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AmeriCorps Member FAQ

What service activities are appropriate or not appropriate?

Service activities should follow Students in Service program and AmeriCorps guidelines including:

  • Service in one or more of our focus areas: Education, Public Safety, Environmental Initiatives, Community Development, or Human Needs;
  • Direct Service hours must be voluntary and follow AmeriCorps Prohibited Activities guidelines; the ONLY paid position that you can work at a job and concurrently accrue those hours for the AmeriCorps Students in Service Program is if the position is a service-related, Federal/State-funded Work Study position.
  • Member Development hours must follow program guidelines in being clear, serious and detailed goals that contribute to your professional development and/or service experience while serving at your chosen site.
  • Direct Service will constitute at least 80% of the total hours; Member Development hours will constitute no more than 20% of the total hours; Fundraising hours will constitute no more than 10% of the total hours
  • A list of Prohibited Activities is detailed on your Member Agreement.

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What kind of personal ID is required to enroll in the "Students in Service" program?

From page 1 of the Member Agreement:

A. Legal Resident Documention

The member certifies that he/she is a United States citizen, a United States national, or legal permenant resident of the United States and at least 17 years of age.  The member agrees to provide proper identification by the assigned due date.  The Corporation for National and Community Service requires a copy of one of the following pieces of identification:

  • A birth certificate showing that you were born in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa or the Northern Marina Islands
  • A current US passport
  • A report of birth abroad of a US citizen (FS 240) issued by the State Department
  • A certificate of birth-foreign service (DS-1350) issued by the State Department
  • A certificate of naturalization (Form 550 or N-5700) issued by the Immigration and Naturalization Service

Primary documentation of status as a lawful permenant resident alien of the United States.  The following are acceptable forms of certifying status as a lawful permanent resident of the United States:

  • Permenant Resident Card (INS Form I-551)
  • A passport containing as INS stamp certifying approval of lawful admission for permenant residence
  • An arrival record (INS Form I-94) indicating that the INS has approved it as temporary evidence of lawful admission for permanent residence
  • Official Tribal ID Card or an "Indian Blood ID", with the possible exception of ID cards issued by some tribal entities that are on both sides of US/foreign borders (i.e., Blackfeet, Fort Belknap along the Canadian border, and Papago, Gila on the Arizona/Mexico border)

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Can I volunteer at more than one site?

Yes you can. For each site you need a new site agreement and for each new site agreement there would be a corresponding monthly time log from that site signed by the site supervisor(s).

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For each new site agreement, do I need to fill out the membership development plan?

We highly recommend that you fill out the membership development plan for each site agreement for three reasons:

  1. To let your site supervisor at all your sites know of your member development goals.
  2. To have the flexibility to have any site supervisor sign off on your member development hours.
  3. To reinforce your membership goals as you serve your community.

However, if one site supervisor agrees to sign off on all your membership development hours throughout your term of service then you do not need to fill out the membership development plan on subsequent site agreements.

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Can my direct service position be paid?

The ONLY paid positions for which you can count SIS hours are positions that are Federal/State-funded Community Service Work Study positions. All other service must be non-paid (including internships, academic course-related service, and general volunteer service).

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Is serving in a soup kitchen located in a church considered a “prohibited activity”?

You should first consider the type of the activity, and secondly the location. If you are serving food in a soup kitchen that happens to be in a church, that activity in and of itself is absolutely appropriate. The Students in Service program encourages partnering with faith-based organizations. However, if you are also expected, as part of the soup kitchen experience, to discuss or promote the particular ideology or mission of the hosting religious organization, that would be an example of an unacceptable direct service activity since you would be engaging in religious instruction or proselytizing. This may be a helpful example in determining prohibited activities.

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Where do I send my paperwork?

Send all paperwork to the SIS Coordinator on your campus.

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Can documents be faxed?

Please do not fax paperwork to the SIS Coordinator on your campus. If your paperwork will be late, you may notify SIS Coordinator on your campus to which you submit paperwork, but you will need to send the original document with original signatures as soon as possible.

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Should I make copies of my paperwork?

Yes! Yes! Copy ALL the paperwork you complete before passing it into the SIS Coordinator on your campus. Sometimes, things really do get “lost in the mail”, so your ability to supply a copy of your documents may be critical. Not only will you have a record of the paperwork you have completed for record keeping, but you can continuously reference that information throughout your Term of Service. Time Logs are especially important to copy as those copies may be the only proof or record of your activities.

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How can I check if my file up to date or if I’m missing any paperwork?

The best way to check is to call the SIS Coordinator on your campus. It is your responsibility to make sure your paperwork is completed in a timely manner. Remember to keep copies of your documents and notify us if you have new contact information, etc.

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I don’t have a copy of my birth certificate! How do I get one?

