Welcome to your introduction to AmeriCorps members. This is 

the third in a series of webinars to help familiarize you with 

important components of AmeriCorps that you must know in 

order to apply for a program grant.

AmeriCorps members have been serving communities across the 

country since 1994.

In order to become an AmeriCorps program, you must have a 

clear strategy for using AmeriCorps members to carry out 

evidence-based or evidence-informed interventions that will 

strengthen communities and solve community problems.

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During this session, you will learn:

• How an AmeriCorps member is defined,

• What the eligibility requirements are for members,

• Concepts that are specific to AmeriCorps members, 

• The different AmeriCorps member terms of service,

• Your role in member recruitment, training and support,

• And Prohibited member Activities.

• The webinar will conclude with a list of the entire series, resources to assist 

you and a brief evaluation.

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As stated earlier: All AmeriCorps programs utilize AmeriCorps members to meet 

community needs. Members can provide a variety of direct service or capacity 

building activities. For example, help communities respond to disasters, members 

can tutor and mentor youth, clean up streams and parks, or build affordable 

housing

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So, who are AmeriCorps members?

AmeriCorps Members are individuals enrolled for a specific term of service with an 

AmeriCorps program. The term of service is between 300 and 1700 hours. 

AmeriCorps members are engaged in National Service and are not volunteers or 

employees. They play a unique role in a community or organization to address 

unmet needs. 

Eligible AmeriCorps members can receive a living allowance, health insurance and 

child care assistance to support them during their term of service.

In addition, AmeriCorps members receive a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award 

upon successfully completing a term of service. 

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As stated earlier, AmeriCorps members should not be considered volunteers, 

because there are a some very specific difference between members and 

volunteers

• Grantee should ensure that members sign a service agreement before beginning 

their term of service so that the member is fully aware of their rights and 

responsibilities.

• Members are to be adequately supervised by program staff or their designee

• The grantee must conduct an orientation for members, including training on 

what activities are prohibited during AmeriCorps service hours, and comply with 

any pre-service orientation or training required by CNCS 

• Members are required to commit to a specific term of service (i.e. full time 

members commit to complete 1,700 hours)

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AmeriCorps members must be U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, or lawful permanent 

residents of the United States. 

They must also be at least 17 years of age at the commencement of their term of 

service. Some youth corps programs can accept 16 year-olds who are out-of-school 

youth.

Members must be high school graduates, GED recipients, or must be working 

toward attaining a high school diploma or GED during their term of service. They 

must agree to obtain either a diploma or GED before using the education award.

All members are subject to a criminal history check. Individuals who have been 

convicted of murder and those who are required to register on a sex offender 

public registry are not eligible to serve in AmeriCorps. 

As an AmeriCorps program, you have the ability to add eligibility requirements 

based on your program design.

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Next we will review a few terms that are specific to AmeriCorps members. You will 

learn what a living allowance is, what a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award is and the 

different types of member terms of service or slot types that exist.

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The Living Allowance is the stipend an AmeriCorps member receives while serving. It 

is used to pay for personal expenses. 

The maximum living allowance for each AmeriCorps member position and the 

minimum amount that a full-time member must receive are identified each year in 

the Notice of Funding Opportunity. 

The living allowance is not a wage and is not calculated or paid to the member on an 

hourly basis.

Only full-time members are required to receive a living allowance. 

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The Segal AmeriCorps Education Award is a benefit provided to an AmeriCorps 

member who has successfully completed a term of service in AmeriCorps. 

 It can be used to pay education costs at qualified institutions of higher 

education, for educational training, or to repay qualified student loans. 

 The amount of the education award is dependent on particular term of 

service or slot type in which an individual served (full-time, half-time, 

etc.). Full-time members (those requiring the completion of 1700 hours 

of service) receive the maximum value of the Segal award. Education 

awards are pro-rated for lesser terms of service. 

 The value of the education award is tied to Pell Grants. The maximum 

value of the award for each term of service appears each year in the 

AmeriCorps Notice of Funding Opportunity, or NOFO.

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 The education award benefit is provided to the member through the 

National Service Trust and is not included within the AmeriCorps grant 

funds. 

 Once a member receives the award, it can be used to make payments in 

full or part, for up to seven years after a term of service has ended.

 A member who is 55 years of age or older at the time they are enrolled in 

AmeriCorps can transfer this award to an eligible child, grandchild or 

foster child.

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 As you learned in the Key Terms webinar, the number of Member Service Years (or 

MSYs) a program requests depends on the number and type of member terms of 

service, or slot types, included in a particular program design. There are five slot types.

