Posted on October 21, 2012

Cities of Service Awards Nearly $1 Million for High-Impact Volunteer Strategies

Cities of Service, a bipartisan coalition of mayors from across the country that seeks to engage more Americans in service and connect volunteers to urgent local challenges, has announced Impact Volunteering Fund grants totaling nearly $1 million to eighteen U.S. cities.

Funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, the grants will help the cities implement "impact volunteering" strategies that target community needs, leverage best practices, and set clear goals and measures to gauge progress. Grants ranging from $25,000 to $100,000 were awarded to Atlanta; Austin, Texas; Baltimore; Birmingham, Alabama; Duluth, Minnesota; Fall River, Massachusetts; Flint, Michigan; Indianapolis; Kalamazoo, Michigan; Little Rock, Arkansas; Nashville; Orlando; Philadelphia; Phoenix; Pierre, South Dakota; Pittsburgh; Providence; and Richmond, California.

Dozens of cities have adopted the impact volunteering model since Cities of Service introduced the model in 2009. Grant recipients were selected from among more than sixty applicants based on the quality of their initiatives, potential for impact, and implementation plans.

"As this program shows, mayors across the country are committed to using volunteers to tackle our biggest challenges," said New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg. "Following the success of this model in New York City and other cities across the country, Bloomberg Philanthropies is excited to support the proliferation of impact volunteering programs, which provide a significant opportunity for elected officials operating in a tight fiscal environment to mobilize citizens and make a measurable difference within their communities."

For a complete list of grant recipients and their projects, visit the Cities of Service Web site.