The purpose of the State Service Plan is to:
- Make communities stronger through volunteer programs.
- Improve community-based organizations ability to maximize their volunteer resources.
- Increase the number of individuals volunteering and involved in their communities.
1. What are the specific programmatic areas upon which your state is focusing?
Mission Statement
To improve Illinois communities by supporting and enhancing volunteerism and community service.
Vision Statement
We see an Illinois where all citizens recognize their ability and responsibility to help strengthen their communities through voluntary service. We see expanded and meaningful volunteerism throughout rural, suburban, and urban Illinois, involving people of all backgrounds, cultures, and ages. We see volunteers making measurable differences in their communities because they are well trained, supported, and on the cutting edge of problem solving.
The Illinois Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service ("Commission") strives to realize its Mission and Vision statements through the engagement of communities, schools, businesses, governmental entities, and faith- and community-based organizations in the implementation of volunteerism, national service, and community service goals. As a Governor-appointed commission in the State of Illinois, situated within the Illinois Department of Human Services, the staff and members of the Illinois Commission seek to maintain a high level of statewide engagement, promotion, and successful completion of the volunteerism and community service priorities identified and approved annually by the Commission.
Based on a September 2005 survey conducted by the Center for Prevention Research and Development, Institute of Government and Public Affairs, University of Illinois, the Commission will use its national service resources to address the following priority areas for the 2006 State Plan:
Highest Identified Priorities
The highest priority areas identified by the survey were:
- Improve collaboration and coordination of volunteer opportunities at the local level.
- Enhance promotion of volunteerism opportunities, (e.g. identification of volunteerism opportunities within community-based organizations, efficient systems for matching interested volunteers, and valuing volunteerism).
- Promote awareness of the benefits of volunteering, (e.g. benefits to communities, benefits to individual volunteers, and valuing volunteerism).
- Identify and promote ways volunteers can play a role in addressing pressing community needs, (e.g. meaningful roles for volunteers, linking volunteerism with youth, family, and community development).
Other Priority Areas Identified by the Commission
- More opportunities for Seniors, the developmentally disabled, and other traditionally under represented populations in volunteerism and service.
- Increase the availability and quality of service opportunities in rural areas.
- Support efforts that draw flexible dollars and volunteers directly to volunteer based organizations.
- Incorporating plans, strategies, and policies that broaden the State's volunteer efforts to the rural areas of Illinois.
- Increase advocacy for funding to help sustain organizations that promote volunteerism and recruit volunteers such as the State's Volunteer Centers and/or collaborative efforts that draw volunteers to specialized service categories.
- Promote an ethic of service within stakeholder organizations and individuals once they are engaged in the national, community service, and volunteerism spheres.
Administration of Program Initiative
The Illinois Commission staff will be putting emphasis on the collection, development, and adoption of standardized tools to be used for monitoring subgrantee AmeriCorps programs. Tools used by other states will be requested and revised, when necessary. New forms and methods for tracking and reporting program progress will be developed, as needed. These new tools which will enhance Illinois AmeriCorps programs will be adopted and the State's subgrantee programs will be trained on the use and implementation of the tools, including the Commission's expectation for timely response to any operational changes. It is the Commission's goal to leverage national service resources to minimize the reporting burden on both our subgrantee programs and our staff, while at the same time maintaining strong oversight capabilities with timely and accurate reporting, resulting in high quality, high impact AmeriCorps programs "getting things done" throughout Illinois.
Leveraging of National Service Resources
The Commission will attempt to leverage national resources to improve the State of Illinois' ranking among rates of volunteerism from 28th (2006 survey) to a position in the top 15 states (by 2009 survey).
2. Please describe ongoing efforts or special initiatives that involve convening of and/or collaborating with the Corporation State Office, State Education Agencies, state networks of volunteer centers, Campus Compacts, National grantees and/or other service organizations within the state.
The Commission will support the efforts of various organizations and collaborations throughout the state, and of its national service partners, to engage a growing involvement of resources from business, universities, faith communities, social and service organizations in achieving the goals outlined in section one (above) of this State Plan. Among the focus areas for collaboration will be those listed below. These collaborations serve the purposes of recruiting and engaging volunteers from a variety of backgrounds and venues, facilitating collaboration among the various streams of national service programs, and in promoting volunteerism and supporting volunteer administration at the local, regional, and statewide levels. The 2006 Commission initiatives are described in more detail below.
Volunteer Centers of Illinois
The mission of the Volunteer Centers of Illinois (VCI) is to empower participating organizations to better meet the needs of their communities and to promote volunteerism through a statewide information exchange, collaboration, training, and support. In addition, VCI connects any person or group with all types of opportunities to serve with eligible organizations, builds the capacity of effective volunteering in Illinois, promotes volunteerism, and participates in strategic initiatives that mobilize volunteers to strengthen communities. The Illinois Commission will continue to strengthen its relationship with VCI by collaborating on projects such as promoting training for volunteer managers, connecting national service volunteers with Volunteer Center programs and enhancing visibility for both groups.
