The American Way to Change How National Service and Volunteers Are Transforming America

This book will outline a compelling vision of national service at scale and show what this means for our country. By profiling real people who have served, the impact they have made and the nonprofits they worked with, this book will tell a powerful story of change and teach readers (both nonprofits and engaged citizens) how they too can change their own communities through service. For example: Washington DC Public School Chancellor Michelle Rhee began her career as a Teach For America corps member, teaching in an inner city school in Baltimore. She went on to found the New Teacher Project, which has placed 23,000 teachers in hard to fill jobs and sparked important reforms in teacher hiring. Now she is a nationally recognized school system leader, pursuing reforms once thought impossible in a large city district.The author will paint a picture of successes like these, demonstrating their impact in individual communities and how this was done. It will show how America would look if programs like these operated at scale across the country -- not just in one or two neighborhoods, but wherever they were needed. It will describe how we can achieve this goal, through action at the community and organizational level. It will help nonprofits create successful service programs to tackle different issues by offering examples and key lessons. Finally, it will speak to ordinary Americans about what they can do to make a difference -- by advocating, joining AmeriCorps or volunteering in their own communities.

Shirley Sagawa is a fellow at the Washington think tank Center for American Progress. She has been called a "founding mother of the modern service movement" in the United States and has served as head of the Obama transition team for the Corporation for National and Community Service. She continues to advise the administration and congress regarding national service policy. Shirley also consults and advises numerous nonprofits on volunteering and service and served as a staff member of the White House during the Clinton Administration.