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Sparks, Nev.-More than 300 tribal leaders and community service practitioners will gather here Oct. 28-30 for the Third National Conference on Service in Indian Country. Keynote speaker for the conference will be James F. Manning, acting CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, which administers the Senior Corps, AmeriCorps and Learn and Serve America programs.
The Corporation provides $10 million to fund service projects on reservations and with tribal organizations across the country. Projects focus on community health, housing, hunger, education, employment, and economic development. Each of the three main programs within the Corporation sponsor projects. Examples include:
- Through Foster Grandparents, Senior Companions, and RSVP, 5,400 Native Americans serve with Senior Corps projects, with a total funding of $4.8 million. The volunteers assist with educational programs, provide services to help tribal elders maintain their independence, and undertake a variety of other community service projects.
- A total of 262 AmeriCorps members serve in nine states, with total funding of $4.8 million. The AmeriCorps*Tribal Civilian Community Corps, with locations in Alaska, Arizona, and California, deploys teams of AmeriCorps members to short-term service projects identified by tribal sponsors. A statewide project in Alaska fields AmeriCorps*VISTA members to assist in establishing libraries in all 28 Natives Alaskan villages.
- Learn and Serve America provides $1.2 million to fund 13 projects involving more than 4,000 students in service-learning, a teaching method that helps students put classroom instruction to use in service to their communities. Projects such as the one at Bug O Nay Ge Shig School in Bena, Minn., focus on preserving tribal language and culture. Through a Cherokee Nation Project in Tahlequah, Okla., students are participating in service activities that link service to history and civics and draw from the Cherokee experience.
The conference is designed to strengthen opportunities for Indian tribes to work together, identify potential resources and partners, and build on service and service-learning activities to make communities stronger.
"The Corporation for National and Community Service sponsors excellent programs among tribes," Manning explained. "This conference offers an opportunity to build on our successes and on the unique strengths that have sustained native communities for generations."
"The Corporation for National and Community Service sponsors excellent programs among tribes," Manning explained. "This conference offers an opportunity to build on our successes and on the unique strengths that have sustained native communities for generations."
The Corporation for National and Community Service provides opportunities for Americans of all ages and backgrounds to serve their communities and country. The Corporation and its programs are part of USA Freedom Corps, a White House initiative to foster a culture of citizenship, service, and responsibility, and to help all Americans answer the President's Call to Service. For further information, visit www.nationalservice.gov.
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