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2024 |

AmeriCorps Seniors

FY2024 Senior Companion Program Replacement and Expansion Opportunities

Office Hours: General & Performance Measures 

and Work Plans Q&A

Jan-24 3
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Agenda

Jan-24

4

• Important Dates • Contact Information • Primary Focus Area • Funding Priorities • Q&A• Pre-Submitted • Open Forum
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Poll #1

Question 2: 

Have you accessed the training and 

technical assistance resources and 

webinars on the funding opportunity 

webpage? 

Jan-24 5

Question 1: 

Did you attend any of our live applicant 

training and technical assistance 

webinars? Please select all that apply.

• AmeriCorps Seniors in Action: 

Mobilizing a Generation

• Identifying Funding Priority Areas in 

Your Community

• Tour of the Notice of Funding 

Opportunity – Selection Criteria 

Review

• National Performance Measures and 

Work Plans

• I did not attend any other live events
Poll #2:

How confident do you feel in your current level of expertise related to 

today’s primary topics: General Information, Performance Measures and 

Work Plans?

5- Very Confident

4- Confident

3- Neutral/Not sure

2- Not confident

1- Very not confident

Jan-24 6
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Important Dates

Applications are 

due no later than 

Thursday, February 

1, 2024, by 5:00 p.m. 

Eastern Time.

Successful 

applicants will be 

notified by 

April 2024.

Successful 

applicants will be 

issued awards by 

June 2024.

Jan-24 7
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Late Application Process

See section D.4.c in the Notice.

Applications submitted after February 1, 2024, at 5:00 pm ET will not be 

accepted.

Unless:

• The applicant provides written explanation or justification and any other 

evidence that substantiates the claimed extenuating circumstance(s)

◦ Via email to FGPSCPReplacement@americorps.gov

◦ No later than 24 hours after the application deadline as stated in the 

Notice

◦ Early requests for an extension will not be approved

Jan-24 8
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Contact Information

For questions related to this funding opportunity, contact 

FGPSCPReplacement@americorps.gov.

For details on this opportunity and to see other opportunities available 

through AmeriCorps, visit the AmeriCorps Funding Opportunities website.

Jan-24 9
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Primary Focus Areas and 

Funding Priorities

Jan-24 10
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Primary Focus Area and Funding Priorities

The Senior Companion Program focuses on Healthy Futures. 

Grants must establish programming that engages adults fifty-five (55) 

years and older to serve as volunteers who help older adults live 

independently. Activities may include providing support and/or 

facilitating access to services and resources that contribute to 

independent living.

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Senior Companion Program Funding Priorities

Priority consideration* will be given to: 

• Projects that propose to raise public awareness about the challenges and 

needs of family caregivers and the role of older adult volunteers. 

Innovative service projects that can be executed by older adults will be 

given priority consideration. These projects can include those that: 

• Advance partnerships that promote greater engagement for older 

adult support for family caregivers. 

• Optimize well-being of family caregivers by strengthening services and 

supports, e.g., services to help caregivers manage their own 

health/emotions/physical stress, helping to find and secure other 

trustworthy/affordable services or supports, and those that prevent 

caregiver isolation. 

Primary Focus Areas and Funding Priorities

Jan-24 12
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Funding Priorities

Primary Focus Areas and Funding Priorities

• Organizations leading service in communities with concentrated poverty, rural

communities, tribal communities, and those organizations serving historically 

underrepresented and underserved individuals, including but not limited to 

communities of color, immigrants and refugees, people with disabilities, people 

who identify as part of the LGBTQIA+ community, and religious minorities.

• Projects that propose to serve states listed in Appendix A: Priority States and 

Territories.

• Organizations that serve people with arrest and conviction records and provide 

meaningful reentry opportunities.

• Programs that support civic bridgebuilding projects (meaning projects that foster 

respect among diverse communities, strengthen relationships across lines of 

difference, forge a sense of common civic purpose, and seek to solve a 

community program and diminish polarization) and provide training in civic 

bridgebuilding skills and techniques to AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers.

Jan-24 13
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Senior Companion Program Funding Priorities

Funding Priorities Continued...

• Develop volunteer roles that integrate older 

adults as volunteers who serve as part of a care 

coordination for clients and ongoing support for 

family and other caregivers. 

