During the next few weeks, we will be profiling the winners of the 2012 Service Impact Awards. Look for their stories and videos here on the blog.

 

Utilizing the energy and enthusiasm of recent college grads from partner universities to serve as full-time advisers in underserved schools, the National College Advising Corps works to improve the prospects of economically disadvantaged students for post-secondary success.

Many well-qualified students are discouraged by barriers to higher education, such as lack of information about college admission and financial aid, while guidance counselor caseloads are approaching 500 students per counselor nationwide. Advising Corps members work one-on-one with students to provide the advice and encouragement to help students make their dreams come true.

The program, which receives support from the Social Innovation Fund and AmeriCorps, engages with 327 advisers–including many AmeriCorps members – that serve more than 117,000 students in 14 states. Advising Corps members assist with the completion of admissions and financial aid applications, access test prep and college application fee waivers, and ensure that students take the final steps to complete the college enrollment process.

The results are encouraging: Students are 76 percent more likely to attend a financial aid workshop, 25 percent more likely to apply to college, 20 percent more likely to be accepted to college, and 34 percent more likely to be accepted to a four-year institution. The advisers benefit as well, with 99 percent intending to attend graduate school and 37 percent having plans to pursue studies in education.

The National College Advising Corps was selected as the winner in the Education category in the 2012 National Service Impact Awards.

Each year, the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll recognizes higher education institutions that reflect the values of exemplary community service and achieve meaningful outcomes in their communities through service.
 

You will hear the acronym STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) a lot whenever the discussion turns to improving education in the United States, and there is a good reason. Those disciplines are the cornerstones of the jobs that will keep America competitive in the near and distant future, and we have to get our students ready for that future now.
 

Physical activity is essential to a healthy lifestyle, and it can be especially important in helping kids do better in school. U.S. Health and Human Services studies show that regular physical activity for kids and teens improves strength and endurance, helps build healthy bones and muscles, and increases self-esteem.
 

Service comes naturally to Matt McCabe, the first AmeriCorps alum to join the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) Board of Directors. A commitment to service was instilled in him by his parents and grandparents from childhood. “They set the expectation that we give back to our community,” said McCabe.
 

Imagine a child cooped up inside a stuffy apartment building on a beautiful, sunny day because there’s no safe place to play outside. She has only unhealthy processed and fast foods to eat. This image is far removed from the nostalgic picture of a childhood summer filled with fun family vacations and camps. But for too many children, it is a reality that directly affects how ready they will be to move ahead in the classroom come September.
 

September 11th can be a challenging topic for educators. For younger students who weren’t born or were very young in 2001, it’s history. For older students and teachers, it’s a vivid memory that may feel like a current event. Finding a way to make the day meaningful across the generations requires finesse and planning.
 

Members of the group Game Changerz, also known as Sports Wives With Purpose, were in Washington recently, and we took the opportunity to ask them to talk about their favorite children’s books and the lessons they teach.
 

One of the major factors that contribute to children falling behind in reading is the learning loss that occurs during summer break. Low-income students, in particular, lose two to three months in reading achievement over the summer.
 

Earlier this summer, I had the incredible opportunity to attend the graduation of 22 Green City Force AmeriCorpsmembers in New York City. Green City Force recruits young adults, ages 18-24, who are currently unemployed or underemployed high school graduates or GED-holders from low-income neighborhoods.
 

Alison's daily struggles while raising two young children made her dream of a college degree seem unobtainable. But things began to turn around when the Latin American Youth Center (LAYC) in Washington, DC connected her with a Promotor.
 

Minnesota Reading Corps, an AmeriCorps program designed to help every child in the state become a successful reader by the end of third grade, announced positive growth in its results with numbers that surpassed those for students statewide.
 

Every day, researchers, policymakers, teachers, counselors, and business leaders continue to make the case for the importance of earning a high school diploma and obtaining some post-secondary study. For young adults who drop out of high school, their options and future earning potential become extremely limited. Sadly, 1-in-6 young adults are completely isolated from school and work – and are less likely to become the independent, productive citizens needed to help our nation grow.
 