(The boxes include the 5 slot types: Full Time, Half Time, Reduced Half Time, Quarter Time, & 

Minimum Time)

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This chart shows the various terms of service or slot types that you can use in 

designing your program and the minimum number of hours a member must 

complete if serving in that slot. You should consider what types of member service 

terms best support your program design in addressing critical community needs. 

Most AmeriCorps members have up to 12 months to complete their term of 

service. The actual term may be shorter and is rarely longer than 12 months.

Specific terms of service that are tied to actual AmeriCorps members are also 

referred to as slots. You can design a program utilizing one or multiple types of 

slots.

An example of a possible program design that uses 300 hour slots is a program that 

conducts intensive service activities in the summer. A 900 or 675 hour slot might 

be utilized by a program engaging college students in service during the academic 

year. 1700 hour slots are equivalent to 35 to 40 hours a week over a 52 week span. 

In designing your AmeriCorps program, you would review the intensity of the 

intervention you are proposing as well as the variety of responsibilities your 

members will have, then you would determine the number and type of member 

positions you will need to effectively impact the community or communities where 

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your program will serve.

Keep in mind that the hours of service do not include holidays, sick leave, vacation 

or lunch time.

(The chart reflects the minimum hours that a member must serve according to their 

service type and the maximum length of the members term of service. Full Time 

members must serve a minimum of 1,700 hours during a maximum of 12 months. 

Half Time members must serve a minimum of 900 hours during a maximum of 24 

months, but they usually serve a 12 month term. Reduced HalfTime members 

must serve a minimum of 675 hours during a maximum of 12 months. Quarter Time 

members must serve a minimum of 450 hours during a maximum of 12 months. 

And Minimum Time members must serve a minimum of 300 hours during a 

maximum of 12 months.)

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AmeriCorps programs are responsible for developing and executing a recruitment and 

selection process to find the right AmeriCorps members for the program design.

AmeriCorps Members can come from the local community that is being served, from 

the state where the program operates or from other parts of the country.

Beyond the minimum eligibility requirements described earlier, your program must 

consider the desired qualifications that you seek in a member and match those to the 

type of service activities that will be completed.

Once you have interviewed and selected your members, it is your responsibility to 

train them to successful deliver the impactful service your program provides to the 

community.

You are also responsible for ensuring AmeriCorps members are appropriately 

supervised by qualified supervisors. The amount of supervision a member requires 

depends on your program design, the type of service being provided and the level of 

skill your members will have.

(The graphics include a picture of a Help Wanted sign, two people conducting a job 

interview and a teacher teaching a computer class to two students.)

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These next few slides will walk you through the activities that are prohibited for 

AmeriCorps members, program staff while charging time to the AmeriCorps grant, 

and volunteers recruited by AmeriCorps members. In designing your AmeriCorps 

program it is important to you are able to ensure that your program is not in 

violation of these prohibited activities.

The prohibited activities fall into broad categories that include:

• Political activity and advocacy

• Religious activity

• Benefiting for profit entities

• Voter registration, and

• Abortion services

(The boxes show the five categories of prohibited activities: Political Activity 

and Advocacy, Religious activity, Benefiting for profit entities, Voter 

registration, and Abortion Services)

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This slide outlines the types of political activity and advocacy that is prohibited.

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This slide outlines the religious activities that are prohibited

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This slide outlines other service activities that are prohibited, including those that 

benefit for profit entities, labor unions and non profits that are not compliant with 

IRS requirements.

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This slide explains the prohibitions against voter registration and abortion services.

You should note that individuals enrolled in AmeriCorps are able to exercise their 

rights as a private citizen and may participate in any of the listed prohibited 

activities on their own initiative, during non-AmeriCorps time and with no 

representation or affiliation with AmeriCorps or CNCS funding. 

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This concludes the Intro to AmeriCorps Members presentation. This is the third of 

five webinars to assist grant applicants in understanding how to apply for AmeriCorps 

funding. In addition to these webinars, please review the Notice of Funding 

Opportunity and other materials posted on our website to help you prepare to apply 

for an AmeriCorps grant.

In addition to the various online resources, the AmeriCorps Outreach team will host 

calls in the fall to assist applicants as you complete the application process. You can 

also sign up for periodic email updates by clicking on the “Get Email Updates” link at 

the top right-hand corner of the CNCS website.

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Thank you for your participation, please complete the session evaluation. 

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For more information please contact CNCS via internet or phone at these addresses. 

(The photos show an AmeriCorps member helping a child paint and an AmeriCorps 

member wearing a gas mask while clearing out a home after a disaster.)

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