Et cetera : IA Commission on Volunteer Service gives grant to Americorp

The Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service (ICVS) today approved $179,000 in state-funded RSVP grants and up to $5.75 million in federal AmeriCorps grants and Education Awards that together will leverage and support approximately 44,000 community volunteers and nearly 650 AmeriCorps State members who will provide direct support to thousands of local nonprofits, schools and communities throughout Iowa.  All of these projects operate as a public-private partnership leveraging over $4.5 million in local and private funding.

"National service is an essential part of the solution to many of the social challenges facing our communities," said ICVS chair, Patti Fields.  "The AmeriCorps members and RSVP volunteers supported by this funding will accomplish amazing things to meet pressing local needs and strengthen Iowa communities."

AmeriCorps and Senior Corps, of which RSVP is a part, are national service programs administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), a federal agency that engages more than 5 million Americans of all ages and backgrounds with opportunities to give back to their communities and their nation.  The Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service is responsible for administering federal funding of AmeriCorps State programs and state funding of RSVP.

AmeriCorps State grants provide funding to local organizations to support AmeriCorps members meeting critical community needs in the areas of: education, disaster services, health, environmental stewardship, economic opportunity and service to veterans and military families.  The Commission announced the following AmeriCorps State grants today:

Organization

Members

Federal Grants

Local/Private

Education Awards

Program Grants:

Organization         Members      Federal        Local/            Education                                                     Grants          Private            Awards

Iowa State University*  50            $531,874        $539,981         $214,000

Iowa Legal Aid            10            $132,600        $106,799         $53,500

UNI - Green Corps       25            $330,248        $226,225         $133,750

Des Moines Independent Community School District

                                 15            $132,680        $75,208          $53,500

Department of Natural Resources (Green Vets)*

                                 15           $132,405        $392,015        $53,500

City of Davenport         38           $148,136        $138,260        $59,599

Prevent Child Abuse Iowa*

                                 11           $139,700        FP                 $58,850

Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence

                                 10           $115,050        FP                $53,500

Iowa Public Health Association Foundation

                                 10           $130,000        FP                $53,500

Iowa Campus Compact

                                 170          $29,632        FP                 $198,164

Community Corrections Improvement Association

                                  49           $460,435       $401,940      $185,378

Graceland University    25           $175,146       $162,597       $70,460

Department of Natural Resources

                                  87           $506,727        $483,997      $246,314

Boys and Girls Clubs   25           $216,581        $226,691       $98,975

Habitat for Humanity of Iowa

                                  31           $274,576        $294,908       $122,569

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Mississippi Valley

                                  14           $130,000        $99,844         $56,068

City of Dubuque           48           $210,587        $143,430       $88,917

Planning Grants

Public Allies**                            $50,000          $15,793

Community Youth Concepts**     $46,400          $21,725

United Way of Wapello County **$29,847          $11,963.28

University of Northern Iowa **       $28,357         $11,605.68

AmeriCorps National Grants Funded

Conservation Corps Minnesota and Iowa***

                                  17           $170,000        $272,000        $90,950

TOTAL                       650         $4,160,981     $3,624,982    $1,891,493

TOTAL FEDERAL         $6,052,474

*Approved Award Conditional of Awarded Federal Supplemental Funding and/or Education Award Slot Request
** Part of Approved award is Conditional of Awarded Federal Supplemental Funding or Education Awards Slots
*** Applicant applied to commission but was funded directly by the Corporation For National and Community Service and thus grant will not be administered by ICVS
FP - Fixed Price grants, not required to report matching funds

RSVP connects volunteers age 55 and over with service opportunities in their communities that match their skills and availability.  From building houses to immunizing children, from enhancing the capacity of nonprofit organizations to improving and protecting the environment, RSVP volunteers put their unique talents to work to make a difference.

A state appropriation of more than $179,000, which is used to leverage additional federal and local funding, is coordinated by the Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service for RSVP projects.  Grants were approved today to the following entities:

.         Boone County Hospital, Boone, $10,920.68

.         Carroll County RSVP, Carroll, $5,081.39

.         United Way of East Central Iowa, Cedar Rapids, $5,081.39

.         Mobile Meals United, Clinton, $5,081.39

.         Decorah Public Library, Decorah, $13,341.31

.         United Way of Central Iowa, Des Moines, $5,081.39

.         Finley Hospital, Dubuque, $5,081.39

.         Fairfield Volunteer Center, Fairfield, $5,081.39

.         City of Fort Madison, Fort Madison, $5,081.39

.         Elder Services, Inc., Iowa City, $30,279.62

.         North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC), Mason City, $5,081.39

.         Henry County Health Center, Mt. Pleasant, $10,920.68

.         ISU Extension, Jasper County, Newton, $5,081.39

.         West. IL Area Agency on Aging, Quad Cities, $5,081.39

.         The Center for Siouxland, Sioux City, $5,081.39

.         Iowa Lakes Community College, Spencer, $5,081.39

.         Voluntary Action Center of the Iowa Great Lakes, Inc.,

                                                          Spirit Lake, $13,282.54

.         Story City Senior Citizens, Inc., Story City, $32,443.89

.         Covenant Medical Center, Waterloo, $5,081.39

State Service Commissions have the responsibility of developing and communicating a statewide vision and ethic of service and promoting that vision throughout their state.  The Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service (ICVS) and its partner agencies work with volunteerism on two main fronts.  The first is to help agencies develop quality programs that use service as a strategy to fulfill their missions and address Iowa's greatest areas of need.  The second is to help engage Iowans in their communities by promoting an ethic of service in Iowa and supporting Iowa's volunteer infrastructure.

In addition to RSVP and AmeriCorps State, the federal government directly administers the AmeriCorps NCCC, AmeriCorps VISTA, Senior Companion and Foster Grandparents programs that support an additional 1,400 National Service participants in Iowa.  Together these national service and volunteer programs administered and supported by the Commission are leveraging hundreds of millions of dollars worth of services to the people of Iowa for a fraction of the cost.  Twenty-four percent more Iowans volunteer today than they did in 1989 when the Commission was created by Governor Terry E. Branstad; today Iowa has the second highest volunteer rate of any state.  In total, Iowa volunteers provide an estimated $2 billion in services annually to Iowa.