City Service Corp: AmeriCorps Program Outcome Evaluation. Urban Institute. Nathan Dietz et al. April 18, 2019
New York City shows a tremendous need for robust social services. Nearly 3.8 million people (45 percent of residents) live in poverty or just above the threshold—and income inequality continues to rise. Approximately 1.4 million New Yorkers face food insecurity, and more than 400,000 people live in public housing. New York City has the largest number of youths disconnected from school and employment in the country, and fewer than three-quarters of the city’s youths complete high school.
These needs were recognized by the Office of the Mayor in its long-term strategic plan, One New York: The Plan for a Strong and Just City. The plan seeks to ensure all New Yorkers have access to “high-quality, conveniently located, community-based city resources that promote civic engagement.” With this goal in mind, NYC Service founded City Service Corps to unite a diverse group of AmeriCorps members to serve full time at city agencies and, in the program years studied for this report, community-based organizations to address pressing community needs and help make the City of New York more equitable.
The Urban Institute conducted an evaluation of the City Service Corps program to assess how much organizations benefit from the City Service Corps members’ service, the extent to which members gain valuable skills, and whether they continue to be civically engaged after completing the program. This evaluation focused on the first two program years, 2015–16 and 2016–17. [Note: contains copyrighted material].
[PDF format, 121 pages].
