2013 new york state americorps project director training & annual meeting gideon putnam hotel
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2013 New York State AmeriCorps Project Director Training & Annual Meeting Gideon Putnam Hotel October 7-9, 2013 Saratoga Springs, New York. www.NewYorkersVolunteer.ny.gov. WELCOME. Overview/ Program Staff Introductions Agenda Logistics. INTRODUCTIONS. State and Federal Updates. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
2013 New York State 2013 New York State AmeriCorps Project Director Training & AmeriCorps Project Director Training &
Annual MeetingAnnual Meeting
Gideon Putnam HotelGideon Putnam HotelOctober 7-9, 2013October 7-9, 2013
Saratoga Springs, New YorkSaratoga Springs, New York
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WELCOME Overview/ Program Staff Introductions
Agenda
Logistics
INTRODUCTIONS
State and Federal Updates
20th Anniversary of AmeriCorps
State News
Federal News
o Corporation Initiatives
2013 Successes and Achievements
Number of individuals who applied to be an AmeriCorps member in New York State:
o14,060
Number of individuals who served as AmeriCorps members in New York State:
o2,860
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
AMERICORPS MEMBERS
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
MEMBERS BY FOCUS AREA
Disaster Services 36
Economic Opportunity 288
Education 1,025
Environmental Stewardship 123
Healthy Futures 130
Veterans and Military Families 21
Capacity Building 83
Other 86
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
GEOGRAPHY
46 AmeriCorps Programs
Members serving at 567sites across NY State
IMPACT
Number of volunteers recruited, coordinated, or supported by your programs
o 1,150,925
Number of disadvantaged children and youth servedo 161,828
Number of individuals mentoredo 22,425
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
IMPACT cont.
Number of clients who received independent living serviceso 2,357
Number of individuals affected by disaster who received assistance from members
o 25,280
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
2,860 Member Slots
Enrollment Rate 100%
Retention Rate 78%
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
ENROLLMENT AND RETENTION RATES
BEST PRACTICES
Partner with a national or local clothing company based in the area for donated member gear.
Engage local Colleges or Universities:o as a source of pro-bono member training;o as a source of community volunteer groups to augment AmeriCorps and
agency initiatives;o to match a portion or all of the Member’s Education Award.
Program Directors and Staff develop “Life After AmeriCorps” resources to help members transition into a career after serving in AmeriCorps.
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
BEST PRACTICES contIf members do not serve in the same location:
o hold trainings where members can share best practices, brainstorm ideas for service days, or develop solutions to program/member challenges.
o hold bi-weekly or monthly conference calls with all AmeriCorps members and staff to keep a unified spirit among the team even though they may be serving in different locations.
To prevent losing members who find fulltime jobs;o tool was created to demonstrate the benefits of completing an
AmeriCorps term versus ending an AmeriCorps term early for a full time position.
o The tool includes living stipend/average salary of entry level position, taxes, insurance costs, and education award to show AmeriCorps stipend and an entry level full-time position are comparable.
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New York State AmeriCorps 2012
BEST PRACTICES cont
Develop a Facebook page, Twitter account, and other social media”o members to share experiences about their service;o helps members promote AmeriCorps by blogging about their
experience, market the mission of the agency;o engage community stakeholders, future members, alumni, and others
through social media.
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
BEST PRACTICES contSupport Members in Service:
o conduct monthly site visits to maintain constant communication;o hold monthly professional development trainings;o use monthly surveys to gauge needs and get suggestions for future
trainings or member networking opportunities;o host social events to provide an opportunity for Members to enjoy the
company of one another and to expose them to local entertainment, restaurants, etc.;
o call local businesses to request free passes or discount coupons for your Members. This is an opportunity to celebrate your member’s service, and promote AmeriCorps among businesses in the community.
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
COMMON CHALLENGES
The economy and the increasing cost of living has affected Member recruitment and retention.
Funding and/or program cuts among non-profit agencies are making it a challenge for programs to retain Host Sites where AmeriCorps members can be placed. This constant transition of Host Sites makes it difficult for AmeriCorps programs to develop a performance baseline, estimate appropriate performance measure targets, and maintain consistency.
AmeriCorps programs are experiencing constraints in the area of fund development, and rising costs reduce the availability of funding to support the AmeriCorps program. This is leading to the inability of some programs to meet their regulatory match on time or at all..
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
COMMON CHALLENGES cont
AmeriCorps programs report challenges collecting information from youth beneficiaries that measure progress towards targeted outcomes. Specifically, many of these same programs expressed great difficulty developing the specific instruments (pre/post-tests, surveys) that are designed to capture enough information to meet reporting requirements with respect to young adults, without being too lengthy or complicated to implement.
AmeriCorps program staff has expressed that the increasing policy and procedure requirements from CNCS without additional resources to comply has made program operations and member management difficult to accomplish.
