Colorado Youth Corps Association Secures $1.39 Million Grant for AmeriCorps Education Awards Program
May 22, 2014, Denver, Colo. – The Colorado Youth Corps Association (CYCA) announces it has been awarded $1.39 million through a highly competitive national grant competition. The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) announced the results of the AmeriCorps grant awards this month. CYCA will use the funds to support its Youth and Vets for Colorado AmeriCorps program during the 2015 calendar year.
With this award, administered through the Serve Colorado, the Governor’s Commission on Community Service, CYCA will continue its service delivery of AmeriCorps Education Award scholarships to youth corps members across the state. Supporting approximately 350 youth corps members, CYCA will pass the award funds through CYCA to its participating corps. These include Mile High Youth Corps, Mile High Youth Corps-Colorado Springs, Larimer County Conservation Corps, Weld County Youth Conservation Corps and Rocky Mountain Youth Corps.
“This award represents a significant investment in Colorado’s youth, and we are incredibly honored to have been selected among a highly competitive pool of national candidates,” said Scott Segerstrom, CYCA’s associate director. “This gives our members much needed access to higher education or assistance with existing loan debt, enabling them to pursue their career dreams.”
The CNCS will be awarding 288 grants totaling $205 million to national and local nonprofits that will engage 43,104 new AmeriCorps members across the country. Serving communities from coast to coast, these members are strengthening education, providing disaster services, fostering economic opportunity, assisting veterans and military families, preserving the environment, and expanding health services. A complete list of awardees is available on the CNCS website.
About the Corporation for National and Community Service
The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in service through its AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, Social Innovation Fund, and Volunteer Generation Fund programs, and leads the President’s national call to service initiative, United We Serve. Since 1994, more than 830,000 Americans have provided more than 1 billion hours of service to their communities and country through AmeriCorps. For more information, visit NationalService.gov.
About Serve Colorado, the Governor’s Commission on Community Service
Serve Colorado, the Governor’s Commission on Community Service, strives to build a culture of civic engagement across Colorado by working in partnership with a vast array of community based organizations. As the state agency of the national AmeriCorps program, Serve Colorado provides staffing and funding for 15 community based programs including environmental stewardship, academic tutoring, youth mentoring, economic opportunity, and other initiatives designed to help communities thrive. Additionally, Serve Colorado directly oversees the Colorado Reads and One Book 4 Colorado literacy initiatives, and promotes volunteerism through four Days of Service held annually. Learn more at www.colorado.gov/ServeColorado.
About Colorado Youth Corps Association
The Colorado Youth Corps Association (CYCA) is a statewide coalition of ten accredited youth conservation corps that engage and train youth, young adults, and military veterans on land, water and energy conservation projects. Youth corps is a proven strategy for engaging young people in service to their communities and stewardship of their environment while cultivating valuable skills to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Learn more at www.CYCA.org.
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