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AmeriCorps State and National 

End-of-Year Grantee Progress Report Instructions

How will CNCS use the information reported? 

The AmeriCorps Grantee Progress Report (GPR) provides information for CNCS staff to monitor grantee 

progress and to respond to requests from Congress and other stakeholders. Some information provided 

in your Grantee Progress Report may be used by CNCS’s Office of Public Affairs to promote service. 

Program staff will use the information you provide to identify trends and issues that may lead to 

changes in policies and procedures, allocation of training and technical assistance, or opportunities for 

peer learning. 

What are the components of the GPR? 

The AmeriCorps Grantee Progress Report consists of four sections: Demographic Information, 

Performance Indicators, Performance Measures, and Narratives. 

Please complete the report using eGrants (http://www.nationalservice.gov/egrants/), the Corporation’s 

integrated, secure, web-based system for applications, and follow these instructions. 

When is the GPR due? 

The GPR is due on December 31, 2019. 

If you cannot meet the submission deadline for the progress report, you must request an extension from 

your Program Officer. Requests for extensions may be granted when: 

1. The report cannot be finished in a timely manner for reasons legitimately beyond the control 

of the grantee, and 

2. CNCS receives a request explaining the need for an extension before the due date of the 

report. 

Selecting the Right GPR 

After logging into eGrants, click the “Progress Report” link in the lower right corner of the screen.
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You will see a list of possible progress reports for each of your existing grants. Find the grant number 

that includes the 2018-2019 program year, and expand the list by clicking on the orange arrow key to 

the right of the grant number. 

Find the progress report with the 12/31/2019 due date labeled "Progress Report Annual," and click on 

the “edit” link. You will be taken to the main progress report screen.

Reporting Period 

The reporting period is from the beginning of your 2018 grant year through September 30, 2019. This 

reporting period corresponds to your 2018 grant year activities. Any activities taking place during the 

reporting period that correspond to a later grant year should be reported on the subsequent end-ofyear GPR. 

The report should not include data already reported in past end-of-year GPRs. However, if you have 

demographic or performance measurement data from the previous year of your current three-year 

grant cycle that were NOT included in the prior end-of-year GPR (i.e., noted as “ongoing” on the prior 

report due to continuing program activities), please include these data in the “actuals” fields of the 

current GPR. Provide a note of explanation as described later in these instructions clearly explaining 

which data correspond to which program year. 
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Commissions will complete one progress report for each of their AmeriCorps State and National prime 

grants (competitive cost reimbursement, competitive fixed amount, competitive EAP, formula cost 

reimbursement, formula fixed/EAP, etc.) providing information as follows: 

 In each prime grant, the grantee reports on performance measurement data for that prime 

grant. 

 State commissions report on demographics and narratives for all grants in the formula costreimbursement prime. 

Data submitted in the Progress Report must be valid (i.e., the data collected and reported must 

accurately align with the performance measure instructions, approved program design, and grant 

application) and verifiable (i.e., the grantee must be able to demonstrate the data are accurate). Source 

documentation that supports the reported results must be maintained as grant records. 

General Information Tab 

This tab displays information for the progress report you have selected. Check the due date to ensure 

you have selected the correct report. If you have not selected the correct report for the reporting 

period and due date, click the “Cancel” button and select the correct report. If you have selected the 

correct report, click the “Begin” button to open the progress report. If you return to this tab after 

starting the report, you will see a “Continue Working” button that allows you to open the report that is 

in progress. 

Open amendments may interfere with data entry in the GPR. If you have amendments currently in 

process on any of your grants, please work with your Program Officer or Grants Officer to get those 

amendments awarded or withdrawn before you start entering data into the GPR. Also, it is best to avoid 

initiating any new amendments while you are entering data into the GPR (i.e., after you open the GPR 

for the first time, but prior to submitting the GPR to CNCS); amendments awarded during the GPR dataentry process may result in the need to re-enter all of the data from scratch. 
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A summary table at the bottom of this tab allows you to see all past reports associated with your grant 

and to view or print a PDF version of these reports. 

