AmeriCorps Funding Opportunities

The mission of AmeriCorps is to improve lives, strengthen communities, and foster civic participation through service and volunteering. Through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and the Volunteer Generation Fund, AmeriCorps has helped to engage millions of citizens in meeting community and national challenges through service and volunteer action. Several different types of AmeriCorps program funding is available from CNCS but the requirements, processes, and allowable service activities are different for each program.

Click the links below to learn more about each AmeriCorps funding opportunity. If you need help determining which program is right for your organization, learn more about Key Differences in AmeriCorps Programs, view a Comparison of AmeriCorps Programs, or contact Engage.AR@adhe.edu

Apply for Engage AR AmeriCorps Funding  Apply for AmeriCorps Seniors Funding  Apply for NCCC Team  Apply For VISTA Funding  Decision Tree 2021-2022 

EngageAR AmeriCorps Funding Opportunities

Click Here for AmeriCorps Grant Press Release

AmeriCorps Arkansas grants are available through EngageAR to Arkansas nonprofits, higher education institutions, local and state governments, and tribal agencies proposing to engage AmeriCorps members in evidence-based or evidence-informed interventions/practices to strengthen communities. An AmeriCorps member is an individual who engages in community service through an approved national service position. Members may receive a living allowance and other benefits while serving. Upon successful completion of their service, members earn a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award from the National Service Trust that members can use to pay for higher education expenses or apply to qualified student loans. Successful AmeriCorps Arkansas program applicants are able to engage at least 4 full time or 8 half-time AmeriCorps Members in an intervention, program, or service that meets critical community needs in the areas of education, disaster services, health, environmental stewardship, economic opportunity, and veterans and military families.

Please submit all AmeriCorps Arkansas funding questions and documents to EngageAR - Engage.AR@adhe.edu

Nonprofit Capacity Checklist

EngageAR 2021 – 2022 Notice of Funding Opportunity  

Supplemental Resources:

Arkansas State Service Plan 2020-2023

Grant Announcements

Click Here for AmeriCorps Grant Press Release

AmeriCorps Seniors Funding

Announcing the 2021 AmeriCorps Seniors Foster Grandparent Program (FGP)-Senior Companion Program (SCP) Expansion Sponsor Competition Notice of Funding Opportunities

AmeriCorps Seniors is releasing the Fiscal Year 2021 AmeriCorps Seniors Foster Grandparent Program (FGP) and Senior Companion Program (SCP) Expansion Competition Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFO). For decades, AmeriCorps Seniors FGP and SCP programs have engaged older Americans in volunteer service that foster intergenerational relationships and provide companionship to other older adults. With these NOFOs, AmeriCorps Seniors intends to fund successful applicants that increase the impact of volunteers age 55 and older who provide volunteer service in response to local community needs.

The Notice of Funding Opportunities and specific geographic service areas can be found at the FGP NOFO and/or the SCP NOFO. Please see the 2021 AmeriCorps Seniors FGP and SCP Expansion Sponsor Competition website for a full list of the available opportunities.

Eligible Applicants

The following entities, including those that are current AmeriCorps Seniors grantees, are eligible to apply: Indian tribes, institutions of higher education, local governments, nonprofit organizations, and states.

We strongly encourage all eligible applicants to visit the FGP and SCP Competition page to learn more about how AmeriCorps Seniors FGP or SCP can help you increase your impact by engaging adults age 55 years and older in volunteer service.

Timeline

• Application Deadline: Applications must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. ET, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2021. Successful applicants will be notified by early April 2021.

Funding Priorities

AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers in FGP and SCP help to support vulnerable populations in the community through caring, mentoring, and companion relationships. Grant funding covers expenses to operate an AmeriCorps Seniors FGP and SCP project, such as staffing, supplies, volunteer stipends and expenses, volunteer stations, and training of staff and members.

• The AmeriCorps Seniors FGP NOFOs prioritizes grantmaking in the education focus area Under this focus area, grants must provide and/or facilitate access to services and resources that contribute to improved educational outcomes for economically disadvantaged people, especially children and for children with special and/or exceptional need.
• The AmeriCorps Seniors SCP NOFO prioritizes grantmaking in the Healthy Futures focus area. Under this focus area, grants must address health needs within communities by focusing specifically on independent living (aging in place), and access to health care.

Applicants are encouraged to read the full NOFO for a complete description of funding priorities.

Technical Assistance

AmeriCorps Seniors will host a series of technical assistance calls to answer questions about these funding opportunities, performance measures, and eGrants. AmeriCorps Seniors strongly encourages all interested applicants to participate in these sessions.

Call dates and times can be found at the FGP and SCP Competition page. If you have questions at any time during the application period, please send an email to 2021FGPSCP@cns.gov.

AmeriCorps NCCC

AmeriCorps NCCC Southwest Region team Water 5 helped with farm infrastructure and nutrition programming during this 12-week project.
- Class 25 Round 3

The AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) deploys teams of AmeriCorps members to projects in communities across the United States. Service projects, which typically last from six to twelve weeks, address critical needs related to natural and other disasters, infrastructure improvement, environmental stewardship and conservation, energy conservation, and urban and rural development. Members mentor students, construct and rehabilitate low-income housing, respond to natural disasters, clean up streams, help communities develop emergency plans, and address countless other local needs.

Sponsoring organizations request the assistance of AmeriCorps NCCC teams by submitting a Concept Form and Project Application to the regional campus that covers that organization’s state. Eligible organizations include nonprofits (secular and faith-based), local municipalities, state and federal government, Tribal agencies, and schools. The campus provides assistance in completing the application, developing a work plan, and preparing the project sponsor for the arrival of the AmeriCorps NCCC team. Application instructions and information can be found here. 

AmeriCorps NCCC Requests For Proposals

download and print this flier

NCCC Project Concept Form

NCCC Service Project Concept Form and Application Instructions

AmeriCorps VISTA Funding

AmeriCorps VISTA Request for Concept Papers

AmeriCorps VISTA FY2021 Request for Concept Papers Timeline 

AmeriCorps VISTA Program Guidance

 AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers In Service To America) provides members to support projects at nonprofit, grassroots organizations, and local government agencies that operate programs to help alleviate poverty in the United States. VISTA members strengthen and support these organizations by improving their infrastructure, expanding community partnerships, securing long-term resources, training program participants, and developing other activities that help build long-term sustainability for overcoming poverty.

Public, private, or faith-based nonprofit organizations as well as local or state agencies can become an AmeriCorps VISTA sponsoring organization. The application process is conducted at the state level to ensure local community needs are being met. The application process is a two-phase process with concept paper and full application. Contact the CNCS State Office covering the area in which the proposed project would be located to discuss application timeline, requirements, and procedures. 

The CNCS State Office will provide technical assistance during the application process. The length of the application process varies, but the average time from the initial contact to a final decision is 3 to 5 months.  Click to learn more about applying for a VISTA Project