AmeriCorps Programs

The Meaning of Service
A Civic Reflection Program for AmeriCorps Members administered by the Illinois Humanities Council with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities

Volunteer service and service-learning programs have become an increasingly integral part of the American culture, flourishing in high schools, colleges, churches and national service organizations. These programs provide a wide variety of opportunities to cultivate strong habits of giving and serving. But they seldom have ready-at-hand resources to help volunteers and service corps members explore why they are serving and to what end. Why does anyone serve or give in the first place? Is an activity really service if it starts in self-interest? How should one serve? What is the justice we seek? How do we know if we are doing good or harm? Civic reflection provides an opportunity to think about important questions like these.

The Project on Civic Reflection leads—and trains others to lead—reflective discussions to deepen civic engagement and add meaning to the service experience. We help AmeriCorps and other national service programs increase effectiveness and member satisfaction. Through The Meaning of Service, AmeriCorps members gather for interactive and highly participatory conversations that explore fundamental questions about service, community and leadership. The Meaning of Service began in 2001, under the title Justice Talking, as an Illinois Humanities Council pilot project with Chicago-area AmeriCorps programs. In 2005, with generous support from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the Illinois Humanities Council began to help other state humanities councils develop their own civic reflection offerings for AmeriCorps members through The Meaning of Service. In 2010 the NEH awarded the Illinois Humanities Council an additional three-year grant for the nationwide expansion of The Meaning of Service to states across the country.

Benefits of Civic Reflection for AmeriCorps

• Higher rates of retention and an increase in renewal rates
• Greater satisfaction among AmeriCorps members—leading to increased commitment to their service and the program.
• A fresh perspective for program staff and members on their day-to-day work and a newfound ability to see the "big picture."
• Better and more inspired relationships between program staff and AmeriCorps members—leading to more effective service.

In Their Own Words

• "Civic reflection has been instrumental in improving our retention rate. It's a bonding too that helped reunite our group." AmeriCorps program manager, Ohio
• "Civic reflection tied our programs together and encouraged cross-collaboration, which has strengthened our recruitment and retention. Now we're recruiting with and for one another and supporting each other more." AmeriCorps staff member, Rhode Island
• "The impact is tremendous. Civic reflection readings and discussions help the members become better citizens. They provide effective and meaningful service. For the program, it means that more members stay to the end of their year of service and earn their educational award. The retention rate goes up." AmeriCorps program director, New York
• "Justice Talking is VERY successful here, receiving rave reviews from the top down and the bottom up. The members love it as an opportunity to retreat from and reflect on the work that they do; the state service commission leadership loves it because Justice Talking provides a unique and rich educational experience for members; and, of course, the state humanities council loves it just because it's the humanities put into practice in the best possible way." State Humanities Council leader, Ohio

2009-2010 Meaning of Service Programs

Below are descriptions of MoS programs currently running in various states.

Illinois Humanities Council
The Illinois Meaning of Service program in 2009-2010 engaged close to 200 members at eight sites in Illinois: City Year, Public Allies, Literacy Volunteers of Illinois, Project YES, Asian Human Services, PCC Westside AmeriCorps, Notre Dame Mercy AmeriCorps, and Southwestern IL College AmeriCorps. The Illinois Humanities Council received a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to expand MoS nationwide. Eight states will initially participate in the three-year program: Montana, Mississippi, Maryland, New York, Ohio, Florida, Wyoming and Illinois.

What people are saying about MoS in Illinois: "I think that Meaning of Service is a great reflective space for members. There were many 'aha' moments in my group. I can see this experience resulting in more thoughtfulness not only in their approach to service, but also in daily life. For example, an older member realized that the comfort of seeking Spanish-speaking people in her daily routine also minimized cross-cultural understanding and strengthened prejudice in both communities. She made a commitment to stretch herself and seek opportunities to know folks with experiences different from her own."

Mississippi Humanities Council
The Mississippi Humanities Council assembled a broad spectrum of support for MoS, sending representatives of four agencies to Chicago in October 2009 to receive training in planning, facilitating and evaluating reading and discussion programs for service organizations. The Mississippi delegation included an MHC staff member and representatives of the Mississippi Commission for Volunteer Service (MCVS), the Stennis Institute for Government at Mississippi State University, and the Mississippi Secretary of State's Office, which has in its mission a commitment to civic education.

