South Dakota only state to lack AmeriCorps office

For Tina Shantz, college graduation came with a bachelor’s degree, no particular plans, and a desire to go somewhere very different from Syracuse, NY.

That desire led her to USD, as an AmeriCorps VISTA Representative at the Center for Academic Engagement. Her boyfriend, a graduate student at USD, was friends with Jacquie Lonning, coordinator of academic engagement, and through him she learned that the position was open this year.

“It’s like taking a year off without taking a year off,” Shantz said.

According to the AmeriCorps Web site, AmeriCorps was created in 1992 as a federal umbrella agency to unite different public service organizations within the United States. It also linked together two national programs, Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) and the National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC).

South Dakota is the only state to lack a central AmeriCorps office. Programs are still run from the federal level, but to receive the central commission would require governor approval, which Lonning and others have been trying to earn.

As an AmeriCorps officer at USD, Shantz helps with service learning projects at the CAE, such as AWOL trips and the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. 

Shantz said her time in AmeriCorps has led her to consider more options and service-oriented work, beyond her degree in theatre. She hasn’t decided what she is going to do after this year.

Shantz said people who join AmeriCorps have diverse backgrounds, from those who have just graduated from college to older retirees looking for ways to give back.

Volunteers spend one year giving back to the community. Afterward, they receive $4,725 for their education, either to pay off student loans or put toward continuing with a higher degree, Shantz said.

While working for AmeriCorps, some are also paid a living expense equal to the poverty line of their area so they can connect more with those whom they are serving, including Shantz. That makes her eligible for food stamps and other government services, she said.

“It’s up to the governor for commissioned service, but that costs money, so this may not be the best year to push it,” Lonning said. “I hope (we get the office). We’re the only state without one.”

Without a central office, South Dakota loses out on about $740,000 in program support from the federal level, which could be put toward administrative costs, funding projects and training.

In addition to the financial support, Lonning said, the state misses out on offering service learning opportunities before the college level, which in turn costs local communities the support that AmeriCorps brings.

“We have three of the poorest counties, with low literacy rates, so there are tons of places it could help,” Lonning said.

Since President Barack Obama took office, he has pledged to increase support for AmeriCorps as part of a broader plan to increase service learning and volunteer work among Americans. According to his Service Learning Initiative, the current limit of 75,000 slots per year will be raised to 250,000 and five new Corps will be created to bring science to the classroom, increase access to health care, promote clean energy, help veterans and mobilize for natural disasters.

“There’s so many benefits,” Lonning said. “It keeps kids in South Dakota, in school … (and it) keeps people who are service minded in the state.”

Some years there are two VISTA AmeriCorps officers in the CAE, but since the second position went unfilled this year, those duties are being done by a graduate assistant.

Of the three major programs currently under AmeriCorps, only the NCCC has an age cutoff, with an age range from 18-24, according to the NCCC Web site. The other two main programs, VISTA and State and Nation, are less selective, although VISTA does require a bachelor’s degree.

Carrie Henrichsen is also an AmeriCorps volunteer at USD, through Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps’ partnership with South Dakota’s Access to Justice. She works at the USD School of Law to connect law students with potential clients in need of pro-bono work.

“Lawyers have the ethical obligation to do pro-bono work,” Henrichsen said. “If we foster that, if they do it in law school, they are more likely to do it in practice. And we don’t want people to be disadvantaged without a lawyer.”

There are 35 legal fellows who work for AmeriCorps, Henrichsen said, although AmeriCorps is looking to expand that number. Two work in South Dakota through Access to Justice, herself and another lawyer in Rapid City. Henrichsen is the first Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps legal fellow at USD, and she will be here through June, when another person will fill the position.

While in college, Lonning also did AmeriCorps, mentoring young children at a trailor park in Iowa.

“It gave me such a great learning experience,” Lonning said. “Later, one of the students came to USD. It was great to see him go on to college. I’d always wanted to do community service, and afterward I wanted to run a non-profit, and now I am here.”

Reach reporter Sarah Paulus at Sarah.Paulus@usd.edu.

• Facebook Comments
• Site Comments

Be the first to comment on this article!

Add comment


I am not posting spam. I understand posting spam or other comments that are unrelated to this article will cause my comment to be flagged for deletion and possibly cause my IP address to be permanently banned from this server.

Enter the characters in the image above:

log out