Member Training, Supervision, and Experience AmeriCorps State and National External Review

1. Member Training, Supervision, and ExperienceAmeriCorps State and National External Review Daniel Barutta and Sarah Yue, Program Officers

2. Learning Objectives • Understand CNCS’s expectations for AmeriCorps Member Training, Member Supervision, and Member Experience • Know how to assess Member Training, Member Supervision, and Member Experience criteria when reviewing an AmeriCorps application • Practice assessing these criteria with sample application narratives

3. Expectations for High-Quality Applications • Member training that fully prepares members to be compliant with AmeriCorps requirements and successful in their service activities. • Member supervisors that are thoroughly trained in AmeriCorps policies and who provide excellent guidance and support to members throughout their service. • Meaningful service activities for members that help them gain new skills and experience, build connections with each other, and develop into active and productive citizens. • Member recruitment that encourages the participation of individuals from the communities in which the programs operate.

4. Review Criteria for External Review Member Training • The applicant clearly describes how members will receive high quality training to provide effective service. • The applicant clearly describes how members and volunteers will be aware of, and will adhere to, the rules including prohibited activities.

5. Review Criteria for External Review Member Supervision • The applicant clearly describes how members will receive high quality guidance and support from their supervisor to provide effective service. • The applicant clearly describes how supervisors will be adequately trained/prepared to follow AmeriCorps and program regulations, priorities, and expectations.

6. Review Criteria for External Review Member Experience • AmeriCorps members will gain skills and experience as a result of their training and service that can be utilized and will be valued by future employers after their service term is completed. • The applicant clearly describes how AmeriCorps members will have access to meaningful service experiences and opportunities for reflection. • The applicant clearly describes how AmeriCorps members will have opportunities to establish connections with each other and the broader National Service network to build esprit de corps.

7. Review Criteria for External Review Member Experience (continued) • The applicant clearly describes how AmeriCorps members will develop an ethic of and skills for active and productive citizenship and will be encouraged to continue to engage in public and community service after their AmeriCorps term. • The applicant clearly describes how the program will recruit AmeriCorps members from the communities in which the programs operate.

8. Logistics for Review • Sections of the application that should be reviewed to assess the criteria: • Member Training • Member Supervision • Member Experience • The Program Design portion of the application also includes sections on Notice Priority and Commitment to AmeriCorps Identification; reviewers should read these sections but do not need to assess them.

9. Scoring Rubric • 4-point scale: • Exceeds the criterion • Meets the criterion • Partially meets the criterion • Does not meet the criterion • Refer to the Scoring Rubric document on the Reviewer Resource Webpage to read an overview of each rating.

10. Criterion Descriptions • The Reviewer Resource Webpage contains a chart that lists specific descriptions of the “Exceeds the criterion” and “Does not meet the criterion at all” ratings for each individual review criterion. • The “Meets the criterion” and “Partially meets the criterion” ratings will fall between these two extremes. • Please use both reference documents (the Scoring Rubric and the Criterion Descriptions) throughout your review process.

11. Practice: Sample Application • Open the Sample Application (located on the Reviewer Resource Webpage) • Read the Member Training, Member Supervision, and Member Experience narratives • Using the Scoring Rubric and Criterion Descriptions, score the Member Training, Member Supervision, and Member Experience criteria for the Sample Application (you can record your ratings on a blank IRF) • Write down your justification for each rating • Pause the training until you have finished

12. Practice: Sample Application • The following slides provide CNCS’s assessment of what the rating should be for each criterion, plus written justifications for each rating. • The justifications are presented in the style of appropriate reviewer comments, but reviewers are NOT required to provide this many comments. Reviewers should limit their comments to significant strengths and weaknesses only. • It’s OK for your ratings to differ slightly from CNCS’s ratings. If your ratings differ significantly, please re-read the Scoring Rubric and Criterion Descriptions and re-review the application.

13. Member Training – Criterion 1 • Criterion: The applicant clearly describes how members will receive high quality training to provide effective service. • Score: Meets the criterion • Justification: • Strengths: • The training plan includes specific content that members will need to conduct their environmental restoration, service-learning, and volunteer management activities. The training plan also includes appropriate AmeriCorps-specific requirements and member development topics. • Training will be provided by individuals with the appropriate subject-matter expertise, including environmental science and natural resource professionals, science teachers, and volunteer managers.

14. Member Training – Criterion 1 • Justification (continued): • Strengths (continued): • Member training will be sustained on at least a monthly basis throughout the members' service term. • The service-learning curriculum in which members will be trained was selected in collaboration with partner schools and is aligned with academic standards. • Weaknesses: • The timeline for providing the service-specific content is not clearly described, making it difficult to determine whether members will receive the necessary training prior to beginning to implement service activities.

15. Member Training – Criterion 2 • Criterion: The applicant clearly describes how members and volunteers will be aware of, and will adhere to, the rules including prohibited activities. • Score: Meets the criterion • Justification: • Strengths: • The applicant presents an adequate plan for how both members and volunteers will be trained in prohibited activities, and how that training will be reinforced and monitored throughout the year.