Demographics Tab 

This tab contains a list of indicators of interest to CNCS. You are required to report: 

 Number of individuals who applied to be AmeriCorps members 

 Number of episodic volunteers generated by AmeriCorps members* 

 Number of ongoing volunteers generated by AmeriCorps members* 

*Individual volunteers may not be counted in both the episodic and ongoing volunteer categories; 

the sum of the volunteers reported in these two categories must represent an unduplicated count. If 

you are unsure whether a volunteer is episodic or ongoing, report it the "episodic" category. 

The following indicators are not required; however, if your program collects data on any of these 

indicators, you are required to include it in the progress report: 

 Number of AmeriCorps members who participated in disaster services projects 

 Number of disasters to which AmeriCorps members have responded 

 Number of individuals affected by disaster receiving assistance from members 

 Number of veterans serving as AmeriCorps members 

 Number of veterans served 

 Number of veteran family members served 

 Number of military family members served 

 Number of active duty military members served 

 Number of opportunity youth enrolled as AmeriCorps members 

To complete the Demographics tab, refer to the demographic definitions in the GPR Supplemental 

Guidance. Enter the appropriate numerical data in each category for which you have collected 

information. If you do not collect data on an indicator, enter a zero (0) in that field. The progress report 

cannot be submitted until there is a numerical value, including zero, entered in every field on this tab. 
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If you wish to provide an explanation about the data you have entered on this tab, clicking on the 

“Grantee Narrative” bar will open a text box for this purpose. This is not required. (Please note: there is 

a 2,000-character limit on the Grantee Narrative text box; any text entered above the character limit will 

not be saved.)

Commissions should enter demographic data for all competitive and formula subgrantees in the formula 

cost reimbursement GPR only. Demographic data reported should not be duplicated in any other CNCS 

grantee progress reports including but not limited to Commission Support Grant, Volunteer Generation 

Fund, Commission Investment Fund, VISTA or Senior Corps progress reports. 

If you have demographic data from the previous year or previous reporting period that were not 

included in the prior GPR (i.e., noted as “ongoing” on a prior report due to continuing program 

activities), please include these data in the current GPR. Provide a note of explanation in the Grantee 

Narrative text box clearly explaining which data correspond to which program year. For example, if you 

are reporting “Number of episodic volunteers generated by AmeriCorps members” with data from two 

program years, your explanation would read as follows: The 500 total episodic volunteers includes 240

volunteers from the previous program year and 260 volunteers from the current program year due to 

ongoing activities from the previous program year that were completed after the last end-of-year GPR 

submission.

Click “Next” to proceed to the next tab.

Performance Indicators Tab 

The Performance Indicators Tab shows enrollment, retention, 30-day enrollment and 30-day exit rates 

for the 2018 program year to date. These data are pulled from the portal the first time the tab is 

opened. The data do not refresh when the tab is re-opened. As a result, please do not open this tab 
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until you are ready to complete it. Use the horizontal scroll bar at the bottom of the page to see the 

chart in its entirety. 

Enrollment and Retention 

For enrollment and retention, a “yes” or “no” appears in the “Meets CNCS Expectations” column. CNCS 

expects grantees to provide an explanation for retention rates below 85% and to achieve the highest 

retention rate possible. For enrollment, any rate below 100% is assessed as not meeting CNCS 

expectations. 

For national/tribal grantees and competitive subgrantees with enrollment rates less than 100% and/or 

retention rates less than 85%: in the “Explanation” column to the right of the “Meets CNCS 

Expectations” column, explain why and identify corrective actions that are being planned to improve 

recruitment and retention practices, or any planned reduction in slots requested. Click on the button 

that says, “Enter Explanation,” type your explanation and corrective action plan, and click the “Close” 

button. The progress report cannot be submitted unless all required explanations have been provided. 

