Serve America Together is a campaign to make national service part of growing up in America.
For too long, national service has not been an option for most young Americans. The college affordability crisis has left too many students with debt that they’re struggling to repay. Millions of young people are out of work, their talents untapped. Communities across the country face significant unmet challenges including education inequity, disaster relief, aging populations, and substance abuse issues. Americans are more profoundly polarized than any moment in recent history. We are beginning to truly confront the systemic racism of our institutions and society. And our country is grappling with public health, economic, social, and educational crises as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Imagine a future in which young people earn college tuition by addressing our communities’ greatest challenges — where they are empowered to shape their own destinies and those of their communities, regardless of zip code. Imagine a future in which empathy trumps apathy and participation and problem-solving outmatch indifference. Imagine a shared experience far stronger than anything that may seek to divide us.
This future is entirely achievable if a year of service is part of growing up in America.
We believe civilian national service should:
- Exist at scale, engaging at least one million young Americans in civilian national service annually
- Address America’s unmet needs
- Bridge divides and fuel civic renewal
- Be an opportunity for all
- Build pathways to long-term success for individuals who serve through benefits and connectivity to future education and careers
To achieve this vision, the Serve America Together Campaign is pursuing a four-pronged strategy:
- Grow awareness among influencers and policymakers that universal national service is the solution our country needs now.
- Build the diverse, bipartisan coalition representative of service in American life that will be necessary to advocate for, build, and sustain the most equitable, impactful universal national service system possible.
- We’ll grow demand for national service at a local level to ensure communities across America are poised for success within a future system of universal national service.
- And with these assets, we’ll pass legislation and secure funding to establish a system of universal national service in America, creating a shared experience as a strong foundation for generations to come.
Join us as we work to unite our country, create pathways to opportunity, and focus on what we can do better, together.
Serve America Together is a project of Service Year Alliance. Service Year Alliance is working to make a year of paid, full-time service — a service year — a common expectation and opportunity for all young Americans.
