AmeriCorps State and National Glossary of Terms
Updated January 2023
| Administrative costs |
| Costs associated with the standard business operations of a program. |
| AmeriCorps, the agency |
| Originally established as the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), AmeriCorps, the agency, funds AmeriCorps State and National, AmeriCorps VISTA, and AmeriCorps Seniors projects. AmeriCorps was authorized by the signing of the National and Community Service Trust Act of 1993. The agency is still formally recognized as CNCS doing business as (dba) AmeriCorps. |
| AmeriCorps member, corps member, member |
| An individual serving in an AmeriCorps program who is eligible to receive a Segal Education Award. |
| AmeriCorps NCCC |
| AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC pronounced ‘N triple C’) is a full-time, team-based residential service program for 18-26 year-olds. Members serving in the NCCC program are assigned to one of four regional campuses and then placed into teams ranging between 8-12 members. The teams complete a variety of service projects, which are generally 3 to 13 weeks in duration, and respond to local communities’ needs throughout the United States and territories. |
| AmeriCorps Seniors |
| AmeriCorps Seniors engages volunteers aged 55 and older to serve their communities in programs including, the Foster Grandparent Program (FGP), the Senior Companion Program (SCP), and the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP). |
| AmeriCorps State and National |
| Members participate in local service programs operated by not-for- profits, local and state government entities, Native Nations, territories, and institutions of higher education, local school and police districts, and partnerships among any of the above. |
| AmeriCorps VISTA |
| Members of AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service To America) serve annually to alleviate poverty by helping local organizations expand capacity to make change. |
| Benefits |
| AmeriCorps member benefits include training/education, health insurance (for full-time AmeriCorps members not otherwise covered), and childcare (for eligible full-time AmeriCorps members). Programs may also provide additional benefits to members as appropriate. AmeriCorps member benefits do not include time earned (e.g., credited hours towards service requirement) for time off, holidays, or sick leave; however, programs may allow members to take leave as determined. Time is credited for voter registration,voting, jury duty, and military reserve and guard duty (for a period of no more than the two-week annual active duty). |
| Community- based agency |
| A private nonprofit organization (including a church or other religious entity) that is representative of a community or a significant segment of a community and is engaged in meeting human, educational, environmental, or public safety community needs. |
| Competitive grants |
| Programmatic grants that support AmeriCorps programs which involve members in defined service projects to meet identified community needs. All organizations that submit applications to ASN competitive NOFOs compete against each other for funding. That means that all State Commission competitive subapplications and all direct applications subapplications compete against each other for the same pool of funding. External reviewers review the applications against criteria published in the NOFO. Currently, all ASN’s competitive grants are programmatic. |
| Corps |
| Describes a team of AmeriCorps members. Corps is pronounced like core. |
| eGrants |
| AmeriCorps’ online grant application and management system. |
| Enroll |
| The mechanism to officially recognize an individual as an AmeriCorps member. The action of enrolling a member is completed through the My AmeriCorps portal. All AmeriCorps members must be enrolled through the My AmeriCorps portal no later than 8 days after the start date of the member. An individual is presumed to be an AmeriCorps member as of the start date reflected in the portal. |
| Evaluation |
| Uses scientifically-based research methods to assess the effectiveness of programs. Unlike performance measures, evaluations estimate the impacts of programs by comparing the outcomes for individuals receiving a service or participating in a program to the outcomes for similar individuals not receiving a service or not participating in a program. Evaluations are intended to establish a causal relationship between the program and a desired (or undesired) program outcome. |
| Federal Financial Report (FFR) |
| A consolidated federal cash and federal expenditure report submitted in eGrants that details the status of AmeriCorps and Grantee funds within a specific timeframe. |
| Formula grants |
| Awarded to states based on a population formula each year. Each state commission manages a Formula grant competition and conducts a state grant review process to determine the Formula grant subrecipients. |
| Host site |