(Please note: there is a 1,000-character limit on each explanation; any text entered above the character 

limit will not be saved.)

For formula subgrantees, an explanation is not required for each subgrantee; however, the commission 

must use the “Grantee Narrative” section on this tab to describe its efforts to improve enrollment and 

retention rates in its portfolio. (Please note: there is a 2,000-character limit on the Grantee Narrative 

text box; any text entered above the character limit will not be saved.)

30-Day Enrollment and Exit 

For 30-day enrollment and exit rates, a “yes” or “no” appears in the “Compliant” column. Any rate 

below 100% is not compliant. 

For national/tribal grantees or state subgrantees with 30-day rates below 100% for reasons entirely 

beyond the grantee or subgrantee’s control, provide an explanation in the “Grantee Narrative” section. 

Based on this explanation, your Program Officer may change the compliance status to “Yes.” (Please 

note: there is a 1,000-character limit on each explanation; any text entered above the character limit 

will not be saved.) No other explanations are required. 

Click “Next” to go to the next tab.

Performance Measures Tab 

National/Tribal GPR and Competitive GPR 

Each performance measure panel contains a chart showing each output and outcome for the 

performance measure, as well as the MSYs and members allocated to the measure. Grantees will report 

on output and outcome data only; MSY and member data are not required. Please enter zeroes in the 

"Actual" boxes for MSYs and members on this tab. Failure to do so will result in the GPR being returned 

for correction. Use the horizontal scroll bar at the bottom of the page to see the chart in its entirety. 
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For each output and outcome, enter a numerical value documenting progress toward the target. Round 

any decimals to the nearest whole number. When you have entered all data for one performance 

measure, check the “Done with Section” box (circled on the screenshot above). This action will cause a 

green checkmark to appear on the accordion panel when it is collapsed, signaling that you are done 

entering data in this panel. If you leave any fields blank or include any characters other than numbers 

(commas, decimals, percent symbols, etc.) these fields will default to values of zero when you move to 

the next tab or save the report. 

Once data have been entered for each performance measure, click the “Calculate” button at the bottom 

of the page. This action will enable eGrants to calculate the numerical difference between each 

performance measure target and actual, as well as the percent of the target that was reached. In each 

performance measure panel, these values will appear in the “Diff” and “% of Target” columns. A “yes” 

or “no” will appear in the “Met Target” column.

An explanation is required for any output or outcome measure for which one or more of the following is 

true: 

 The actual is lower than the target value;* 

 The actual greatly exceeds the target value (i.e., by 400% or more); 
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 Program activities and/or data collection are still ongoing for this measure, even if targets have 

already been met; and/or 

 Data from the previous grant year that were not reported on the previous end-of-year GPR have 

been included in the reported actual 

The content of the explanations should be as follows: 

Situation Required Explanation

Actual that is lower 

than the target value*

Reason(s) 

see below

why the target was not met. If activities are still ongoing, please 

for the required explanation content.

Actual that exceeds the 

target value by 400% or 

more

Reason(s) why the actual value is significantly higher than originally 

projected. It must be clear in the explanation that no data were doublecounted and that all data are directly attributable to program activities.

Ongoing program 

activities and/or data 

collection, even if the 

target is already met

State that activities are still ongoing and explain when program activities 

will be completed and a full set of data will be available. Any output or 

outcome data that are not reported in this GPR will need to be included in 

next year’s end-of-year GPR.

Data included that 

were not reported in

the previous grant year

Indicate what numerical portion of the actual value corresponds to the 

current grant year vs. the previous grant year. Only data that were NOT 

already reported on the previous year’s end-of-year GPR should be included 

here.