National Service Criminal History Check Rule is costly, time-consuming, and deters potential applicants from serving with AmeriCorps due to the lengthy and intrusive process.
New York State AmeriCorps 2012
AmeriCorps Funding Update
There will be significant changes to this year’s New York State Request For Proposal:
Draft Federal Notice of Funding Availability (NOFO) was released 8/30/2013.
DRAFT APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONSState and National Competitive New and
Continuation – for 60 day public comment, was released 8/30/2013.
AmeriCorps Funding Update
Revised Federal NOFO was later released, September 27, 2013
We project releasing the New York State Request for Proposal (RFP)in late October, 2013
The due date is projected for late November, 2013.
AmeriCorps Funding Update
The New York State AmeriCorps Request for Proposal (RFP) may have differences to what is in the federal Corporation for National & Community Service AmeriCorps NOFO.
If you choose to start your proposal, using the federal NOFO and/or Application Instructions as your guide, be sure to cross reference requirements in the State RFP, once it is released.
AmeriCorps Funding Update
In particular, the due date listed in the federal NOFO only applies to multi-state applicants and State Commissions only.
Single-state applicants will have a due date much earlier than what appears in the federal NOFO.
AmeriCorps Funding Update
Competitive Clarification will occur in February and March 2014.
CNCS projects making their Competitive grant funding announcements in April 2014.
The New York State Commission projects making Formula funding announcements in May 2014.
AmeriCorps Funding Update
IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS: The entire grant schedule deadlines are earlier than 2013-14 process.
Though we are projecting release of the New York State AmeriCorps Request for Proposal in late Fall 2013, a publication date has not been announced yet. Please check the New Yorkers Volunteer Website http://newyorkersvolunteer.ny.gov / during this period for information regarding release of the RFP.
All currently operating programs must reapply for 2014 AmeriCorps funding!
AmeriCorps Funding Update
Volunteer Generation Program
Super Storm Sandy Block Grant
Changes to AmeriCorps Provisions
and Policies
Change #1: Affiliation with the AmeriCorps National Service Program & Identification as an AmeriCorps Program or Member
AmeriCorps grantee agencies must identify themselves as an AmeriCorps program and members as AmeriCorps members.
All partnership agreements/MOUs related to the AmeriCorps program must state that the program is an AmeriCorps program and AmeriCorps members are the resources provided.
The AmeriCorps name and logo must be displayed on:o Websiteso Service gearo Public materials
2013-14 AmeriCorps Provisions
Change #2: AmeriCorps Member Death or Injury
The State Commission Office must immediately report any member deaths or serious injuries to the Corporation of National and Community Service
Grantee Incident Notification to State Commission Officeo Appendix A-1 of NY State Contract:
• Grantee shall notify ONCS of any unusual incident, occurrence or event that involves the staff, volunteers or officers of the grantee or AmeriCorps members.
July 22, 2011 Policy Memo o Grantee shall immediately notify State Commission Office if Prohibited Activities are detected.
2013-2014 Provision Change #2 2013-14 AmeriCorps Provisions
Process Change : Citizenship Verification Process
Individuals that cannot be automatically verified by the Social Security Administration (SSA) in the AmeriCorps Portal will no longer receive an email from the National Service Hotline requesting documentation.
Instead, AmeriCorps grantees will receive an email notifying them that the individual's Social Security # (SSN) and citizenship could not be verified.
What to do:Obtain and review copies of the required documentation to keep in the individual’s physical file.
CNCS Process Change #12013-14 CNCS Process Change
Policy Update: AmeriCorps Member Healthcare
CNCS is currently working with the Administration on the requirements that you will have for implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) starting on 1/1/14.
CNCS will be updating AmeriCorps provisions to address the ACA.
Grantees may continue to provide the same healthcare coverage that they are currently providing and that meets current AmeriCorps provisions through 12/31/13.
Questions may be directed to: [email protected]
CNCS Policy UpdateCNCS Process Change #12013-14 CNCS Policy Update
Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act (IPERA)
IPERA
Signed by Obama in 2010
The law requires federal agencies to periodically review and report on major programs that are susceptible to improper payment.
Testing a random sampling of payments made to CNCS grantees.
First phase randomly-selects payments charged to CNCS- grantees provide list of transactions.
Second phase randomly-selects payments from first phase- grantees provide back up for selected transactions.
THANK YOU
2013 New York State 2013 New York State AmeriCorps Project Director Training & AmeriCorps Project Director Training &
Annual MeetingAnnual Meeting
Gideon Putnam HotelGideon Putnam HotelOctober 7-9, 2013October 7-9, 2013
Saratoga Springs, New YorkSaratoga Springs, New York
ww
w.N
ewY
ork
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olu
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er.n
y.g
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