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Minnesota Reading Corps (MRC), the largest AmeriCorps State program in 

the country, uses research-based literacy instruction in school settings to help 

children from age three through grade three learn to read. The program 

includes literacy enrichment at the pre-kindergarten (PreK) level and tutoring 

for both PreK and kindergarten through third grade (K–3) students. The 

program’s host organization, Reading & Math, Inc., recruits, trains, places, 

and monitors AmeriCorps members who work with children one-on-one and 

in small groups daily, providing literacy interventions that are tailored to each 

learner’s needs. AmeriCorps tutors begin their service with rigorous training 

from literacy experts, who give them the knowledge and tools they need to 

be effective and confident. During the 2017–2018 school year, MRC served 

more than 600 schools in Minnesota, reaching more than 20,000 students.

Return on Investment Analysis

To better understand the impact of MRC in relation to the program’s costs, 

AmeriCorps commissioned a return on investment (ROI) analysis by ICF, an 

independent research firm. ROI analyses of national service programs 

estimate the monetary value of benefits that a program generates for per 

dollar invested.

AmeriCorps, a federal agency, 

brings people together to 

tackle the country’s most 

pressing challenges, through 

national service and 

volunteering. AmeriCorps 

members and AmeriCorps 

Seniors volunteers serve with 

organizations dedicated to the 

improvement of communities. 

AmeriCorps helps make 

service to others a cornerstone 

of our national culture. Learn 

more at AmeriCorps.gov.

RESEARCH BRIEF − RETURN ON INVESTMENT STUDIES

Minnesota Reading Corps — Kindergarten 

Americorps.gov
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This ROI analysis only measured the impact of the program on kindergarten students. The analysis estimated 

MRC Kindergarten’s ROI to be between $5.47 and $6.99 per funder dollar, depending on how long program 

participants and AmeriCorps members experience increased earnings as a result of MRC Kindergarten. 

Because the federal investment is complemented by non-federal funding, the return on each federal dollar is 

even higher. The magnitude of the results are driven by improved employment and earnings outcomes for 

participants due to higher high school graduation rates and benefits to AmeriCorps members from 

increased lifetime earnings.

Overview of Benefits and Costs

To calculate the ROI for MRC Kindergarten, the program benefits were identified, quantified, and compared 

to the program’s costs. Benefits of the MRC Kindergarten program include: 

• Increased high school credential attainment for MRC kindergarteners. The kindergarteners that 

participated in MRC have higher high school graduation rates.

• Improved employment, earnings, and educational outcomes for AmeriCorps members.

Members have increased employment, earnings, and educational attainment after they serve.

• Long-term cost savings to government. The increased high school credential attainment for MRC 

kindergarteners leads to long-term cost savings for government.

Funding for the MRC program in the period studied totaled $18,096,349, but because only the benefits to 

kindergarteners were included in the ROI analysis, the funding was scaled to an estimated $6,398,135 

(35% of the total), to represent funding for that group of participants only.1 Sources of funding included: 

federal government (48%), state government (27%) private (4%), and grantee in-kind (21%). 

ROI Results

The table below shows the full set of ROI results for MRC Kindergarten. Each row represents a different ROI 

calculation depending on which benefits are considered (all benefits or only benefits to the federal 

government) and which funding is considered (federal funding only, or all funding including federal, state, 

non-government, and in-kind). The ROIs are presented as dollars returned for every $1.00 of investment. The 

analysis used three different scenarios to estimate benefits under different assumptions. Specifically, the 

study assumed that increased earnings attributable to the programs last for 1 year (short-term scenario), 

15 years (medium-term), or 30 years (long-term). 

ROI Calculation (2019$)

ROI Scenario

Short-Term Medium-Term Long-Term

Total Benefits per Federal Dollar $10.11 $11.27 $12.94

Total Benefits per Funder Dollar $5.47 $6.09 $6.99

Federal Government Benefits per Federal Dollar $5.63 $5.92 $6.27

 

1 The total funding scaled to kindergarteners is slightly higher due to the incorporation of anticipated educational 

stipends for AmeriCorps members to be paid out following their service year.
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The magnitude of the positive ROI results is driven by:

• The long-term benefits of increased high school credential attainment for MRC kindergarteners. 

Based on findings from Markovitz (2014 & 2018), Stanley et al. (2017), and Hernandez (2012), MRC 

prevents an estimated 97 kindergarteners from becoming future high school dropouts for the 2017–

2018 school year.2 

• The employment outcomes of AmeriCorps members. According to the national AmeriCorps 

Alumni Survey Outcomes Study, the percentage of members unemployed was 5 percentage points 

lower six months after serving in AmeriCorps versus six months before.3 

• The educational attainment outcomes of AmeriCorps members. AmeriCorps members receive an 

education award after serving in the AmeriCorps program, which is used by a portion of members to 

help pay for postsecondary degrees post-service. That additional educational attainment increases 

future earnings.

• The long-term cost savings to government of increased high school credential attainment for 

MRC kindergarteners. Levin et al. (2007) found that the present value of lifetime federal economic 

benefits expected per high school graduate compared to a high school dropout ranges from 

$118,000 to $206,000, by race and gender.4 

 

2 Markovitz, C.; Hernandez, M.; Hedberg, E.; Silberglitt, B. (2014). Outcome Evaluation of the Minnesota Reading Corps 

K3 Program. NORC at the University of Chicago: Chicago, IL. This study was funded by AmeriCorps (formerly 

Corporation for National and Community Service). See 

https://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evidenceexchange/FR_ServeMinnesota_ServeMinnesotaActionNetwo

rk_MRCK3.pdf. Markovitz, C.; Hernandez, M.; Hedberg, E.; Whitmore, H.; Satorius, J. (2018). Impact Evaluation of the 

Minnesota Reading Corps K-3 Program (2017-18). NORC at the University of Chicago: Chicago, IL. See 

https://1kvjxp28gemz2aa4gi2qmxxh-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Minnesota-ReadingCorps_2017-2018-Evaluation_Full-Report-FINAL.pdf. Stanley, C., Petscher, Y., & Catts, H. (2017). A longitudinal 

investigation of direct and indirect links between reading skills in kindergarten and reading comprehension in tenth 

grade. See: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11145-017-9777-6. Hernandez, Donald J. (2012). Double 

Jeopardy: How Third-Grade Reading Skills and Poverty Influence High School Graduation. Baltimore, MD: The Annie E. 

Casey Foundation. See https://www.aecf.org/resources/double-jeopardy. 

3 Friedman, E., Freeman, B., Phillips, B., Rosenthal, L., Robinson, D., Miller, H., & Porowski, A. (2016). AmeriCorps Alumni 

Outcomes: Final Survey Technical Report. AmeriCorps (formerly Corporation for National and Community Service). 

Retrieved from https://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/

evidenceexchange/FR_AmeriCorpsAlumniOutcomesFinalTechReport.pdf.

4 Levin, H., Belfield, C., Muennig, P., & Rouse, C. (2007). The costs and benefits of an excellent education for all of 

America’s children. Retrieved from https://academiccommons.columbia.edu/doi/10.7916/D8CF9QG9. 

The content of this research brief was drawn from the full AmeriCorps ROI study: Munaretto, C., Casey, B., 

Miller, B., Modicamore, D., Naugler, A., & Pershing, J. (2020). Return on Investment Study: Minnesota 

Reading Corps—Kindergarten. ICF. Visit https://nationalservice.gov/research. 

For more information, please contact evaluation@cns.gov.