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Civic Engagement Initiative

Background

A History of Using Volunteers:

From its beginning the Administration on Aging (AoA) and its state and local networks of organizations and leaders have counted on volunteer support. Volunteers have been significant contributors to aging services network, serving at every level and in the delivery of all types of services. Each year about ten million older people use Older Americans Act services, whose delivery largely depends upon the efforts of half a million volunteers.

Volunteers help in many ways, including: assisting at group meals sites and delivering meals to the home-bound elderly; escorting and transporting frail older persons to health care services, to essential shopping errands and to other needed services; visiting homebound elderly to help ensure their well-being through regular social contacts; repairing and weatherizing the homes of low-income and frail older persons; counseling older persons in a variety of areas including health promotion, nutrition, legal and financial concerns; serving as nursing home ombudsmen to prevent disputes and to help ensure the safety and well-being of residents in long-term care facilities; providing homemaking assistance to frail older persons; assisting in senior centers, day care, and other group programs for seniors; and helping during disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina and the recent Midwest floods; and serving on the advisory boards of state and local aging programs.

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Older Volunteers Help in Aging Programs:

Older volunteers have always been the backbone of programs administered under the Older Americans Act, and they play a critical role in efforts to modernize long term care services in communities across the United States.

Public attention to the civic engagement of older Americans has increased considerably in the last few years. At last year’s ServiceNation Summit, more than 110 ServiceNation coalition members, including organizations representing older person, presented a vision to unleash the energy of citizens on our most pressing social challenges by strengthening and increasing community and national service opportunities. One proposed strategy is to provide older Americans opportunities to use their lifetime of learning and skills to help address America’s challenges.

Older volunteers are in an excellent position to volunteer. In many cases they may have the time as well as the experience and expertise to help in a variety of activities. Recent research findings, documented in The Health Benefits of Volunteering: a Review of Recent Research, also demonstrate the positive relationship between health and volunteering.

According to a research brief by the Corporation for National and Community Service, The Baby Boomers generation – those 77 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964— represent a potential boost to the volunteer world, not only because of the sheer size of the generation but also because of its members’ high levels of education, wealth, and skills. Harnessing their skills and accommodating their expectations will be critical to solving a wide range of social problems in the years ahead.

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AoA Civic Engagement Activities

  • Authorizing Legislation:

Title I, Section 102 14 (d);
Title II, Section 202 4(c);
Title III, Section 373 (d);
Title IV, Section 417


The OAA Amendments of 2006 highlight the role of volunteers as a strategy to support and enhance OAA programs. The amendments:

  • provide guidelines for the use of volunteers at all levels in OAA programs;
  • provide for multigenerational and civic engagement demonstration grants that encourage community capacity-building involving older individuals and demonstrate effectiveness and cost savings in meeting critical needs; and
  • call for collaboration between the AoA and the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) in modernizing the way community-based organizations utilize older adults as volunteers

AoA’s long-range vision is to highlight the important role that volunteers, including older volunteers, play within the Aging Network and to provide them with innovative ways of using their skills and experience. AoA’s first steps in Civic Engagement include:

  • AoA Agreement with the Corporation for National and Community Service

AoA and the Corporation will work together to help modernize the way public and private non- profit organizations, such as community and faith-based organizations, utilize older adults as volunteers to significantly increase the number of these adults who are engaged in activities that address the needs of vulnerable populations throughout the United States.

  • AoA Grantees

AoA is funding a three year project with the National Council on Aging (NCOA) to provide technical assistance and other support to local programs that can become national multi-generational and civic engagement models for using older volunteers in meaningful direct services, as well as administrative, technical or developmental activities. Projects will focus on three target populations: 1) older relatives caring for grandchildren; 2) families caring for children with special needs; and 3) caregivers of frail elderly.

Fourteen local grants were awarded in September 2008. A second announcement will focus on successful ethnic, linguistic, and racial minority elderly and rural elderly. For additional information about this project, please contact: Tom Jones, Director. Multi-Generational and Civic Engagement (MGCE), National Council on Aging at 202-479-6649.

This project is funded in partnership with the Corporation for National and Community Service, the Atlantic Philanthropies and MetLife Foundation.

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Resources and Useful Links

For Professionals

• American Society on Aging (ASA). The ASA is a multidisciplinary array of researchers, practitioners, educators, business people and policymakers concerned with the physical, emotional, social, economic and spiritual aspects of aging. For further information about ASA’s Civic Engagement Program, go to http://www.asaging.org/asav2/civiceng/index.cfm.


• Corporation for National and Community Service. The Corporation is the nation’s largest grantmaker supporting service and volunteering. Through Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America programs, the Corporation provides opportunities for Americans of all ages and backgrounds to address critical community needs.

• National Governor’s Association (NGA). The NGA is the collective voice of the nation's governors. The NGA Center for Best Practices focuses on state innovations and best practices. For information about NGA’s Civic Engagement of Seniors Initiative, go to nga.org

•Points of Light Institute

For Consumers

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Last Modified: 4/24/2009 10:48:42 AM