| A group or organization that is responsible for the actual location where program activities are performed. This entity may provide task-specific training, technical assistance, supervision, or other services as agreed to in a contract or other formal agreement between the program and the host site. |
| Living allowance |
| The agency, an applicant, or a grantee can define the AmeriCorps State and National AmeriCorps member living allowance as the living allowance that a program is paying a member. No other member benefits are required to be included in a program’s calculation to determine the minimum living allowance amount or whether the program is in compliance with the maximum living allowance amount. |
| My AmeriCorps Member Portal |
| The AmeriCorps online member management system used by all grantees and AmeriCorps members. |
| Member Service Year (MSY) |
| The numerical value of the term of service. One MSY is equivalent to one full-time term of service (1,700 hours). A single MSY can be composed of one or more slot types to equal one MSY. Less than full time slots are prorated in decreasing MSY value as the slots get smaller. |
| National and Community Service Act of 1990, as amended by the Serve America Act |
| The Act passed by Congress and signed into law in 1990 to establish the Commission on National and Community Service, now called AmeriCorps. In 2009, it was reauthorized and amended into the Serve America Act. |
| National Direct |
| An AmeriCorps State and National prime grantee that provides multi-state AmeriCorps programming. |
| National Service Hotline |
| Toll-free hotline (1-800-942-2677) for members, AmeriCorps program administrators, and AmeriCorps grant applicants for assistance with the Segal Education Award or support with eGrants and the MyAmeriCorps portal (including log-in, password, or error messages). |
| National Service Identity |
| Sense of purpose and membership in a common program that all AmeriCorps members share. AmeriCorps program and commission staff play key roles in cultivating a national service identity through training members to represent the field well, AmeriCorps branding, and continually promoting the program and field in local communities. |
| National Service Trust |
| An account in the Treasury of the United States from which AmeriCorps makes payments of Segal Education Awards, pays interest that accrues on qualified student loans for AmeriCorps participants, and makes other payments authorized by Congress. |
| Native Nation |
| An AmeriCorps State and National prime grantee that is a federally recognized Indian tribe. |
| Non- displacement |
| AmeriCorps members may not perform any services that would result in a paid employee losing a job or a failure to hire a paid employee. |
| Non-duplication |
| AmeriCorps funds may not be used to duplicate an activity that is already available in the locality of a program. |
| Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) |
| A federal publication that informs the public that funding is available for a specific purpose and can be requested through an application process. AmeriCorps State and National releases several NOFOs each year for opportunities including but not limited to, AmeriCorps State and National Competitive funding, Native Nations funding, Public Health AmeriCorps funding, and AmeriCorps State and National Planning Grant funding. |
| Office of Grant Administration (OGA) |
| AmeriCorps’ grantmaking authority that effectively and efficiently safeguards federal resources through fair and compliant grantmaking, which includes managing grant application review processes; issuing awards; and providing guidance and training to staff and external stakeholders. |
| Office of Management and Budget (OMB) |
| Assists the President in preparing the annual federal budget and oversees its execution. OMB must approve AmeriCorps regulations, applications, forms, and any other documents that affect the public. |
| Office of Regional Operations (ORO) |
| Established in 2019 through AmeriCorps’ Transformation and Sustainability Plan, ORO is the primary workforce administering more than 2,000 national service grants and projects for AmeriCorps State and National, AmeriCorps Seniors (Foster Grandparent Program, Senior Companion Program, and RSVP), AmeriCorps VISTA, and Days of Service Programs. ORO implements the agency’s priorities and grant making activities within the unique context of each of the eight regions by integrating and operationalizing policies and priorities within the Office of the Chief of Program Operations. |
| Operating Site |
| The organization that manages the AmeriCorps program on behalf of the multi-state recipient of the grant from AmeriCorps. A multi- state grantee must have an operating site in each state in which it has AmeriCorps members. AmeriCorps members may be placed at the operating site, or an operating site may place AmeriCorps members at multiple member service locations. |
| Outcomes |
| Reflect the changes or benefits that occur. These changes may be in individuals, organizations, communities, or the environment. And the types of changes that may occur include attitudes, knowledge, behavior, or condition. In general, the most compelling outcomes address changes in behavior or conditions. However, what makes a change compelling is not just the type of change but the magnitude or amount of change. And, of course, the change should reflect the activity’s intended purpose and should address the identified need. |