**If you include performance measurement data from the previous year that were not reported in the 

prior end-of-year GPR (i.e., noted as “ongoing” on prior report due to continuing program activities

and/or data collection), it may appear that targets for the current year were met when they actually 

were not. Explanations should be provided for any output or outcome where the actual value for the 

CURRENT grant year is lower than the target value. 

To enter an explanation, click on the “Enter Explanation” button in the “Explanation/Corrective Action” 

column. Clicking this button opens a text box where the explanation should be entered. (Please note: 

there is a 1,000-character limit on each explanation; any text entered above the character limit will not 

be saved) 
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If the explanation entered for one output or outcome target applies to other targets for the measure 

(e.g., an output and outcome were unmet for the same reason), clicking the “Copy” button will 

automatically copy the explanation to the other outputs and outcomes in the measure. If you wish to 

provide a different explanation for other outputs or outcomes in the measure, enter those explanations 

by clicking on the “Enter Explanation” button for those outputs or outcomes. 

Performance measurement data reported in this GPR should not be duplicated in any other CNCS GPR 

submitted by your organization, including but not limited to other AmeriCorps State and National grant, 

Commission Support Grant, Commission Investment Fund, Volunteer Generation Fund, VISTA, or Senior 

Corps progress reports. 

Formula GPR 

Follow the instructions for National/Tribal and Competitive GPRs above, but with the following 

exceptions: 

 Actuals are not required for applicant-determined performance measures. No fields will be 

available to enter these numbers (see screenshot below). An applicant-determined measure is 

any performance measure that does not contain a national performance measure output or 

outcome. Performance measures that contain a national performance measure output and an 

applicant-determined outcome are considered national performance measures, and actuals are 

required for these measures. 

 In lieu of providing actuals for applicant-determined measures, the commission must select 

either “Yes” or “No” in the “Met Target” column (see screenshot below). Select “No” in any 

situation where the subgrantee’s actual for the CURRENT grant year is less than the target, even 

if activities are still ongoing, and even if the subgrantee also provided prior-year data. 
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 Explanations are only required for the following situations: 

Situation Required Explanation 

Actual that exceeds 

the target value by 

400% or more 

Reason(s) why the actual value is significantly higher than originally 

projected. It must be clear in the explanation that no data were 

double-counted and that all data are directly attributable to program 

activities.

Ongoing program 

activities and/or data 

collection, even if the 

target is already met 

State that activities are still ongoing. Any output or outcome data 

that are not reported in this GPR will need to be included in next 

year’s end-of-year GPR.

Data included that 

were not reported in 

the previous grant 

year 

Indicate what numerical portion of the actual value corresponds to 

the current grant year vs. the previous grant year. Only data that 

were NOT already reported on the previous year’s end-of-year GPR 

should be included here.

Provide these explanation in the “Grantee Narrative” text box, clearly indicating which 

explanation corresponds to which subgrantee. If you run out of space, additional text may be 

entered in the “Other Explanations” field on the Narratives tab. (Please note: there is a 2,000-

character limit on the Grantee Narrative text box; any text entered above the character limit will 

not be saved. The Other Explanations narrative field has a 32,000-character limit.)

The progress report cannot be submitted unless all required data has been entered. 

Click “Next” to go to the next tab.

Narratives Tab 
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Click on the accordion panels to enter narratives. When accordion panels are closed, green checkmarks 

indicate that text has been entered in the text box. Text must be entered in every narrative field before 

submitting the GPR. For fields that are not required, if not providing narrative, enter “N/A” in the text 

box.

Provide the following narratives (please limit your remarks in each section to 1,500 words or less)*:

Data Quality (Required)

National/Tribal Grantees: Describe the process you used to verify data from sites reported in this GPR.

State Commissions: Describe the process you used to verify the subgrantee data reported in this GPR. 

Performance Management (Required)

National/Tribal Grantees: Describe how the data you have collected about your processes or outcomes 

(including performance measurement and evaluation data) will be used to improve your program. What 

have you learned from your data collection efforts, e.g., what is working well, and what changes will 

your program make to improve processes and/or outcomes to better address identified community 

needs in the coming year?

