Reduced federal funding imperils a significant profession for upcoming adults
In recent years, the AmeriCorps programme has faced significant challenges under the Trump administration, with funding cuts, staff reductions, and threats to completely dismantle the agency. These cuts have had a direct impact on AmeriCorps members and the communities they serve.
The Philadelphia Higher Education Network for Neighborhood Development, for instance, has experienced delays in getting members approved for programmes that are still operating due to the gutted federal staff at AmeriCorps. Similarly, the Hindman Settlement School in rural Kentucky, which received about $1 million a year from AmeriCorps for tutoring students with math and reading learning disabilities in more than two dozen schools, has been forced to drastically scale back its services.
Federal surveys show that 90% of AmeriCorps members joined the programme to gain skills for school and work. This is evident in the case of Lily Tegner, a chemical engineering graduate, who started her career through AmeriCorps. Tegner is now a full-time employee managing the nonprofit's AmeriCorps program.
Organisations like Jumpstart have also been affected, with funding cuts forcing them to scale back their AmeriCorps-related activities, reconsider their programmatic approaches, and pursue alternative revenue sources to sustain their missions. States are attempting to fill gaps with local funding and other youth service programmes, but these measures cannot fully offset the impact.
The Trump administration's funding cuts have endangered AmeriCorps' role as a critical career pipeline for young adults and have hindered community service efforts nationwide. Several states, notably California, and a coalition of 23 attorneys general have legally challenged the Trump administration’s withholding of funds, arguing it violates administrative procedures and Congressional appropriations. California AG Rob Bonta led a lawsuit seeking to force the immediate release of already allocated funds and partially succeeded with a court order reinstating some unlawfully cancelled programs. However, the administration has not restored federal AmeriCorps staff cutbacks, which continues to disrupt program administration.
The president's 2026 budget proposal calls for shutting down AmeriCorps entirely. This prospect has left current and former volunteers mourning the potential loss of the AmeriCorps programme, which they say gave their lives meaning and led to employment. Organisations like the Alaska Afterschool Network, which had its AmeriCorps funding terminated this spring, have also felt the impact. Tegner, who worked at the Alaska Afterschool Network, helping expand science, technology, engineering, and math access in its programmes, is particularly worried if the programme ends, there won't be another pathway on the same scale for young idealists who aren't sure what they want to do with their lives.
Despite the challenges, AmeriCorps continues to provide in-depth, fact-based, unbiased reporting on education, free to all readers. However, the organisation's work is not free to produce. If you believe in the importance of AmeriCorps, consider supporting them to help ensure they can continue their vital work.
Audits of AmeriCorps have raised questions about its financial management. Josh Mullins, senior director of operations at the Hindman Settlement School, does not know why the grants were terminated as the nonprofit regularly passes its audits and showed an average gain of seven months in reading levels among students in its dyslexia intervention program. The story is about AmeriCorps jobs, and the ongoing uncertainty about AmeriCorps’ future funding and capacity under Trump administration policies continues to cast a shadow over the programme and the communities it serves.
- The Trump administration's cuts to AmeriCorps have threatened not only the program's existence but also the careers of its members, as seen in the case of Lily Tegner, who used AmeriCorps as a stepping stone to her current position managing a nonprofit's AmeriCorps program.
- Innovation in education, such as tutoring services provided by the Hindman Settlement School for students with learning disabilities, has been negatively impacted by the reduction in AmeriCorps funding, forcing organizations to consider alternative sources of revenue and reevaluate their programmatic approaches.
- The potential closure of AmeriCorps, as proposed in the president's 2026 budget, could exacerbate inequality in higher education, as fewer opportunities would be available for young adults seeking skills and experience for their future careers.
