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: 2023.03 AmeriCorps State and National Member Enrollment 

(Updating 2021.01 AmeriCorps State and National Enrollment)

Date: March 1, 2023 

Below is a chart that lays out the eGrants My AmeriCorps Portal screens related to the enrollment 

process. 

Enrollment certification timeline •

•

Certification of member enrollments 

required within eight days

Monitored through annual project

progress reports rather than My 

AmeriCorps system validations

National Service Criminal History Checks 

(NSCHCs)

•

•

Completion and adjudication of all 

required checks certified by entering a 

date 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

Start Date changes •

•

Can be made by grantee staff within 

parameters outlined above

Changes outside these parameters 

require Administrative Review

• Will only be considered if a failure in 

AmeriCorps’ technology platform or other 

circumstances prevent compliant SSN or 

citizenship verification (including 

unintentional program staff error) 

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 Project Progress Reports and other monitoring 

actions. Individuals that are not fully enrolled in the My AmeriCorps Portal are not AmeriCorps 

members. 
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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 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 compliant 

Social Security Number or citizenship verification for an otherwise eligible member, such as a 

legal name change, natural disaster or unintentional program staff error. 

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 
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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 can request an Administrative Review to modify an 

enrollment record. AmeriCorps members or subgrantees must submit the request for 

Administrative Review through the grantee organization. Prime Grantees (State Commissions 

and National Directs) must request the Administrative Review in writing by emailing their Portfolio 

Manager. 

The request for an Administrative Review must include all information 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. Confirmation that the member is eligible and that their NSCHCs were completed and 

adjudicated in a timely manner

9. Justification for Making the Requested Change(s) 

10. 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.