State Commissions: Describe how you support subgrantees to use data they have collected about their 

processes or outcomes (including performance measurement and evaluation data) to improve their 

programs. Provide examples of how subgrantees are using data to make improvements to processes 

and/or outcomes to better address their identified community needs in the coming year.

TTA and Monitoring (Required)

National/Tribal Grantees and State Commissions: Describe the training and technical assistance you 

have provided to subgrantees or sites during the reporting period.

National/Tribal Grantees: Explain how you have implemented your monitoring plan. Discuss any 

significant issues or trends you have identified through programmatic and fiscal monitoring and how you 

are responding to them. (Commissions provide this information in the Commission Support Grant GPR.)

Other Explanations (Optional)

If required narrative explanations in other sections of the GPR exceeded character limits, provide 

overflow explanations here.

*Guidance for state commissions on how to complete the Narratives tab: 

 Commissions should enter narrative responses in the formula cost reimbursement GPR only; 

enter "See Formula Report" for the narratives on the other commission prime GPRs.

 Commissions should not provide information from every subgrantee when responding to 

narrative questions. Rather, they should provide high-level analysis of their portfolio 

supplemented by relevant examples. 

Click “Next” to go to the next tab.
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Summary Tab 

This tab provides a summary of the data entered in previous tabs. Pie charts and an MSY/Member 

summary chart show resource allocations and member activities. Graphs show performance against 

National Performance Measure targets. For commissions, these data are aggregated at the prime level. 

The subgrantee performance summary provides a quick visual reference for subgrantee performance. 

From this tab, you can view or print all text and data entered into the GPR by clicking “Print Overall GPR 

Summary.” 

For national/tribal grantees, to print a visual summary similar to the summary screen, click, “Print 

Grantee Report. 

For state commissions, to view or print a summary of all data entered for a single subgrantee, select a 

subgrantee in the “Select Subgrantee” dropdown box and click “Print Subgrantee Report.”

To comment on this summary, enter text in the “Overall Grantee Note” text box. (Please note: there is 

a 3,980-character limit on the Overall Grantee Note text box; any text entered above the character limit 

will not be saved.)

Submitting the GPR 

When all data have been entered into the progress report, go to the Summary Tab and click the 

“Grantee – Submit to CNCS” button. 

REVIEWING FEEDBACK AND RESPONDING TO CLARIFICATION ITEMS IN THE GPR 

For each tab where data are entered, the CNCS Program Officer reviews data and determines whether 

clarification is necessary. If no clarification is required, the Program Officer closes out the GPR. If 

clarification is required, the Program Officer checks the “Clarification Required” box on each tab that 

requires clarification and returns the GPR for rework. 

The following text fields for feedback and clarification appear on all tabs where data are entered: 
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 Program Officer Feedback – May contain feedback from the CNCS Program Officer. Grantees 

are not required to provide clarification regarding this feedback. 

 Program Officer Clarification Items – Contains clarification items from the CNCS Program Officer. 

Grantees are required to respond to these clarification items. 

 Grantee Clarification Items – Grantees use this text field to enter their responses to the 

clarification items that appear in the Program Officer Clarification Items field. ((Please note: 

there is a 1,984 character limit on the Grantee Clarification text box; any text entered above the 

character limit will not be saved.)

Charts on the Performance Indicators tab and the Performance Measures tab may also contain 

clarification columns to signal specific items on the chart that require clarification. 

After responding to all clarification items, the grantee returns the report to CNCS by clicking the 

“Grantee – Submit to CNCS” button on the summary tab.

If the progress report does not require clarification or all clarification items have been satisfactorily 

addressed, the CNCS Program Officer will set the GPR status to “Reviewed.” The grantee will receive 

email notification and will be able to review any feedback provided in the progress report when the 

report is in Reviewed status.