Today, I was thrilled to be with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan at Memorial Middle School in Orlando, FL to announce Together for Tomorrow, a new initiative to expand community engagement and citizen service to improve low-performing schools.
 

Communities have a long history of coming together to revitalize and transform their areas. From the settlement houses of the late 19th century to the 1960s War on Poverty, communities have been collaborating for centuries to improve their surroundings.
 

While Juliana Ko was serving with Teach for America on the outskirts of a Navajo Nation Reservation, she tragically lost one of her students to suicide and knew that she had to do something for her adopted community.
 

As a former high-tech entrepreneur, CEO, and philanthropist, I have tried to tackle challenges that were similarly daunting and seemingly intractable. I've found that the “path forward” is almost always the same – large scale social change requires an “all hands on deck” approach that is proactive, focused, and inclusive.
 

Today, too many young people in America are struggling. More than a million students drop out of high school each year and one in every three do not graduate on time. The problem is even more severe among African American and Latino youth, and those from low-income backgrounds.
 

Native American students and educators face a unique set of circumstances surrounding tribal communities, including poverty, loss of culture and identity, and high suicide rates, all threatening students' academic success.
 

The holidays are a time when the spirit of kindness and generosity abound. So what better time to recognize your school for its year-round commitment to community service?
 

Hispanic leaders in Colorado, like so many in the United States, are committed to addressing challenges and improving opportunities for their community. They want to work with the Federal government to understand policies, access information, leverage resources, and build collaboration that will help provide solutions to pressing concerns. In Denver, I saw this commitment first hand.
 

We've all seen them – in every color of the rainbow and spanning kindergarten through university, the ubiquitous bumper sticker: Proud Parent of an Honor Roll Student. Parents everywhere are eager to display their child's hard work to the world. But parents aren't the only ones who have an opportunity to display such a sticker.
 

Last week, the Corporation for National and Community Service joined the Department of Housing and Urban Development for an event called “Evidence of Success: Institutions of Higher Education Engaging Communities.” Together, the two agencies hosted a discussion on the role that institutions of higher education play in stimulating local economies.
 

When Joseph Aragon heads to school in the morning you won't find him toting a backpack stuffed with school supplies or carrying a lunchbox. Instead, this 64 year-old brings with him a lifetime of experience and knowledge to share with the students of Blanche Pope Elementary School on the Hawaiian Homestead land in Waimanalo.
 

On April 27, Tuscaloosa, Alabama was on the minds of many Americans, but most didn't realize the damage statewide, especially in the small town of Hackleburg, population 1,500. In a rural area nearly 100 miles away from Birmingham, Hackleburg remains in the shadow of Tuscaloosa but the damage was just as bad, if not worse. The majority of the town was demolished and 17 residents were killed in the storm.
 

When Jerry* was nine, he was living with his alcoholic mother. All four of his siblings had already been removed from the home, but, somehow, Jerry was still there. Everything changed when, left home alone one summer day, the house caught fire and burned to the ground. As a result, Jerry was remitted to the child welfare system.
 

Lawrence Caldwell quit school, ran away from an abusive home and was well on his way to becoming another faceless statistic of America's drop out crisis, until he enrolled in the Gateway to College program at Montgomery College in Maryland. He excelled academically and is now an undergraduate at The George Washington University.
 

Do you remember when you fell in love with reading? Many of us can recall that defining moment when we realized that reading is fun. For veteran NFL player Chris Draft, it was the day his mother took him and his brother to get their library cards. He recalled how special he felt at that moment, later emphatically proclaiming to his friends saying, “Man, look I got my library card!”
 

As part of its summer enrichment series for Let's Read! Let's Move!, the Department of Education is inviting Cabinet members, administration officials, and other public figures to join in reading children's books, promoting healthy lifestyles, and participating in games and fitness activities with children in pre-kindergarten through third grade, from various local schools and summer programs.
 

Last fall, about 360,000 youth, educators, and community partners began a year-long campaign to demonstrate the potential of education powered by service. Through the Learn and Serve Challenge, they pledged to engage in service-learning activities to help more young people understand how their education is relevant in the real world.