250 E Street SW

Washington, D.C. 20525

202-606-5000/ 800-942-2677

TO: State Service Commissions and AmeriCorps National Grantees

FROM: Sonali Nijhawan

Director, AmeriCorps State and National

SUBJECT: 2021.01: AmeriCorps State and National Member Enrollment 

(UPDATED Consistent with NSCHC rule changes—Effective April 29, 2021)

DATE: April 16, 2021

Below is a chart that lays out the changes being made in the eGrants My AmeriCorps Portal screens 

related to the enrollment process.

Enrollment 

Parameter 

Members enrolled prior to April 29, 2021 Members enrolled after April 29, 2021 

Enrollment 

certification timeline 

• Certification of member 

enrollments required within 8 days

• Enforced by My AmeriCorps system 

validations

• Certification of member 

enrollments required within 8 days

• Monitored through annual progress 

reports rather than My 

AmeriCorps system validations

National Service 

Criminal History 

Checks (NSCHCs) 

• NSOPW completion and State/FBI check 

initiation certified by checking two boxes

• My AmeriCorps records the date on 

which the boxes were checked

• Recorded date must be on or 

before member start date

• Certification required for all members

• Completion and adjudication of all 

required checks certified by entering 

a date in the NSCHC Certification field

• My AmeriCorps records the date 

entered in the field

• Recorded date must 

be before member start date

• Certification required for members 

ages 18+ as of the entered start date

Citizenship and SSN 

verification 

SSN and citizenship status must be verified on or 

before member start date

SSN and citizenship status must be 

verified on or before member start date

Start date changes • Can be made by grantee staff 

within the parameters outlined above

• Changes outside these parameters 

require Administrative Review

o Will only be considered if a failure 

in AmeriCorps’ technology platform 

or other circumstances prevent 

timely enrollment

• Can be made by grantee staff 

within the parameters outlined above

• Changes outside these parameters 

require Administrative Review

o Will only be considered if a 

failure in AmeriCorps’ 

technology platform or other 

circumstances prevent 

timely SSN or 

citizenship verification
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An individual is presumed to be an AmeriCorps member as of the start date reflected in the My 

AmeriCorps Portal. AmeriCorps expects member enrollments to be recorded in the My AmeriCorps Portal 

no later than eight (8) days after the start date of the member. Compliance with this requirement will be 

assessed through Grantee Progress Reports and other monitoring actions. Individuals that are not fully 

enrolled in the My AmeriCorps Portal are not AmeriCorps members. 

System of Record 

 

The system of record for an AmeriCorps member’s National Service Trust information is eSPAN. The My 

AmeriCorps Portal is the mechanism through which programs enter and update member records in 

eSPAN including enrolling a member and recording an individual’s start date. Programs are responsible 

for ensuring the data values they enter via the My AmeriCorps Portal are accurate and submitted within 

the required timeframes. AmeriCorps will rely on the information entered by programs via the My

AmeriCorps Portal. The member’s start of service date indicated on the Member Service 

Agreement/Contract should agree with the value entered into the My AmeriCorps Portal. 

Programs must verify that individuals are eligible to serve based on the requirements specified in 45 CFR 

Chapter XXV. The system is set up so that:

1. An individual may not start service until AmeriCorps has automatically or manually verified an 

individual’s Social Security Number and citizenship eligibility.

2. An individual may not start service until the program has conducted and adjudicated the results of 

the National Service Criminal History Checks (NSCHCs) required for that individual and has entered 

and certified the date of this action in the My AmeriCorps Portal.

3. After the completion of steps 1 and 2, above, programs must enter the members’ start date, 

assignment, and term of service to complete the member enrollment in the National Service Trust 

through the My AmeriCorps Portal. This action should be taken no more than eight (8) days after the 

individual starts their term of service. 

 

Member Right to Appeal Ineligibility 

 

Any member deemed ineligible because their Social Security Number or citizenship could not be verified 

has an absolute right to appeal to AmeriCorps. See Requesting Administrative Review below. 

 

Start Date Changes 

 

Although changes to an individual’s start date after the eight-day enrollment window will negatively 

impact a program’s compliance with the eight-day enrollment requirement, program staff are permitted 

to make such changes if (1) the revised start date is after the date the required NSCHCs for that individual 

were completed and adjudicated, and (2) the revised start date is on or after the date the individual’s 
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Social Security Number and citizenship were automatically or manually verified. Any changes outside of 

these parameters require AmeriCorps review and approval through the Administrative Review process. 

AmeriCorps will consider changes in member start dates if:

1. The member or program can document a failure of AmeriCorps’ technology platform that 

prevented timely Social Security Number or citizenship verification; or

2. The member or program can demonstrate other circumstances that prevented timely Social 

Security Number or citizenship verification, such as a legal name change or natural disaster. 

AmeriCorps will not consider changes in member start dates based on failure of a program to complete 

and adjudicate the required NSCHCs in a compliant and timely fashion. All grantees must comply with the 

requirement to complete and adjudicate NSCHCs prior to the member start date and are expected to 

certify this compliance in the My AmeriCorps Portal within eight (8) days of the member start date.

Requesting an Administrative Review of a Member’s Enrollment or to Appeal SSN or Citizenship 

Ineligibility: 

Grantees and AmeriCorps members have 30 days—from either 1) the date the enrollment action was 

completed, or 2) the date eligibility to enroll was denied by AmeriCorps—to request an Administrative 

Review to modify an enrollment record. AmeriCorps members or subgrantees must submit the request 

for Administrative Review through the grantee organization Grantees must request the Administrative 

Review in writing by emailing ASNAdministrativeReview@cns.gov. The request for an Administrative 

Review must include all information and supporting documentation needed for AmeriCorps to make a 

decision on changing the start date or reconsidering eligibility. At a minimum the information must 

include:

1. Member Name 

2. NSPID

3. Grantee Organization

4. Program Name

5. Program Code

6. Program Year

7. Desired Modifications(s) (e.g., enrollment start date, SSN or Citizenship Status)

8. Justification for Making the Requested Change(s)

9. Requestor’s Contact Information

AmeriCorps will consider requests submitted and provide a written determination as to whether changes 

can be made. If an Administrative Review Request requires the submission of Personally Identifiable 

Information (PII), please contact the AmeriCorps Hotline and request a Secure File Transfer Link to 

transmit PII separately.