In the months since, six AmeriCorps groups, one church-based group of philanthropists and one college honor society chapter, have participated in MoS discussions. MCVS has emerged as the Council's chief partner in delivering MoS programming in Mississippi, while the other agencies noted above have continued to be involved and supportive. Program evaluations have been encouraging, intriguing, educational, and, in the final analysis, strong evidence that MoS is an exceedingly valuable tool for helping participants engage in service programs carefully and deeply consider the differences they can make.

Montana Humanities Council and Montana Conservation Corps
In 2007 Humanities Montana was one of the eight state humanities councils that took part in the Meaning of Service pilot program. Humanities Montana associate director Kim Anderson, Montana Conservation Corps director Lee Gault, MCC trainer Andy Wygmans, and Flathead Valley Community College instructor and poet Lowell Jaeger attended the two-day training workshop. The Montana Conservation Corps has been running several programs across the state to train local leaders and the Corps' own leadership team. MoS readings were added to the Montana Conservation Corps' CORE curriculum handbook for the 2007 season, and all 42 leaders statewide received training on the purpose of this program and strategies for implementation. Leaders reported that members engaged actively in discussions, enjoyed the material and discussion format, and even came up with some of their own lessons to implement.

After the initial training Humanities Montana founded a year-long program in which Lowell Jaeger met with the Kalispell Conservation Corps and also led several sessions during statewide Montana Conservation Corps trainings. That summer Lowell continued the program without HM support—often hiking for several miles to meet with a group. In 2008 Lee Gault incorporated MoS sessions during statewide Conservation Corps trainings, and the organization continues to use aspects of the program.

• Click here for the reflections of a Montana facilitator on the program's impact and why poetry matters to service programs.

Ohio Humanities Council and Ohio Community Service Council
For several years, the state of Ohio has demonstrated a strong commitment to civic reflection. Today, every AmeriCorps member in Ohio must participate in civic reflection discussions through the Justice Talking program. In August 2010, the Ohio Community Service Council (ServeOhio) sponsored a facilitation training workshop, led by the Project on Civic Reflection and organized by the Ohio Humanities Council, to support the continued growth of Justice Talking with AmeriCorps members in Ohio. Man of the participants were Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) directors. Two new Ohio-based trainers were trained at the workshop to build capacity for further expansion. Justice Talking has already been rolled out to several Ohio Community Service Council constituents, including VISTA, Learn and Serve, and Senior Corps.

Sample MoS Program Descriptions and Reading Lists

A civic reflection series can easily be aligned with the four focus areas of the AmeriCorps service year. Click the link to see how.

• Civic Reflection Series for AmeriCorps

Below are links to additional reading lists, program summaries, and evaluations from past MoS programs:

• In Florida the Florida Humanities Council sponsored a series with "AmeriCorps Hillsborough Reads," a program that places tutors of all ages in Tampa-area elementary schools. [Read more]
• In Illinois, Justice Talking discussion series have run with Public Allies Chicago, City Year Chicago, Southwestern Illinois College AmeriCorps, East Saint Louis AmeriCorps, Northwestern University Settlement House, Project YES, PCC Wellness AmeriCorps, the Coalition of African, Arab, Asian, European, and Latino Immigrants of Illinois (CAAAELII), and University of Chicago Department of Neighborhood Relations VISTA. [Read more]
• Discussion series in Maine ran with two AmeriCorps groups, one composed of members and the other of directors. Both groups took their readings primarily from The Civically Engaged Reader, and all participants received a copy of the anthology. [Read more]
• MoS programs in Springfield and Boston, Massachusetts used similar reading lists and were facilitated by professors of philosophy at local colleges. [Read more]
• In Rhode Island, Justice Talks-Reflections on Civic Engagement discussion series were offered to all Rhode Island AmeriCorps members in the state in 2007-2008 through a collaboration of the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, the Rhode Island Service Alliance, and the Feinstein Institute for Public Service at Providence College.. Approximately a dozen series ran that year, including a series in Spanish. Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Roberts, a spokesperson for the Justice Talks series, called Justice Talks "an incredible way for all 200 of the AmeriCorps members in Rhode Island to reflect on their public service and tackle the issues and questions at the heart of our commitment to the public." [Read more]
• In Wisconsin, Public Allies Milwaukee and the Wisconsin Humanities Council collaborated to run Justice Talking. The discussion series was open to staff, fellows and volunteers and the response was very positive with consistently active participation. [Read more]
• In Wyoming, a discussion series sponsored for AmeriCorps members by the Wyoming Humanities Council, the University of Wyoming Center for Volunteer Service and the Wyoming Conservation Corps included selected American folk songs as well as works of literature. A young adult participant in the series reported that the experience "made me think of why it's important to serve and who it benefits. It made me think about the actual people more." [Read more]