• Celebrate the Success!
• CALL TO SERVICE
• Funding Available for DC Metro Applicants for The Capital One Youth Service Fund
• Largest Service Event in the World Names 50 Lead Agencies - Youth Service America’s National & Global Youth Service Day 2007 Planning Kicks Off
• STUDENTS AND TEACHERS HONORED WITH 100 SERVICE-LEARNING GRANTS FOR NATIONAL & GLOBAL YOUTH SERVICE DAY 2007
• Youthrising Awardees Announced to Launch Service Projects For National and Global Youth Service Day

WASHINGTON – (September 22, 2006) –Youth Service America’s National & Global Youth Service Day 2007 planning efforts kick off with the announcement of their 50 Lead Agencies. Awarded by Youth Service America and funded by State Farm Companies Foundation, the Lead Agencies unleash the ingenuity, passion, and idealism of young people, ages 5-25, to transform their communities through simultaneous volunteering efforts. National & Global Youth Service Day is April 20-22, 2007.

"Youth are constantly told that they are the hope of tomorrow,” says Steven A. Culbertson, president and CEO of Youth Service America. “At Youth Service America we believe that youth are the hope of today. They have amazing energy, commitment, idealism, and creativity. There is every reason for them to address the problems facing their communities today, not tomorrow."

The 2007 National & Global Youth Service Day Lead Agencies:

National & Global Youth Service Day, the largest service event in the world, mobilizes young people to identify and address community needs through service, supports youth on a life-long path of service and civic engagement, and educates the public about the role of youth as leaders and community assets. Planning Tool Kits, Service-Learning Curriculum Guides, classroom posters, grants, and more are available for youth, parents, teachers, and organizations. For a detailed listing of the Lead Agencies, please go here.

WASHINGTON – (November 14, 2006) – Capital One Financial Corporation and Youth Service America are partnering again to offer DC Metro applicants up to $500 in grant funding to support youth-led community service projects in low/moderate income communities. Youth (ages 5-25), teachers, youth leaders, youth-serving organizations, and organizations that engage youth in Washington DC, Fairfax, Arlington, Prince George’s, and Montgomery Counties, and the city of Alexandria are encouraged to submit proposals by January 27, 2007.

These grants support service projects on National and Global Youth Service Day, April 20-22, 2007. Projects can address any issues that youth identify as a community need. For more information and application materials, visit www.YSA.org/awards.

National & Global Youth Service Day, the largest service event in the world, mobilizes young people to identify and address community needs through service, supports youth on a life-long path of service and civic engagement, and educates the public about the role of youth as leaders and community assets. Planning Tool Kits, Service-Learning Curriculum Guides, classroom posters, grants, and more are available for youth, parents, teachers, and organizations.

Youth Service America is a national resource center that partners with thousands of organizations committed to increasing the quality and quantity of volunteer opportunities for young people, ages 5-25, to serve locally, nationally, and globally. Founded in 1986, YSA’s mission is to expand the impact of the youth service movement with communities, schools, corporations, and governments. YSA envisions a global culture of engaged youth who are committed to a lifetime of service, learning, leadership, and achievement.

In addition to National & Global Youth Service Day, which take place concurrently each April, YSA also hosts SERVEnet (www.SERVEnet.org), providing the largest database of volunteer opportunities in America. For more information, visit: www.YSA.org.

MILLIONS OF YOUNG PEOPLE ACROSS AMERICA PERFORM SIMULTANEOUS SERVICE PROJECTS ON NATIONAL & GLOBAL YOUTH SERVICE DAY - APRIL 20-22, 2007

WASHINGTON – (December 1, 2006) – Call to Service! Start planning your service and service-learning projects now for National and Global Youth Service Day – April 20-22, 2007! Youth across America and the world will join together in April performing simultaneous community service projects for the 19th Annual National & Global Youth Service Day. On April 20-22, 2007, millions of young people across the world, with the help of mentors, parents, teachers, and volunteers will address unmet community needs through service and service-learning projects addressing school violence, climate change, disaster relief, literacy, poverty, and urban decay. For more information about National and Global Youth Service Day and how to get involved, please go to: www.YSA.org/nysd.

WASHINGTON (December 12, 2006) – Youth Service America and the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention are pleased to announce the grant winners of the YouthRising grant program. A total of 16 grants were awarded for organizations to engage high risk and/or gang-involved youth in leading volunteer service projects on National & Global Youth Service Day – April 20-22, 2007.

“Many communities believe in the importance of making service the common expectation and experience of every young person. However, there are young people without access to the opportunity to serve or they may simply not be asked to serve.” said Steve Culbertson, president and CEO of Youth Service America. “Through the YouthRising grant program and the experience of participating in National & Global Youth Service Day on April 20-22, these young people will gain invaluable work and academic skills that empower them to make significant, positive, and lasting changes in their community and themselves.”

Here is a selection of YouthRising Grantees:

NEW YORK. The Boys and Girls Club of Syracuse is a youth development agency whose goal is to enable young people to realize their full potential as productive, responsible, and caring citizens. The 115 youth leading this project are members of the Keystone Club and also face a combination of factors that put them at high-risk. The youth decided to organize a neighborhood clean-up that includes soliciting resources and volunteers from other community agencies and local businesses. This project will benefit 500 people.

WASHINGTON. The Friends and Servants program of the Spokane Valley YMCA is an after-school program for criminal and status offenders referred by the county juvenile justice system. Oversight will be provided by the executive director of the YMCA and a 4-person Youth Advisory Board. Twenty-four youth volunteers will improve river access and shore-line safety by rehabilitating a high-use recreational area that has been vandalized by gangs. The conservative estimate is that more than 18,000 people who use the recreational area will benefit from the service project.

