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About Us

About Us

In January 2005, Governor Mitch Daniels created the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives (OFBCI) to insure that the faith-based institutions of Indiana were provided equal access to state and federal resources and services. With the establishment of the OFBCI, the responsibilities of the Indiana Commission on Community Service and Volunteerism (ICCSV) were folded in under the auspices of this new office. Together the OFBCI with assistance from the ICCSV, provides information, training, technical assistance and limited grant funding to both community based and faith-based organizations seeking to make Indiana a better place to live for all citizens.

What OFBCI Does

  • Serves as the liaison between the Office of the Governor and many of Indiana's community and faith-based organizations, volunteer centers, and corporate volunteer councils.
  • Coordinates OFBCI activities with those of any federally administered service programs to ensure that services are not duplicated.
  • Provides information, technical assistance, education and resource support to groups and organizations to improve and strengthen the State's volunteerism and community service infrastructure.
  • Administers Corporation for National and Community Service Programs through federal funds available under the National and Community Service Act of 1993. In that role, OFBCI and the OFBCI Board of Commissioners oversees grants in excess of $2 million dollars annually awarded to approximately 13 AmeriCorps State programs. These programs provide individuals the opportunity to spend a year serving in Indiana communities to address problems in the areas of human needs, education, the environment and public safety. Among other things, members of AmeriCorps programs tutor children in under-served schools, assist low-income residents to find housing, and organize neighborhood watch programs to make our communities safer.
  • Works closely with the Corporation for National and Community Service Indiana Office and the Indiana Department of Education, Office of Service-Learning, to connect the state's streams of national service (Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America).
  • Applies for funding to the Corporation for National and Community Service and other entities that administer federal grants to support the objectives established by OFBCI for faith-based and community-based programs.
  • Promotes innovative and model programs and initiatives in order to share best practices among such groups and organizations.

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