AmeriCorps
By Anthony Owusu Afriyie
2021 NCCC AmeriCorps Alum
Segal Fellow
There is no greater investment a society can make than in its young people. AmeriCorps embodies that. Yearly, 2,000 volunteers aged 18 to 26 work with sponsors, community & faith-based organizations, nonprofits, schools, cities, and tribes across the United States. All in the name of National Service, to restore damaged lands, assist with disaster relief, build and maintain state parks, and confront urgent social and environmental challenges.
AmeriCorps is a modern echo of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)—a New Deal initiative that lifted a generation from economic despair while restoring the land and building the American future. Like the CCC, AmeriCorps fosters the next generation of citizen leaders. And in a time, we desperately need them.
Our nation faces not just hardship but uncertainty. Since President Trump’s inauguration, markets have lost nearly $8 trillion in value due to erratic policies and a chaotic trade war. Small businesses are reeling under tariff burdens, and forecasts from institutions like the IMF and Goldman Sachs now predict stagflation: slower growth paired with rising inflation. Confidence in our economy has eroded so deeply that strategists now call it the “Sell America” trade.
This is no time to retreat from public investment, it is the time to double down. Just as the New Deal turned a generation of unemployed youth into stewards of recovery, AmeriCorps empowers young people to build up our communities and prepare for meaningful careers. It is economic resilience in action.
To this administration, AmeriCorps may be just a line item. But to the communities it serves—and the young people whose lives it transforms—it is hope. It is purpose. It is a proven return on investment. For every dollar spent, the dividends ripple outward in better health, safer neighborhoods, higher employment, and lower reliance on public assistance.
In the face of uncertainty, let us be clear-eyed and bold. Let us invest not in volatility but in values. National service is not just goodwill. It’s sound economics. It’s a nation- building.
Tone Afriyie
Anthony Owusu Afriyie
Stratford Council Member – District 5 aafriyie@townofstratford.com
Yes, Anthony. Americorps and other similar organizations are certainly important to be supported for the future of our country. The current administration needs to realize this.
Your own record of continuing service to our community bears witness to how involvement in such organizations benefits us all. Thank you for your service and your continuing enthusiastic community involvement.