• Develop interventions where elders can support 

caregivers in tribal communities. 

• Spur innovations that engage older adults in 

intergenerational activities that help increase 

access to information and services for 

caregivers. 

Primary Focus Areas and Funding Priorities

Jan-24 14

*To receive priority consideration, applicants must show that the priority area is a 

significant part of the program focus and intended outcomes and must include a 

high-quality program design.

Suggested 

Resource: 

Identifying 

Priority 

Areas

AmeriCorps Funding 

Opportunities website.
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Appendix A: Priority States and Territories

*Applicants are not limited 

to this list of states and 

territories to apply for, but 

AmeriCorps Seniors is 

prioritizing projects that 

designate counties in these 

states and territories due to 

relinquishments.

*Applicants can apply for 

one or more counties.

Jan-24 15

Primary Focus Areas and Funding Priorities

AS GU MP PR VI

U.S. Territories
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Jan-24 | 16

General Questions
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General Questions

Jan-24 17

How do I know if our agency should apply?

We cannot tell anyone whether they should or should not apply. But we 

can provide some suggested ways to assess if you should: 

❑Do you meet the eligibility requirements in section C.1. Eligibility of 

the Notice of Funding Opportunity? 

❑Can you demonstrate Healthy Futures/Aging in Place support is 

needed in your community, and your agency has the capacity to 

meet this need?

❑Does data show that there are older adults (aged 55+) in your 

community that are capable and interested in service?
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General Questions

Jan-24 18

If the geographic area I wish to serve is not listed in Appendix A Priority States 

and Territories; can I apply for that service area?

Yes. Applicants are not limited to apply to serve areas in this list of states and 

territories, but AmeriCorps Seniors is prioritizing projects that designate geographic 

service areas operating in these states and territories due to relinquishments.

Geographic Service Area reminders: 

• Grant applicants must propose to serve one or more geographic service areas. 

• There is no maximum number of counties that applicants may propose to serve. 

• All counties that an applicant proposes to serve can be included in one 

application
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General Questions

Geographic Service Area Examples:

Geographic Area Served How to List on Application

• One Entire County • ABC County

• Multiple Entire Counties • ABC County, MNO County, and 

XYZ County

• 5 or fewer cities or towns, but not 

the entire county

• ABC County (City 1, City 2, City 3)

• More than 5 cities or towns, but not 

the entire county

• ABC County (North Central ABC, 

Eastern ABC)

• Large metropolitan area • ABC County (ABC Metro area)

Jan-24 19
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General Questions

Jan-24 20

Can two or more organizations jointly apply for one grant?

No. One organization must be identified as the sponsor organization. Other 

organizations can become volunteer stations but would not be 

considered the grantee. AmeriCorps Seniors does not allow sub-awards.
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General Questions

Jan-24 21

If there is already an AmeriCorps Seniors program in my geographic 

service area, may I apply to this funding opportunity? 

Yes, more than one AmeriCorps Seniors program can be in the same 

geographic service area if there is no duplication of services. 

For example, an AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP and Senior Companion program 

can be in the same service area if they are not both doing the same 

performance measures and using the same stations. Two AmeriCorps 

Seniors Senior Companion programs can be in the same geographic 

service area if there is no volunteer and station overlap between the 

projects. 
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General Questions

Jan-24 22

Would an organization that does not use volunteers or provide direct 

service be eligible to apply? Could a statewide association partner with 

another organization in applying to this program?

Proposed projects must plan to use volunteers to achieve project goals. 

Volunteers can be stationed with partner organizations, established with 

formal Memorandums of Understandings. 

This grant opportunity does not allow for subgrantees.
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General Questions

Jan-24 23

What age groups can our AmeriCorps Seniors Senior Companion 

Program volunteers serve?

Per Section 2551.81 of the Code of Federal Regulations, AmeriCorps 

Seniors Senior Companion Program volunteers serve only adults, primarily 

older adults, who have one or more physical, emotional, or mental health 

limitations and need assistance to achieve and maintain their highest 

level of independent living.
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General Questions

How does my organization determine how much federal funding we should 

apply for?

Applicants can request as much funding as needed to support a successful 

program. There are two things to consider: number of Volunteer Service 

Years (VSY) and amount of match.

