Board Meeting Information

The purpose of this page is to provide information about the Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism Board Meetings. 

GCSV will post agenda items and a synopsis for the public to view.

GCSV Board Chair Laurie Chandler's letter to the editor in support of National Service

To view, click here.

Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism Board

Approves New One Percent Administration Fee

The board of the Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism (GCSV) met Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2012, in Atlanta and authorized a one percent administrative fee on AmeriCorps grants.

At its quarterly meeting at the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the board also named a nominating committee to recommend candidates for new officers who will be selected when the board meets in June.

The board approved the new one percent administrative fee after hearing from GCSV Executive Director John Turner, who reported on budgets cuts for state service commissions that were part of the 2012 appropriations bill passed by Congress in December. Turner told the board that the federal grants that support GCSV operations were reduced by about 18%.

The cuts fall most heavily on the grant funds GCSV has used in the past to provide training and technical support for AmeriCorps programs, Turner said.

Board members asked questions about the impact of the cuts and how the requested one percent fee on AmeriCorps grants would be used to offset them. Turner explained that the one percent fee on grants from the 2010-2011 program year combined with the 2011-2012 program year would yield about $16,000, and those funds would be designated to pay the annual fee for the OnCorps web-based reporting system that GCSV has formerly provided to AmeriCorps programs at no cost.

The board also discussed a pilot program launched by GCSV this year to recognize high school students at graduation with a service cord and certificate. GCSV staff member Lori Bodine said schools have shown a lot of interest in the project and she anticipates that the program will grow in the future.

Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism Board

Approves 2012-2013 AmeriCorps Competitive Applicants

The board of the Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism (GCSV) met Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2011 in Atlanta and approved four AmeriCorps grant applicants for the national competition for 2012-2013 programs.

At its quarterly meeting at the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the board authorized the commission staff to nominate the four current AmeriCorps competitive programs for the Competitive round that will be held early next year by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). Those programs are Teach For America, New Teacher Project, Hands On Atlanta and Georgia Sea Turtle Center.

GCSV Executive Director John Turner told the board that the four applications will be submitted to CNCS in January. The GCSV staff will review the application narratives, performance measures and budgets in the next few weeks and make recommendations to the four organizations for any modifications that are needed before final applications are submitted to CNCS.

In other business, the GCSV executive director reviewed the Georgia State Service Plan that was created in 2009 and gave the board a “scorecard” on the progress the commission made during the three year period. The review showed that GCSV had met or exceeded five goals, made significant progress on three goals and no progress on one goal.

The review was a prelude to the development of a new three-year state service plan early next year.

The GCSV board welcomed four new members during the meeting. James H. Reese, Kathy Colbenson, Semba Brittian and Cheryl de-Luca Johnson were all appointed to the GCSV board during the fall by Georgia Governor Nathan Deal and were attending their first board meeting.

The GCSV board also heard a presentation about the Teach For America AmeriCorps program in Georgia from Jessica Nemer, a former Teach For America teacher in New York schools who now works for the organization in Atlanta.

The next GCSV board meeting will be held Feb. 14, 2012, at 1 p.m. at the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.

Information about the GCSV Disability Mini-Grants for the fall of 2011 can be obtained at the GCSV website or by contacting GCSV Disability Coordinator Ryan Coskrey at ryan.coskrey@dca.ga.gov or 404-327-6830.

The GCSV board also heard a presentation from Charles Martin of Georgia College and State University on an evaluation he conducted of the GCSV Learn and Serve K-12 America program.

The GCSV staff presented to the board an electronic version of a poster the commission plans to print to thank emergency and public safety officials for their service as part of the commemoration of the tenth anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The posters will be distributed to city and county officials throughout Georgia by AmeriCorps programs and other national service organizations, as well as through the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.

Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism Awards $3.4 million in AmeriCorps Grants

June 2011

The board of the Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism has awarded federal AmeriCorps grants totaling $3,480,668 to 18 organizations that will engage about 650 AmeriCorps members in service to meet community needs in the areas of education, mentoring, public safety, health, seniors, veterans and persons with disabilities.

The board voted Tuesday to award 15 continuation grants totaling $2,904,718 to current AmeriCorps programs and also approved new AmeriCorps grants totaling $575,950 to three organizations, Teach For America, New Teacher Project and Goodwill Industries of the Southern Rivers.

When combined with the four competitive AmeriCorps grants awarded to Georgia organizations by the Corporation for National and Community Service May 26, the total AmeriCorps program amount administered by the Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism (GCSV) for 2011-2012 is $5,071,196, a slight increase over the current year.

“The 981 AmeriCorps members supported by these grants will teach and tutor students, mentor at-risk youth, make neighborhoods safer, recruit and help manage volunteers, and serve on the front lines to help veterans and meet the special needs in our communities, ” said GCSV Executive Director John Turner. “By combining the power of national service and volunteerism with their commitment to get things done, these Georgia AmeriCorps members are going to help non-profits, cities and universities solve local problems.”

In other business Tuesday, the GCSV board voted to re-elect Laurie Chandler of Berry College in Rome as the board chair. The board elected Deborah Silcox of Atlanta vice chair and Kim Brannen of Statesboro as secretary. The GCSV board members are appointed by the governor to serve three year terms.

A total of 19 different organizations will operate AmeriCorps programs in Georgia through the grants awarded by the Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism, with all of the funding coming from the Corporation for National and Community Service. The programs begin in late summer or early fall and run for one year. Programs offer a variety of full time, part time and reduced time AmeriCorps positions. Recruitment and selection of AmeriCorps members is conducted by the individual programs.

