AmeriCorps (/əˈmɛrɪkɔːr/ ə-MERR-ih-kor[citation needed]; officially the Corporation for National and Community Service or CNCS) is an independent agency of the United States government that engages more than five million Americans in service through a variety of stipended volunteer work programs in many sectors.

[4] The agency's mission is "to improve lives, strengthen communities, and foster civic engagement through service and volunteering".

[7] AmeriCorps delivers several programs designed to help communities address poverty, the environment, education, and other unmet human needs.

VISTA members take the following oath: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God."

AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) is a full-time, residential team-based program for men and women ages 18–26.

Members serve at one of four regional campuses located throughout the United States (Vicksburg, Mississippi; Vinton, Iowa; Aurora/Denver, Colorado; and Sacramento, California).

Each campus focuses efforts on states within its region but may travel to other areas in response to national crises.

Grants assist these groups in recruiting, training and placing AmeriCorps members to meet critical community needs in education, public safety, health, and the environment.

[11] Full-time members typically complete 1,700 hours of service over 11 months; they also receive a living allowance, health benefits, and child care assistance during their term.

[12] AmeriCorps State and National members take the following pledge:[13] I will get things done for America – to make our people safer, smarter, and healthier.

[14] On September 12, 2014, President Barack Obama launched the Employers of National Service initiative at the 20th Anniversary of AmeriCorps event on the South Lawn of the White House.

1990: President George H. W. Bush signs the National and Community Service Act of 1990 into law, ushering in a renewed federal focus on encouraging volunteering in the U.S.

Those who completed the community service program received a $4,725 stipend to go towards higher education or student loan debt.

AmeriCorps provided fiscal resources and personnel to support the start-up of national programs, including Public Allies and Teach For America.

[26][27] Additionally, according to a 2007 study released by AmeriCorps, a majority of AmeriCorps State and National, VISTA, and NCCC alumni within the study period claimed they had gained life and job skills, such as leadership, teamwork, time-management, and hands-on experience in a field of interest.

[28] AmeriCorps programs have been criticized as being exploitive of their volunteers, being "voluntourism",[29] and serving to privatize or de-professionalize public services.

[30] In 2018, a A CBS News Radio did an investigation into years of complaints about AmeriCorps programs which found multiple allegations of sexual harassment, abusive behavior and mismanagement since 2013.