• For every $9,000 in federal funding, you must budget for and place one 

volunteer service year in an outcome-based work plan in the Healthy 

Futures focus area.

• Applicants are required to match funds equal to 10 percent of the total 

requested one-year program budget. This can be either in-kind or cash 

match.

Jan-24 | 24 Jan-24 24
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General Questions

How does my organization determine how much federal funding we should 

apply for? (continued)

For example, if you think you can recruit 23 volunteers to serve 20 VSYs (or 

20,880 hours of service) in outcome-based work plans in the Healthy Futures

focus area, you can request $180,000 in federal funding. Your grantee share is 

$20,000, and your total project budget is $200,000.

Jan-24 | 25 Jan-24 25

Appendix E: Cost per Volunteer Calculator can be used to determine a 

minimum number of VSYs for a funding request.

VSY * $9,000 = Federal 

Funding

20 * $9,000 = $180,000

Determine Total Project 

Budget

(Federal Share/0.90) = 

Total Project Budget

($180,000/0.90) = $200,000

Calculate Grantee Share

Total Project Budget * 0.10 = 

Grantee Share

$200,000 * 0.10 = $20,000
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General Questions

Jan-24 | 26 Jan-24 26

Our organization is currently a grantee and are operating within a 

temporary geographic service area. Do we need to apply to this 

opportunity?

Yes. If your organization was granted permission by AmeriCorps to operate 

within a geographic service area that was not a part of your original 

project, the new geographic service area needs to be applied for during 

this opportunity. The application will only be for the new service area and 

will not have an impact on your current grant. If the application is 

successful, the original project can be amended to merge both into a 

single grant.

Without a successful grant application, organizations will not be allowed to 

operate in temporary geographic service areas beyond June 2024.
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General Questions

Our organization is currently a temporary sponsor of a relinquished 

project. Do we need to apply to this opportunity? 

Yes. If your organization was granted permission by AmeriCorps to 

operate as a temporary sponsor for a relinquished project, to maintain 

services as an AmeriCorps grantee, the organization must apply for this 

opportunity

Without a successful grant application, organizations will not be 

allowed to operate in temporary geographic service areas beyond 

June 2024.

Jan-24 | 27 Jan-24 27
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General Questions

Do we need to have a full-time Project Director budgeted in our 

application?

For new applicants, yes. Section 2552.25(c) of the Code of Federal 

Regulations states that projects should employ a full-time project 

director to accomplish project objectives and manage the functions 

and activities delegated to project staff for Senior Companion 

projects(s) within its control.

For current AmeriCorps Seniors Senior Companion Program grantees 

applying to permanently add a geographic service area, no. They 

don’t need to budget for a full-time director, as their current grant has 

the full-time director already.

Jan-24 | 28 Jan-24 28
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General Questions

If I am applying for the geographic service area to be permanently added, 

do we need to apply for funding if we do not need it?

No. Applicants can propose the funding level needed to meet the needs 

of a successful project in the geographic area. There may be cases where 

programs are already operating and are requesting to add the 

geographic service area. If awarded, current grantees may choose to 

merge the new award into current grants. These cases may not need funds 

and will apply with a zero budget.

If you are requesting zero dollars in funding, ensure you clearly 

communicate and describe how staffing, volunteers, and programmatic 

needs will be met in section E.1.d.i. Cost-Effectiveness and Budget 

Adequacy -enter your response in Other section of eGrants.

Jan-24 | 29 Jan-24 29
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Jan-24 | 30

Performance 

Measures and Work 

Plans Questions
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Performance Measures and Work Plans Questions

How many hours a week do AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers need to serve?

Stipended volunteers must serve at least 260 hours per year, or a minimum 

of 5 hours per week. This includes all stipended hours, such as time spent 

with clients, training and orientation, recognition events, etc.

Volunteers cannot exceed 2,880 hours per year.

Jan-24 31
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Can AmeriCorps Seniors Volunteers Serve in More than One Work Plan?

Yes, they can. However, be sure to count volunteer service hours only 

once. Each hour will be counted in the work plan that aligns with the 

service they will be doing. You will also include them in the “total 

volunteer” field in eGrants for each work plan that includes their hours of 

service.

Performance Measures and Work Plans Questions

Jan-24 32
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Can a volunteer station be included in more than one work plan if there is 

more than one service activity occurring at the station? 

