The Corporation for National and Community Service recently awarded Habitat for Humanity International $4,922,322 to fund 300 AmeriCorps service positions.
Working with local Habitat organizations, new and returning Habitat AmeriCorps service members will help to build or improve homes alongside future and existing Habitat homeowners and volunteers in 100 communities across 32 states in the U.S. Members are expected to contribute more than 426,700 hours of service during the 2021-2022 service year.
“This past year has emphasized the critical role a home plays in people’s lives. Millions continue to grapple with housing instability due to the devastating economic impacts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Jacqueline Innocent, senior vice president of integrated programs. “With the support of this grant, we can continue to engage Habitat AmeriCorps as an integral part of our mission to provide safe, decent and affordable homes in communities across the nation.”
For more than 25 years, Habitat and CNCS have partnered together to build Habitat’s capacity to serve more families across the country. CNCS is the federal agency for volunteering, civic engagement and national service programs like AmeriCorps. Since the program’s inception in 1994, Habitat AmeriCorps members have served more than 126,000 individuals, engaged more than 4.7 million volunteers and have contributed more than 18.6 million hours of service.
“AmeriCorps is dedicated to creating a more united and equitable future for all Americans,” said Sonali Nijhawan, director of AmeriCorps State and National. “I’m proud to announce new funding that will elevate this work by supporting more AmeriCorps members for Habitat for Humanity. I appreciate all of our AmeriCorps members past, present and future for their dedication. As an AmeriCorps alumna myself, I know tomorrow looks a little brighter because they pledged to ‘get things done for America.’”
AmeriCorps members apply for and serve full time for at least a year at local Habitat organizations across the country. To learn more about Habitat AmeriCorps and how to get involved, visit habitat.org/americorps.