VERMONT. Spectrum provides long-term transitional housing for homeless and runaway youth and was awarded the Juvenile Mentoring Programs (JUMP) grant in 2002 (in partnership with the Burlington School district). They will take 10 youth to New Orleans to contribute to deconstruction and cleanup of St. Bernard Parish for six days, and participate in construction work with Habitat for Humanity in the Upper 9th Ward. Sixty homeowners in New Orleans will benefit from this service project. The youth will present their video and photo reflections to a local high school (audience about 200 youth) after the completion of their service project.

WASHINGTON DC. City Gate, Inc. addresses the needs of urban youth and other disadvantaged groups in Ward 8 of Washington DC. Thirty eight youth who are enrolled in the after-school program and youth from the community will beautify and clean the area around a footbridge in a local park. They anticipate that the service project will benefit thousands of people who use the footbridge because it crosses a stream that divides the surrounding neighborhood in half.

For the full description of grant winners in CA, IL, NY, IL, WA, AL, DC, NC, VT, CT, MT, FL, MN, TN, WI, MI, please go to: http://www.ysa.org/Awards/youthrisingWinners.cfm.

WASHINGTON– (February 22, 2007) – Twenty-nine students between eight and 25-years-old and 71 teachers and service-learning coordinators were awarded the State Farm Good Neighbor Service-Learning Grants for National & Global Youth Service Day, April 20-22 by Youth Service America and State Farm Companies Foundation. The $1,000 grants were awarded in 37 states encompassing all academic disciplines and designed to expose more people to the positive benefits of service-learning.

"The State Farm Good Neighbor Service-Learning grants open the door to our young people to become fully engaged participants and leaders," says Steven E. Culbertson, president and CEO of Youth Service America. "These grants will support young people as they step into meaningful decision-making roles and make important contributions to their schools, organizations, and communities. Studies have shown that students who participate in service-learning demonstrate increased civic and social responsibility and improved academic achievement."

"State Farm's philanthropic mission is to help build safer, stronger, and better educated communities," says Kristy Funk, assistant secretary, State Farm Companies Foundation. "Partnering with organizations such as YSA promotes the company's commitment to helping raise achievement levels of our nation's teachers and students. Service-Learning is important as it provides a connection between classroom academics and solving community issues, while linking school officials, parents, community members, and students together. The service-learning grants are an excellent way to support the efforts of these students and teachers."

A sampling of the causes that the youth are undertaking in their campaigns:

CHILD HOMELESSNESS – Zachary, an 8-year-old from Florida will lead 50 to 60 youth in a service-learning event about child homelessness. Starting on April 20, they will begin their 24 hours living as homeless children at the local Toys R’ Us parking lot. They will sleep in appliance boxes and will eat only donated food. All youth participants will receive a presentation from StandUp For Kids, an organization that works with homeless youth, on what they see and deal with when they work with homeless youth in the area. The event will raise money to be used to make backpacks full of school supplies for homeless youth and will serve as a way to educate children and the community about this issue. His organization is Little Red Wagon Foundation, Inc.

URBAN RENEWAL – Katelyn, a 10-year-old from Arkansas will lead fellow elementary school students to convert a vacant urban lot adjacent to the school into the King Nature Center. The center will become a "living playground" with garden beds, nature trails, an outdoor classroom, and environmentally-friendly playground equipment.

INTERGENERATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS - Students at George Washington University will organize a dance to celebrate senior citizens in the Washington, DC community and to build intergenerational relationships between seniors and college students. The "Senior Prom" will include an afternoon of dinner, dancing, live performers and party favors. The dance will build lasting relationships and will address the issue of social isolation which is often prominent in the elderly community.

LITERACY – Delaware high school members of the National Honor Society and Student Cooks and Bakers will plan and facilitate an interactive event to honor the 103rd Birthday of Dr. Seuss for local elementary school participants. The Cooks and Bakers will provide guidance to the elementary school participants in cooking various foods that are inspired by Dr. Seuss books, such as green eggs and ham.

PEDIATRIC CANCER – New York City middle school students working with the Art Gives! program will form a partnership/buddy program with pediatric cancer patients at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. The students will meet with the patients 4-5 times and will work with them to design t-shirts. They will then organize an event at the Cancer Center to showcase the t-shirts and raise awareness of childhood cancer issues.

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP – Texas elementary school students at E.L. Kent Elementary will combine environmental science, social studies, geography, art and music in a week long service-learning project to foster unity within their diverse school, and to give them a sense of belonging to the world around them. Projects will include a letter writing campaign to the troops in Iraq, a school-wide recycling competition, a food drive to benefit the local food bank, and the construction of a community garden.

The profiles of the State Farm Good Neighbor Service-Learning Projects happening for National & Global Youth Service Day in April are at: www.ysa.org/awards/stateFarmWinnersList.cfm.

National & Global Youth Service Day (April 20-22, 2007), the largest service event in the world, mobilizes youth to identify and address the needs of their communities through service-learning and community service. The event is organized by Youth Service America (YSA) with the support of State Farm Companies Foundation as the Presenting Sponsor. More than 115 National Partners and 51 Lead Agencies throughout the United States organize projects. Overseas, National Lead Agencies in 118 countries around the world manage national events. Planning Tool Kits, Service-Learning Curriculum Guides, classroom posters, grants, and more are available for youth, parents, teachers and organizations. For the U.S. Map of Service Projects for National & Global Youth Service Day 2007.