The recent expansion of AmeriCorps goes hand in hand with President Obama’s plea with the American people to start volunteering and give special attention to community service. The plea came in his inaugural-address and later in a nationally televised speech to a joint session of Congress in February, shortly after taking office. The Senate passed a measure, named the Senator Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act [...]

On a surface level it seems almost silly not to be in support of a program intended to bring about aid to those in need across America, but opponents to the expansion of AmeriCorps raise several key points about the timing, cost, and in essence the “mandate” to serve.  The House has already backed the [...]

The US House of Representatives passed a measure Wednesday, March 18th 2009, by a vote of 321-105 creating 175,000 “new service opportunities” under AmeriCorps. The “Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act”, known as the GIVE Act, is slated for $6 billion over the next five years. After a great show of bipartisan interest in the [...]