ICOVA
The Illinois Conference on Volunteer Administration (ICOVA), held over two days each Spring in the Chicago suburbs,
is considered the flagship volunteer administration conference in the State. Together with the nearly two dozen public and private sector agencies and organizations from across Illinois, the Illinois Commission supports the conference providing innovative and dynamic professional development opportunities with working sessions that include discussion on the future of volunteer administration, the role of technology and its impact, issues that our society faces, and new approaches to programmatic issues. Commissioners and Commission staff serve on the ICOVA Steering Committee and the Commission assists with the marketing of the conference through its quarterly "SERVE Illinois" newsletter and through email. The Commission provides registration and lodging funds through an annual scholarship competition for several Illinois national service program participants. The Illinois Commission will continue to support and be actively involved in the planning and hosting of ICOVA to fulfill its goals of collaboration, coordination, and improved sustainability of volunteer programs within the State.
SIVC
The Southern Illinois Volunteer Conference (SIVC) is held each Fall in the southernmost part of the State where volunteer managers from across Central and Southern Illinois congregate for this annual one-day conference. For this collaboration of nearly a dozen public and private agencies in the region, the Illinois Commission provides staff to serve on the SIVC Steering Committee, assists with the marketing of the conference through its quarterly "SERVE Illinois" newsletter and through email, and provides funding support to help promote the conference among national service participants statewide.
Cross Streams Training and Collaboration
The Illinois Commission will continue to provide annual cross streams training opportunities to enhance collaboration across national service and volunteer center programs, including both basic and advanced level training in nonprofit, national service, and volunteer management topics and issues. Partners in this effort include the State's CNCS program office and the Volunteer Centers of Illinois. Outcomes include the cross-training of AmeriCorps *State, *National, *VISTA, *NCCC, Senior Corps, Learn and Serve, volunteer centers, and other nonprofit community service organizations in attendance.
New Commission Initiatives
Special Needs Populations Outreach
The Illinois Commission is creating a focus of effort on integrating persons within special need populations to the national and community service family of programs. Consistent with the design and purpose of the AmeriCorps Disability Outreach Grant, the Commission has begun the process of scheduling exploratory meetings with staff from community-based agencies that serve these populations, specifically agencies providing supports to persons with a developmental disability and physical disabilities. Commission staff will bring together executive directors from these community-based organizations, as well as technical experts from the Social Security Administration and the State's Medicaid agency (Department of Healthcare and Family Services) to discuss the opportunities and limitations surrounding income thresholds and client eligibility. AmeriCorps program directors will be invited to help the group brainstorm and explore the possibilities and options of integrating persons with special needs into Illinois' AmeriCorps and volunteer programs.
Illinois LeaderCorps
The newly established AmeriCorps Member Leadership Council of Illinois, called "LeaderCorps," has established bylaws and a plan for the ongoing operations of this Member-driven collaboration. With the aim of increasing alumni involvement of Illinois AmeriCorps Members and cross-program collaboration in training, networking, and service projects, the Commission supports the biannual leadership and networking events coordinated by LeaderCorps and assists with monthly conference calls. The elected head of LeaderCorps reports to the Commission at its quarterly meetings and Member leaders plan all LeaderCorps events under the supervision of Commission staff.
3. What non-monetary support, such as training and technical assistance, might the Corporation (headquarters and/or your State Office) provide to ensure the success of your state service plan?
Leadership/Advocacy
The Commission seeks the regular involvement of the Corporation's headquarters and state office leadership to create greater awareness of the Illinois Commission through educational and informational marketing pieces. In addition, the Commission seeks Corporation support, as well as marketing and communications resources, to generate greater awareness of the costs associated with great volunteer-based organizations, and of the need to provide more consistent, flexible, ongoing and long-term dollars to enable all volunteer-based organizations to constantly move from good to being great at making communities stronger. The Illinois Commission would also benefit from Corporation-sponsored training to new and existing Commissioners.
Technical Assistance, Special Needs Populations Outreach
The Illinois Commission is creating a focus of effort on integrating persons within special need populations to the national and community service family of programs. Initial areas of effort will be with community-based organizations that serve persons with a developmental disability and those serving foster children aged 18 to 21 years. Commission staff will bring together executive directors from these community-based organizations, as well as technical experts from the Social Security Administration and the State's Medicaid agency (Department of Healthcare and Family Services) to discuss the opportunities and limitations surrounding income thresholds and client eligibility. The Illinois Commission will be requesting technical assistance from the Corporation on the submission of competitive applications via targeted Request for Proposals issued by its parent organization, the Department of Human Services. The Commission will also seek advise and recommendation from the Corporation on available resources and appropriate resource use options for building a capacity within these community-based organizations to develop grant applications.
Administration of Program Initiative
The staff of the Corporation has been an invaluable resource to the Illinois Commission in 2006 as several new Commission staff having recently been hired, including the Executive Director and the AmeriCorps Program Manager. The Corporation assistance that has been received, and the patience shown by both our State and national offices, has been very much appreciated. The Illinois Commission will continue to rely on these offices for assistance in securing and advising our staff on best practices to ensure quality programming in Illinois.