16. Member Training – Criterion 2 • Justification (continued): • Weaknesses: • None noted. [Contextual note: although there were no significant weaknesses in this section, the narrative did not have enough notable strengths to justify an "Exceeds standards" rating.]

17. Member Supervision – Criterion 1 • Criterion: The applicant clearly describes how members will receive high quality guidance and support from their supervisor to provide effective service. • Score: Exceeds the criterion • Justification: • Strengths: • Supervisors will have frequent (at least weekly) interactions with AmeriCorps members as well as three formal appraisal/evaluation meetings during the year. This is a significant and meaningful level of support. • Supervisors will support the members in the design and implementation of their service activities as well as in meeting logistical requirements such as timesheets and reports.

18. Member Supervision – Criterion 1 • Justification (continued): • Weaknesses: • None noted.

19. Member Supervision – Criterion 2 • Criterion: The applicant clearly describes how supervisors will be adequately trained/prepared to follow AmeriCorps and program regulations, priorities, and expectations. • Score: Partially meets the criterion • Justification: • Strengths: • The application includes a plan for training member supervisors in AmeriCorps requirements, including requirements around prohibited activities. • Training for member supervisors will be reinforced throughout the program year via biweekly conference calls and quarterly in-person meetings, with additional training provided as needed.

20. Member Supervision – Criterion 2 • Justification (continued): • Weaknesses: • The plan for training member supervisors contains very little detail about the specific topics to be covered. • It is not clear whether sufficient time will be allotted for pre-service training of member supervisors.

21. Member Experience – Criterion 1 • Criterion: AmeriCorps members will gain skills and experience as a result of their training and service that can be utilized and will be valued by future employers after their service term is completed. • Score: Exceeds the criterion • Justification: • Strengths: • The application clearly states the nature of the specific skills and experience that members will gain, which are directly connected to their service experience and training.

22. Member Experience – Criterion 1 • Justification (continued): • Strengths (continued): • The applicant cites data indicating that over two-thirds of its prior members have secured jobs, accepted service opportunities, or pursued further education in the environmental field, which provides concrete evidence that the skills and experience gained by members enhance their post-service employment and education prospects. • Weaknesses: • None noted.

23. Member Experience – Criterion 2 • Criterion: The applicant clearly describes how AmeriCorps members will have access to meaningful service experiences and opportunities for reflection. • Score: Exceeds the criterion • Justification: • Strengths: • The application describes a clear and thoughtful plan to provide meaningful service activities for members and to enhance these service experiences through regular team meetings, personal development trainings, discussions, and alumni presentations.

24. Member Experience – Criterion 2 • Justification (continued): • Strengths (continued): • The applicant has designed reflection experiences for members that are woven throughout the program year and that engage the members in team-building and leadership roles. • Weaknesses • None noted.

25. Member Experience – Criterion 3 • Criterion: The applicant clearly describes how AmeriCorps members will have opportunities to establish connections with each other and the broader National Service network to build esprit de corps. • Score: Meets the criterion • Justification: • Strengths: • Members are engaged in monthly cohort meetings that offer them opportunities to interact, share experience, and establish connections with each other.

26. Member Experience – Criterion 3 • Justification (continued): • Strengths (continued): • Members will collaborate with other national service programs to plan and implement projects for national days of service. The program has a track record of these collaborations in the past. • Weaknesses • The application does not provide much detail about the nature of the planned or previous collaborations with other national service programs.

27. Member Experience – Criterion 4 • Criterion: The applicant clearly describes how AmeriCorps members will develop an ethic of and skills for active and productive citizenship and will be encouraged to continue to engage in public and community service after their AmeriCorps term. • Score: Partially meets the criterion • Justification: • Strengths: • Monthly member cohort meetings include readings and modules designed to build civic engagement among AmeriCorps members, as well as presentations from AmeriCorps alumni.

28. Member Experience – Criterion 4 • Justification (continued): • Weaknesses • The applicant does not sufficiently describe how the program will encourage members to continue to engage in public and community service beyond their current service terms.

29. Member Experience – Criterion 5 • Criterion: The applicant clearly describes how the program will recruit AmeriCorps members from the communities in which the programs operate. • Score: Meets the criterion • Justification: • Strengths: • The applicant describes a clear commitment to recruit members from the target communities where the program will operate • The program has a successful track record of recruiting members from the target communities: 80% of the program's members over the past three years have come from the region where the program operates.

30. Member Experience – Criterion 5 • Justification (continued): • Weaknesses • The application does not include a sufficiently detailed recruitment plan.

31. Recap: Learning Objectives • Understand CNCS’s expectations for AmeriCorps Member Training, Member Supervision, and Member Experience • Know how to assess Member Training, Member Supervision, and Member Experience criteria when reviewing an AmeriCorps application • Practice assessing these criteria with sample application narratives After completing this training, you will take an assessment that will give you more practice in scoring sample application narratives.

32. Assessment • To check for understanding and to verify that you have completed this orientation session, please complete the assessment at the following link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MemberCriteria (Please reference the PowerPoint on the Reviewer Resource Webpage to access the link)