By Alex Parkinson, Researcher, The Conference Board
March 10, 2015
Evidence is mounting to show young people want to donate their time to communities through service. For example, according to the 2014 Millennial Impact Report, “Millennials are building a culture that knows how it feels to contribute to a cause and attempt to solve social issues.” The National Conference on Citizenship (NCoC) is a congressionally chartered organization dedicated to strengthening civic life in America. It is building on millennials’ momentum and values by developing the Service Year exchange. This innovative web application aims to ease barriers blocking young people from performing national service. By doing this, NCoC hopes to make a year of dedicated service a common experience for young people as they transition through their education and into the workforce. NCoC’s executive director, Ilir Zherka, kindly answered my questions about the project. Q: What is the Service Year exchange and what does it seek to achieve? A: The Service Year exchange will be a dynamic online marketplace to bring everyone interested in year-long, stipend national service together. That includes young people seeking service positions, organizations seeking service members, and funders looking to support these efforts. Currently, nothing close to this vision exists. Our goal is to make a service year a common expectation and opportunity. We are excited to be involved in this ambitious effort. Our effort aims to create one modern and comprehensive space where users can search, interact, communicate, partner, and earn academic credit for their service. This site will include existing positions in national service programs, such as AmeriCorps, and thousands of other new certified opportunities. Through this effort, we intend to make the most commonly asked question of a young person, “Where are you going to do your service year?” Q: What role do corporations play in a service year? A: Corporations are key partners in making a service year a reality for all Americans. Corporate foundations with 501c3 status can host service year participants directly to strengthen capacity. But, even more exciting is the ability to directly fund service year positions that target specific communities and causes. For example, a health insurance company could build a branded, city-specific team focused on improving the community’s health and well-being. An accompanying mentoring program could leverage the skills of company employees to guide corps member development. This is exactly the kind of targeted corporate social responsibility engagement that so many corporations are looking for. One of the most important steps a corporation can take is to hire service year alumni and become an Employer of National Service. Corporations who do this are critical because they will help to reinforce the benefits of a service year and create a culture of service across America. This will pay dividends far into the future. ~1@BODYURL[id=114jbcurl1276]@