| Outputs |
| The amount of service provided. They measure the completion of activities and document the fact that individuals or organizations received services, products were created, or programs were developed. They answer the question, “How much service did we perform?” or “How many individuals or organizations did we serve?” They do not answer the question, “What changed as a result of the service provided or individuals or organizations served?” |
| Performance measurement |
| The ongoing, systematic process of tracking your program or project’s outputs and outcomes. It can show whether a change occurred, but importantly, it does not indicate whether the change occurred as a result of an intervention. Only evaluation can do that. |
| Portfolio Manager |
| A regional office team member responsible for managing relationships with external stakeholders and supporting all grant awards and projects for organizations located in the states and territories within their region. |
| Prime grantee |
| A direct recipient of a grant from AmeriCorps; prime grantees include state commissions, national/multi-state programs, and Native Nations programs. |
| Program |
| A coordinated group of activities linked by common elements such as recruitment, selection, and training of participants and staff, regular group activities, and assignment to projects organized for the purpose of achieving the mission and goals of national and community service. |
| Project |
| An activity or a set of activities carried out as part of a program. |
| Project Progress Report (PPR) |
| Report submitted in eGrants that details progress toward achievement of approved performance targets within a specific timeframe. PPRs are collected annually and at the end of a grant. |
| Public Health AmeriCorps (PHA) |
| An AmeriCorps State and National program established by a partnership between AmeriCorps and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with the goal of supporting the recruitment, training, and development of the next generation of public health leaders who will be ready to respond to the nation’s public health needs. |
| Prohibited Activities |
| A specific set of mandated activities that while charging time to the AmeriCorps program, accumulating service or training hours, or otherwise performing activities supported by the AmeriCorps program, staff and members may not engage. |
| Request for Proposal (RFP) |
| A solicitation by a government entity or agency for products or services from public contractors. By law, government agencies are required to issue bids publicly whenever they need a specific product or service. |
| Segal AmeriCorps Education Award |
| Available benefit that AmeriCorps members may receive after successful completion of a term of service. The award can be used to repay qualified student loans and to pay current educational expenses at eligible institutions of higher education and training programs. |
| Service Location |
| Site where service activities are being performed by AmeriCorps members. |
| Slot |
| Refers to a position that a member will occupy; the number of slots equals the number of open positions available to fill with members. Each slot type has a required minimum number of service hours which must be performed, and a time period during which these hours must be completed. |
| Stakeholder |
| People or organizations that have a high degree of interest in your organization’s vision, mission, and success. |
| State Service Commission |
| An independent, bipartisan commission appointed by a governor to implement service programs in their state or U.S. Territory. Each state commission receives AmeriCorps formula funding, is eligible for AmeriCorps competitive funding, and is responsible for managing AmeriCorps subgrantees within their state or territory. |
| Subgrantee |
| An entity that receives AmeriCorps grant funds or member positions from a prime grantee of AmeriCorps. These include state or local programs funded in the Competitive or Formula grant cycles that are subgrantees of State Service Commissions. |
| Symposium |
| AmeriCorps State and National annual training convening for state commissions, national direct grantees, and Native Nation grantees. |
| Term of service |
| A term of service is determined by each program and can range from full-time to abbreviated-time which denotes the amount of hours a member must complete during a period that does not exceed one year. Below are the AmeriCorps terms of service options: Full-Time (FT): 1,700 hours Three-Quarter-Time (TQT): 1,200 hours Half-Time (HT): 900 hours Reduced Half-Time (RHT): 675 hours Quarter-Time (QT): 450 hours Minimum-Time (MT): 300 hours Abbreviated-Time (AT): 100 hours |
| Training and Technical Assistance (TTA) |
| The support and assistance provided to AmeriCorps programs to strengthen program operations. |
