The AmeriCorps mission is to “improve lives, strengthen communities, and foster civic engagement through service and volunteering.” In addition to striving to improve communities and the lives of beneficiaries served through agency programs, AmeriCorps values the development of its service members and volunteers. 

In 2002, AmeriCorps developed the nation’s most robust longitudinal data on Americans’ civic engagement and volunteering behavior, the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS provides vital monthly labor force statistics, reliable labor estimates at the state level, and panel analyses at one-year intervals. In 2010, AmeriCorps’ Office of Research and Evaluation led a review of the CPS focused on social capital, civic engagement, and social cohesion.

The AmeriCorps Urban Safety (AMUS) program worked with Wayne State University’s Center for Urban Studies (CUS) and Community CompStat programs to pursue permanent crime reductions by using real-time crime mapping analyses and collaborative problem-solving processes. This community-based intervention was implemented in various areas in the city of Detroit. AMUS’s goal was to build a network of deterrence meant to dissuade criminals from committing crimes, at every level, from the individual to the police precinct. 

AmeriCorps members and volunteers serve together with local communities to address the country’s most pressing challenges, including conservation, resource management, and environmental education. AmeriCorps-funded environmental stewardship programs and interventions have produced positive results using independent, rigorous impact studies, and systematic evidence review.

The Volunteer Generation Fund (VGF) program was authorized by the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act in 2009 and invests in volunteer management practices that strengthen nonprofit organizations and other entities’ ability to increase recruitment and retention of volunteers to meet critical community needs through service. 

In 2016, AmeriCorps commissioned Mathematica to conduct the Scaling Evidence-Based Models (SEBM) project to gain insights into which AmeriCorps State and National and Social Innovation Fund interventions were effective and potentially ready to scale.

The Washington Conservation Corps (WCC) is an AmeriCorps State and National Program, operated by Washington State University, that focuses on environmental stewardship. WCC provides young adults ages 18 to 25 years old an opportunity to learn how to protect and restore natural habitats for the state- and federally protected species throughout Washington state. 

Study Goals:

The goal of this return on investment (ROI) analysis report was to conduct a cost-benefit assessment of the WCC 2014-2015 program outcomes.  

Birth & Beyond  Home Visitation (B&B HV) is a parenting education and support intervention program designed to reduce child abuse and neglect. The program is designed to improve bonding, parent-child relationships, and child behavior to help children reach their full potential, while parents receive the support needed from the comfort of their own homes. The program is being implemented in nine local Family Resource Centers in Sacramento County, California.