Anyone have personal experience or know someone in Americorps?

I worked with a group of Americorps volunteers on a park. They laid out trails in the woods. They were cheerful and seemed to enjoy each other and what they were doing.

I have heard a few things about this organization and I would be careful if you want to join. I haven’t had any experience with them but in todays world I would carefully check out anything you want to belong too.

I know a number of people who have been in Americorps. I haven’t heard them say anything bad. They do sometimes end up working in neighborhoods very different from anything they’ve ever been in, but that kind of cross cultural experience seems to be invaluable.

Most learn about other people in other economic strata from themselves. They sometimes learn skills such as conservation skills. It seems to be a good thing to do after college before you head back to grad school or work. It takes you to other places in the country you’ve probably never been, and supposedly the company (other Americorps volunteers) is pretty good.

I worked for a non-profit organization a number of years ago that received much of its funding from Americorps, so we were also Americorps members. It was an incredible experience. I worked four days a week at a public elementary school as a coordinator of special projects, like running the school garden, teaching poetry, organizing a peer tutoring program, and so on. I loved it! The other members, who worked at various school sites and child development centers, were incredibly diverse, hardworking, and inspiring. The leaders of the program, who facilitated workshops and discussions for all of us one day a week and supported us at our school sites, were great. The pay was very low which was definitely a hardship for some folks, but I was able to live with my parents so it worked out for me. There are many different things that being an Americorps member can mean, including working for an Americorps-funded organization like I did. However, I do know that funding for such programs has changed a lot since then, and I’m not sure how many such organizations are still able to exist.

Bottom line: If you are a service-oriented, energetic, motivated person who is interested in meeting many diverse people and challenging yourself personally and professionally (and if you can handle doing all of it at a very low income), then it is an incredibly valuable experience and totally worth pursuing. For me it was life-changing, as it cemented my desire to pursue a teaching career in urban schools. I have been a teacher for 6 years now in a public charter school with a predominantly low-income and ESL population and I absolutely love it.

I met people from Americorps who were doing their work near where I live. I met 5 of them from that crew. They were the nicest, most beautiful girls ever. They asked what I was doing for Thanksgiving when they were here, and I said I was camping in the desert. I gave them a map to my campsite. They all showed up….. with food n weed, yay!

We sang songs, we hiked, we connected with the alien desert in miraculous deep ways. They eventually returned to their project, the project ended, and they returned to their homes across the country. I got very sweet thank-you notes from 2 of them.

The work they did was important and good, and they were beautiful all ways. They were fun, down to earth, intelligent, and comfortable.

I think this has to do with the individuals I met, as individuals being who they are, rather than having to do with Americorps itself.

But Americorps must be something special to attract such great people.

Both of my sisters worked with Americorps after high-school and they both had nothing but positive things to say about it. Hope that helps.

I was in Americorps for a summer. We ran an educational summer camp for homeless children. It was an extremely educational experience for me, too! we got paid very little, but I was living in a city that was not very expensive. Afterwards, we got money that was intended to be put towards our college loans.

I am not too familiar with them but they are very reputable and help out the New Orleans area! Seems like a good organization to me!