Competition for the three new AmeriCorps grants awarded by the GCSV board was unusually stiff this year, according to Turner. Ten applicants requested more than $1.8 million in funding for 2011-2012. Awards were determined by application scores, he said.

The new AmeriCorps grants approved by the GCSV board include:

•  Teach For America, $415,800 and 231 AmeriCorps member positions

•  New Teacher Project, $27,150 and 30 AmeriCorps member positions

•  Goodwill Industries, $133,000 and 10 AmeriCorps positions

Continuation AmeriCorps program grant awards approved by the GCSV board include:

•  Hands On Atlanta Silver Corps, $146,916 and 12 AmeriCorps member positions

•  Jumpstart for Young Children, $167,409 and 89 AmeriCorps member positions

•  United Way of Metro Atlanta, $273,781 and 21 AmeriCorps positions

•  Youth Villages/ Inner Harbour, $327,985 and 32 AmeriCorps positions

•  Operation REACH, Inc., $199,500 and 36 AmeriCorps positions

•  Fannin County Family Connection, $187,302 and 19 AmeriCorps positions

•  Georgia Mountains YMCA, $237,365 and 45 AmeriCorps positions

•  Refugee Family Services, $139,650 and 15 AmeriCorps positions

•  City of Albany Police, $132,719 and 10 AmeriCorps positions

•  Georgia State University Research Foundation, $171,086 and 20 AmeriCorps positions

•  Refugee Resettlement and Immigration Service of Atlanta, $134,000 and 10 AmeriCorps positions

•  Communities In Schools, $193,047 and 30 AmeriCorps positions

•  Clayton State University, $222,126 and 37 AmeriCorps positions

•  University of Georgia, $172,267 and 18 AmeriCorps positions

•  City of Macon Police, $199,565 and 15 AmeriCorps positions

Board of Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism Approves New Grant Selection Policy

February 2011

The Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism Board approved a revision of the grant review and selection policy at its first meeting of 2011, held Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2011, at the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.

The new policy was presented to the board by the commission staff to replace and update the rules that have governed grant competitions and awards since 2000. Unanimously approved by the board, the new policy broadens the commission's grant-making procedures to include new categories of grants that have become available since the old rules were last updated in 2001. The new rules also include language that allows the commission to write more specific criteria and priorities for grant competitions.

The Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism (GCSV) Policy on Grant Competitions, Grant Review and Grant Award can be found at the GCSV website at: http://www.americorpsga.org/links.html

In other business, the GCSV Board approved a 2011-2012 Learn and Serve America K-12 grant application and competition for sub grants for Georgia schools and students. The board also approved a GCSV application to the Corporation for National and Community Service for a Volunteer Generation Fund grant.

The board chair, Laurie Chandler, named a committee of board members Richard McIntyre, Dr. Myra Tolbert, Carol Fey and Glen Wilkins to nominate candidates for the offices of chair, vice chair and secretary.

The next scheduled meeting of the Georgia Commission for Service and Volunteerism is June 14, 2011 (tentative). Click on the links below for more information.

AOVEMBER 8, 2011

Meeting Material:

Agenda

Meeting Minutes from 08/09/11

Motion 1

Motion 2

Staff Reports

Executive Director's Report

AmeriCorps Report

Attachment 1

Attachment 2

PDAT Report

Disability Report

Financial Report Card

2011-2012 Programs

AUGUST 9, 2011

Meeting Material:

Agenda

Meeting Minutes from 06/14/11

Motion 1

Motion 2

Motion 3

Staff Reports

Executive Director's Report

Learn and Serve Report

PDAT Report

Disability Report

Financial Report Card

JUNE 14 , 2011

Meeting Material:

Agenda

Meeting Minutes from 2/8/11

Motion 1

Motion 2

Motion 3

Motion 4

Motion 5

Motion 6

Staff Reports

Executive Director's Report

Learn and Serve Report

PDAT Report

Disability Report

AmeriCorps*State Program Report

Financial Report Card

New Business

2011-2012 AC Grant Recommendations

2011-2012 AC Funding Applications Justification

FEBRUARY 8 , 2011 

Meeting Material:

Agenda

Meeting Minutes from 11/09/11

Motion 1

Motion 2

Motion 3

Motion 4

Staff Reports

Executive Director's Report

Learn and Serve Report

PDAT Report

Disability Report

AmeriCorps*State Program Report

New Business

GCSV Grant Policy Revision

Affidavit Memo

Fiancials

GCSV Disbursements

 

NOVEMBER 9 , 2010 

Meeting Material:

Agenda

Meeting Minutes from 8/10/10

Motion 1

Motion 2

Staff Reports

Executive Director's Report

Learn and Serve Report

PDAT Report

Disability Report

AmeriCorps*State Program Report

New Business

Openness and Transparency in GCSV Grant Making

AUGUST 10, 2010 

Meeting Material:

Proxy

Agenda

Meeting Minutes from 6/3/10

Motion 1

Motion 2

Motion 3

Motion 4

Staff Reports

Executive Director's Report

Learn and Serve Report

PDAT Report

VISTA Report

Georgia Recovery Corps Report

New Business

GCSV Program Director's Retreat: August 10-12, 2010 in Athens, Georgia

Directions

Bio for Martin Cowling: Volunter Management consultant

Upcoming Meetings: February 14th, 2012