Yes. Each work plan is developed based on the service activities selected 

for an output/outcome pair, not based on one particular volunteer station. 

One volunteer station may have many service activities occurring there 

and so may appear in more than one work plan.

Performance Measures and Work Plans Questions

Jan-24 33
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If a beneficiary receives interventions under more than one service 

activity, how do you determine which work plan to count them in?

Beneficiaries can only be counted in one work plan. You may 

base it on the work plan under which they receive the most 

services, either in terms of hours or intensity or services, or on 

another method that works for your program.

Performance Measures and Work Plans Questions

Jan-24 34
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I cannot complete the validate function for the performance measures. 

When I go to validate, it says that you must have a performance measure 

for all objectives. What am I doing wrong?

It is likely that you have checked an objective on the first Performance 

Measure screen and have not entered a work plan for that objective. 

Contact the National Service Hotline at 1-800- 942-2677 or via webform if 

further assistance is needed.

Performance Measures and Work Plans Questions

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How frequently will I report on performance measures? How much time per 

month does it involve? 

Recipients are required to submit a full progress report annually on your progress 

toward your targets. Additionally, you will report on outputs semi‐annually. The time 

varies per grantee based on their internal recordkeeping. On average, AmeriCorps 

Seniors expects a burden of about 4 hours per report.

As stated in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (Section F.4. Reporting), recipients 

are required to provide: 

• Annual progress reports

• Semi-annual financial reports

• Final financial reports that are cumulative over the entire award period and 

consistent with the closeout requirements. The final reports are due 120 days 

after the end of the period of performance. 

All reports must be submitted through eGrants, AmeriCorps web-based grants 

management system. 

Performance Measures and Work Plans Questions

Jan-24 36
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Suggested Resource: Frequently Asked Questions

Found on the Funding Opportunity webpage. 

Jan-24 37
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Please enter your questions 

into the Q&A box.

Questions?

Use the Q&A to ask your questions.

Jan-24 38
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Notice of Funding Opportunity and Appendices

39

Jan-24 39

Resources available on the Funding Opportunity Page.

Key information related to the program’s description, federal award, 

eligibility, application and submission, and application review. 

Read this first. 

Notice of Funding 

Opportunity

Lists states and territories where AmeriCorps Seniors is prioritizing projects. 

Applicants are not limited to this list of states and territories. Applicants can 

apply for one or more counties in a state. 

Appendix A: Priority States 

and Territories

Guidance for performance measures selection, output and outcome 

pairings, and required information for Work Plan in eGrants. 

Appendix B: National 

Performance Measure 

Instructions

Defines terms most used by AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors. 

Appendix C: Terms and 

Definitions

Step-by-step guidance for submitting your application in eGrants

Appendix D: Grant 

Application Instructions

Resource to help applicants determine a minimum number of volunteer 

service years (VSY) for a funding request. 

Appendix E: Cost Per 

Volunteer Calculator
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Applicant Training and Technical Assistance

Jan-24 40

General 

Information

• AmeriCorps 

Seniors in Action: 

Mobilizing a 

Generation

• Introducing 

AmeriCorps, 

AmeriCorps 

Seniors, and Its 

Programs

• Identifying 

Funding Priority 

Areas in Your 

Community

Notice of Funding 

Opportunity

• Tour of the Notice 

of Funding

• Tour of the Notice 

of Funding 

Opportunity –

Selection Criteria 

Review

Performance 

Measures and 

Work Plans

• National 

Performance 

Measures 

Curriculum

• National 

Performance 

Measures and 

Work Plans

• Office Hours: 

General and 

Performance 

Measurement 

Q&A

Budgets

• Best Practices in 

Budget 

Development

• Office Hours: 

Budget Q&A

Applications

• Submitting Your 

Application in 

eGrants

• AmeriCorps Due 

Diligence Review 

and Compliance 

Training

Event recording and presentations available at on the Funding Opportunity Page.
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Poll #3

Having attended today’s webinar, how 

confident do you feel in your current level of 

knowledge relating to General Information, 

Performance Measures and Work Plans?

5- Much more confident

4- More confident

3- Neutral/Not sure

2- Less confident

1- Much less confident

Jan-24 41
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Thank you for your interest in 

AmeriCorps Seniors funding 

opportunities. 

Jan-24 42