Community Service Programs

"As we serve others we are working on ourselves; every act, every word, every gesture of genuine compassion naturally nourishes our own hearts as well. It is not a question of who is healed first. When we attend to ourselves with compassion and mercy, more healing is made available for others. And when we serve others with an open and generous heart, great healing comes to us."
- Wayne Muller

The Corporation for National & Community Service was created by Congress in 1993. It named Loyola University New Orleans to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for its community service activities during the 2006–2007 academic year. See how our current students are demonstrating their commitment to help others in the community .

 

AmeriCorps, the domestic Peace Corps, engages more than 50,000 Americans in intensive, results-driven service each year. We're teaching children to read, making neighborhoods safer, building affordable homes, and responding to natural disasters through more than 1000 projects. Most AmeriCorps members are selected by and serve with projects like Habitat for Humanity , the American Red Cross , and Boys and Girls Clubs of America , and many other national and local organizations. Full time AmeriCorps members earn a living allowance, health care, and an $4,725 education award . This money can go towards paying off outstanding student loans or current educational costs at a Title IV educational institution. For more information, call (toll-free) 1-888-507-5962.

  • AmeriCorps*NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps) is a ten month residential service program for 18 to 24 year olds. AmeriCorps*NCCC members serve in teams living on one of four regional campuses to address issues such as the environment and disaster relief.
  • AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) continues its 30 year tradition of working with community groups to establish needed services in low income neighborhoods. Members usually have a college degree or significant community service experience.
  • The Delta Service Corps creates opportunities for AmeriCorps members across the Mississippi Delta to perform vital services in neighborhoods and communities. Corps Members principally work on education, health, and housing needs. For more information, visit the Louisiana Delta Service Corps.
  • The Louisiana Green Corps is a "green job skills" training program for 17-24 year old youth living in the New Orleans metro area. Corps members are part of the national AmeriCorps Program.

 

Teach For America is the national corps of outstanding recent college graduates who commit two years to teach in urban and rural public schools and become lifelong leaders in expanding educational opportunity. This year, more than 5,000 corps members are teaching in over 1,000 schools in 26 regions across the country, and more than 12,000 Teach For America alumni continue working from inside and outside the field of education for the fundamental changes necessary to ensure educational excellence and equity.  Learn about Teach for America's work in New Orleans.  

 

 

The Jesuit Volunteer Corps offers women and men an opportunity to work full-time for justice and peace.  Jesuit Volunteers are called to the mission of serving the poor directly, working for structural change in the United States, and accompanying people in developing countries.

 

 

 

The Alliance for Catholic Education  is a two-year service program offering college graduates the opportunity to serve as full-time teachers in under-resourced Catholic schools across the southern United States. Because we believe that good teachers need excellent formation, ACE prepares its teachers in an innovative Master of Education program at Notre Dame

Peace Corps volunteers serve in 76 countries in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Central and South America, Europe, and the Middle East. Collaborating with local community members, Volunteers work in areas like education, youth outreach and community development, the environment, and information technology.

 

City Year  unites young people of all backgrounds for a year of full-time service, giving them the skills and opportunities to change the world.  As tutors, mentors and role models, these young leaders make a difference in the lives of children, and transform schools and neighborhoods in 18 U.S. locations and Johannesburg, South Africa. Just as important, during their year of service corps members develop civic leadership skills they can use throughout a lifetime of community service.

 

 

The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act (this bill replaced the "Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education "("GIVE") Act

On March 31, 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives gave final approval  a bill that would expand the federal national-service programs by the largest amount in 50 years, sending it to President Obama for a signature. President Obama signed the bill into law on April 21, 2009.

The bill, recently renamed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act (HR 1388) in honor of the longtime Massachusetts senator, would more than triple the size of the AmeriCorps program, to 250,000 slots, up from 75,000. The Senate passed the measure last week, and the House, which had earlier approved the "GIVE " Act , adopted the Senate version today.

The legislation would also increase, to $5,350, the education stipend that volunteers receive for each year of service, bringing that award in line with the maximum Pell Grant. Older volunteers could transfer up to $1,000 of their stipend to a child, foster child, or grandchild.

More Information for Students with Federal Student Loans

Students receiving federal education loans may obtain deferments while serving in the Peace Corps; under the Domestic Volunteer Service Act; and as a volunteer for a tax-exempt organization of demonstrated effectiveness in the filed of community service. For more information, go to

Updated August 7, 2011