From an early age, Bill Clinton felt called to public service. During his first term as president of the United States, he led an effort to create a program that would encourage and enable Americans to engage in meaningful public service.
In September of 1994, a year after passage of the National Community Service and Trust Act, President Clinton swore in the first members of AmeriCorps. As President Clinton stated at the time, service "is about sacrifice for others, and about accomplishments for ourselves, about reaching out, one person to another..."
Some 20 years later, AmeriCorps has more than lived up to its promise in providing those opportunities. During that time, more than 820,000 AmeriCorps members have contributed more than 1 billion hours of service time--fighting poverty, supporting veterans and families, strengthening food security, and preserving environmental resources.
AmeriCorps volunteers have learned about themselves and others through service with people of diverse backgrounds, gained skills and leadership experience, and developed their sense of civic responsibility. They have also received billions of dollars of educational awards, which helped them continue their own education.
They have truly reached out, one person to another.
In Central Arkansas, AmeriCorps' City Year has strong local support, which has enabled us to fund 54 City Year corps members who are providing amazing assistance in promoting reading skills in some of our local schools. In Little Rock, more than 80 percent of students that City Year has worked with have seen improvement in their literacy score, and more than 95 percent of teachers and principals agree that City Year corps members have improved the overall academic performance. These are truly remarkable achievements.
I've seen firsthand the dedication and commitment these young people have brought to students, and I've witnessed the admiration, trust, and hard work with which the children responded.
City Year works, and it's a great investment for our community.
Other AmeriCorps programs in Arkansas support family outreach, provide adult literacy and health programs to address obesity, foster grandparents, conservation and many other efforts. The basic principle in each is the same--encourage Americans to reach out to help each other in structured service, supported by a combination of public monies and private charitable donations.
As we continue to learn, national security takes more than willing soldiers--though we're blessed with a wonderful group of men and women in uniform. Ultimately, national security rests on strong communities, bonded by mutual commitment, understanding, and trust. These are precisely the qualities that AmeriCorps fosters--and why it has grown stronger and more vibrant, despite budget cutbacks and sequestration, over the years.
At this 20-year anniversary, it's appropriate to reflect on our blessing and renew our commitment to one of America's great institutions--AmeriCorps!
------------v------------
Former Supreme Allied Commander Wesley Clark is the founding board chairman of City Year, Little Rock/North Little Rock.
Editorial on 09/13/2014