The Salt Lake Tribune June 7, 2010

HEADLINE: Federal money for volunteer programs headed here

Literacy initiative - The Americorps grants will expand programs in Utah schools

By Matt Canham

Washington - More Utah schools will get help building reading programs for struggling students under an expanded version of AmeriCorps announced Monday.

The Utah AmeriCorps Literacy Initiative, the state's biggest federally funded volunteer program, received $1.1 million for the next year as part of $234 million in grants issued under a new law meant to triple the size of national service programs.

The Serve America Act is one of the few major bipartisan pieces of legislation signed into law by President Barack Obama. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, teamed with the late-Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., to push the law that will gradually increase the AmeriCorps program to 250,000 enrollees by 2017 focused in five areas: help for poor people, education programs, energy efficiency, access to health care and veterans.

"Utah's recipients under these programs demonstrate why national service programs are a good idea," Hatch said Monday. "The programs are all designed to empower communities and to train and assist traditional -- nongovernment-funded -- volunteers."

The literacy initiative, run by the Ogden City School District, placed 166 AmeriCorps volunteers mostly in elementary schools. These AmeriCorps workers place volunteer parents with the children who most need help and provide training to increase reading skills.

"This is a great way for a school to get some quality help," said Gloria Skanchy, program director for the literacy initiative. "When there are so many people who volunteer in Utah, to have something organized and structured makes their service even greater."

The program is now in its fifth year and had been receiving about $600,000 in federal funds. Through the economic stimulus bill, the program got an extra $400,000 last year, allowing Skanchy to place another 68 volunteers in schools in the Alpine, Millard, North Sanpete and Carbon school districts. That brought the total number of participants up to 166.

The stimulus money was a one-year economic boost, but the Serve America Act funding announced Monday will allow the new 68 slots to continue for the foreseeable future. Participants receive $15,000 annually, with 55 percent coming from the school and 45 percent paid through the federal grant.

Two other Utah programs received competitive grants Monday. The Utah Conservation Corps received $440,000 and the Association for Utah Community Health received $279,000 to help the medically underserved.

These grants are in addition to statewide funding, also announced Monday. Utah's share more than doubled in the past year, from $720,000 to $1.5 million. This money pays for smaller AmeriCorps programs throughout the state.