August will be here in a few weeks and so begins a new AmeriCorps season. Soon, thousands of young people will start a year of service working for our local nonprofits. If you’re not familiar with the AmeriCorps program, it is a division of CalSERVES often described as the “Domestic Peace Corps” (more information about the program on their website). The program is credited with cultivating hundreds of today’s nonprofit leaders.
For nonprofits, AmeriCorps offers a subsidized full-time staff person for a period of 10-12 months. Nonprofits apply to host an AmeriCorps member and agree to pay half of the AmeriCorps member’s stipend. For many nonprofits, AmeriCorps provides critically needed staffing capacity at a greatly reduced cost. However, it is an employment program and, just as in any other hiring scenario, participating nonprofits can suffer AmeriCorps “mis-hires.”
If you are considering hosting an AmeriCorps member, we’d like to offer the following tips and
suggestions to ensure that your organization’s participation in the program is as successful as possible:
1. Have a very clearly defined job description.
AmeriCorps must take the candidates who have applied for positions and match them with hosted positions. You enable AmeriCorps to identify the best possible match for your organization when you can be very clear about the skills and abilities you need. What minimal experience do you need your AmeriCorps member to bring to your organization to serve you well? What day-to-day responsibilities will they have? What end product do you hope they deliver at the end of the service term?
Stay true to your job description. It is your right and privilege to request another AmeriCorps candidate if you feel the first one presented to you is unable to fulfill the defined role and responsibilities.
2. Remember that AmeriCorps members are often new to corporate and business environments.
AmeriCorps members are mostly college students who have had minimal, if any, corporate or business environment experience. Nuances of professional behavior and dress may be unknown to them. AmeriCorps offers some training to support its members, but as a host, you will be required to offer additional training and guidance. If you are asking your AmeriCorps member to help with your marketing you may have less training to do than if you’re asking them to interface with donors or clients. Do you have time to offer the guidance and mentorship an AmeriCorps member will need to serve you well?
3. Read the AmeriCorps contract carefully to understand its terms.
Because “mis-hires” happen, it’s important to understand the terms of the AmeriCorps contracts and the amount of time allowed to exit the contract and receive a refund if the AmeriCorps member is not performing to expectations. You’ll also want to confirm the proper procedure for documenting and addressing performance issues related to your AmeriCorps volunteer and what protocol to follow when there are grounds for immediate dismissal, such as incidents of theft. What recourse do you have if suddenly your AmeriCorps volunteer stops showing up for work? Unfortunately, it happens.
4. Re-confirm that the AmeriCorps program is the right fit for your organization.
After following each of the steps above, take a moment to reflect with your board or colleagues if an AmeriCorps volunteer is the best solution for your organization’s needs. If you don’t have the time to successfully mentor your AmeriCorps candidate or if AmeriCorps candidate presented to you is not a good fit for the job, perhaps hiring a part-time employee with more work experience and the ability to work independently is a better use of your limited resources, both with respect to your available time and finances.
AmeriCorps can be a tremendous boost to your organizations productivity when you do the due diligence to support your success. Use these steps to make sure you do.
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