Best Practices in Developing Performance Measures

Best Practices in Demonstrating Evidence

Best Practices in Writing an Evaluation Plan

Best Practices in Evaluation Reporting

Note: Recordings will be available online November 2, 2020.

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Additional Technical Assistance

Live sessions

Best Practices in Budget Development Webinar

Best Practices in Developing Performance Measures Q&A

Best Practices in Demonstrating Evidence Q&A

Note: there will not be a live Q&A session for the content in Best Practices in Writing an 

Evaluation Plan or Best Practices in Evaluation Reporting. If you have any questions after 

reviewing the recording, please see the resources on the Evaluation TA Portal or email 

AmeriCorpsEvaluationTA@norc.org. 27
Questions?

Please email AmeriCorpsGrants@cns.gov with questions about 

the NOFO.

Please call the National Service Hotline at (800) 942-2677 with 

eGrants technical issues.

Thank you!

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