You can call your state’s Health Department, the office for birth/death certificates or vital records.

Another option is to call the company VITALCHECK at 1-800-255-2414. This is a faster but more expensive method.

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Why am I strongly encouraged to write a Great Story and am expected to complete an evaluation?

The Great Stories you write provide written document of the impact you had on your community. We may use excerpts of your great story in a progress report, grant proposal or for marketing purposes. The evaluations provide a reflection tool for you and for us. Hopefully the questions on the evaluations will help you think about your Term of Service and what you gained while providing important program improvement suggestions to the Students in Service program.

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What is a Criminal Record Check? What if I’ve already had one?

Most service sites serving children or other vulnerable populations require a record check. Ask your Site Supervisor if you are required to submit a record check to serve at that site. If you have already been fingerprinted you will need to provide proof to your Site Supervisor. The form required by the Students in Service program is verification from your Site Supervisor that you have provided proof of a record check.

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On the time log there is a section for “number of volunteers recruited”, what does this mean?

A major goal of the SIS grant that is funded by CNCS is to not only enroll 2,100 SIS members per year but also to encourage our members to recruit another 10,000 college students to volunteer in their community and join the growing national student network of volunteers. We encourage members to keep track of the number of members they recruit on their time logs so then they can add up the number recruited and report tht number on their member evaluation to be passed in with their exit paperwork.

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What can I do if I lose track of how many hours I have served?

Not a problem. Just email or call the SIS Coordinator on your campus; all your information is in a database we can easily access.

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What if I can’t complete my hours by the end of my Term of Service? Can I get an extension?

In nearly all member situations, we are NOT able to change Terms of Service or automatically provide extensions. For special circumstances (compelling personal circumstances) AmeriCorps may grant members on a case-by-case basis an extension to complete their hours. The approval is not “automatic," and you must contact the SIS Coordinator on your campus PRIOR to the end of your term to discuss if you qualify for an extension.

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What if my supervisor is gone for two weeks and I can’t get my time log signed! What do I do?

Don’t send it in to us without a supervisor’s signature! We’ll just send it right back to you! Get backup supervisor to sign your time log.

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What is a site supervisor?

A site supervisor is someone at your service site who can verify your hours and support you through your direct service. Your site supervisor is the person who signed your Site Agreement. The site supervisor is the ONLY person who can sign your Time Logs.

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What do I do if my supervisor has changed?

You must fill out a new Site Agreement. Your service site may not have changed, but we must have your new supervisor’s contact information and signature.

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If I get sick and have to drop out of my service position can I still receive part of my Education Award?

You can receive pro-rated education awards if you had to stop serving for “compelling personal circumstances.” The Students in Service program Director decides if a situation is a compelling personal circumstance (examples: a serious illness/injury to the member or a death in the member’s immediate family). HOWEVER, to qualify for a pro-rated education award you must have completed at least 15% of your term of service.

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If I do volunteer projects on top of my AmeriCorps service, can these hours count?

If the projects are in one of the areas of education, public safety, environmental initiative, community development, or human needs, and your supervisor can verify the hours, AND the hours are appropriate either for Direct Service hours (non-Prohibited Activities) or Member Development hours, then those hours can be counted. It is common for members to have more than one service site. Remember, you are required to submit a Site Agreement form for each service site. Each Site Agreement requires a separate Time Log each month. For example, if you serve at three sites in a month, you’ll need to submit three Time Logs for that month.

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What do I do when I finish all my hours?

You are required to exit the program upon completion of the hours for your term of service. SIS expects members to complete and pass in their exit paperwork with final time log. The sooner a member is officially exited, the sooner the member will be able to use their voucher.

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How many AmeriCorps terms can I serve?

You can serve two terms in AmeriCorps. This is because you can only ever be eligible to receive two Education Awards. You may choose to serve with the Students in Service program and once you graduate serve in a full-time program. If you serve twice with Students in Service, you will not be eligible to serve in a full-time program. However, serving two AmeriCorps terms doesn’t prevent you from serving in VISTA.

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Why should I put my loans on forbearance?

If you have qualified loans that are currently accumulating interest, the Corporation for National & Community Service (CNCS) will pay part of the interest accrued during your term of service. Putting your loans on forbearance notifies CNCS of your current loans. If you don’t put your loans on forbearance CNCS will not partially pay your accrued interest at the end of your term. For a complete explanation, go to Member Helpful Resource page.

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Page Updated 08.22.2008
Learn more about SIS: (Required of all Members)

Online Pre-Service Orientation

Submit:

A Great Story

Sign-up for:

"My AmeriCorps"
Online Account

What is:

Loan Forbearance

Campus Partner Resources:

Registry

Member File Format

WBRS Cheatsheet

PowerPoint Presentation

SIS Sign-in sheet

WBRS Log-In

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