Application for the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll

President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll: Application Guidance for 2007

Purposes: The President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll program raises public awareness of college student community service, recognizes higher education institutions for their commitment to student service and service-learning, and identifies and disseminates exemplary practices. The program encourages growth in student service and service-learning in support of Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) Strategic Plan goals and performance targets, including the goal of five million college students in service by 2010. This year, the Honor Roll program will highlight college student service projects that promote high school completion and college readiness on the part of youth in disadvantaged circumstances—via mentoring/ tutoring, college/ financial aid awareness programs, and other services.

Background: This institutional recognition program supports the President’s Call to Service, strategic initiatives of the CNCS, and the First Lady’s Helping America’s Youth (HAY) initiative.

More than 500 colleges and universities applied for the Honor Roll in 2006, its inaugural year. At the October, 2006 Honor Roll awards event in Chicago, top officials of the CNCS, the U.S. Departments of Education and Housing and Urban Development, and Campus Compact saluted six Presidential Award winners, nine Katrina Compassion Award winners; ten Presidential Award finalists for General Community Service; and 141 other institutions for Distinction in community service. In total, 492 schools were recognized on the first Honor Roll. See the Honor Roll web page at nationalservice.gov for descriptions of the top honorees’ projects and other information.

The selection of colleges and universities for the 2007 Honor Roll program, including for receipt of Presidential Awards (discussed below), will be based on community service activities that were begun or ongoing during academic year 2006-07 (the year ending June 30, 2007), and is based solely on information provided in this application.

Eligibility: All accredited degree-granting colleges and universities located in the United States are eligible to apply. Applications are accepted only from higher education institutions, not departments or schools within an institution. In the case of state systems of higher education institutions, each institution must apply separately.

Special Focus Area: The 2007 Honor Roll application asks several individual questions related to a Special Focus Area, and it requests applicants to provide narrative descriptions of up to five “exemplary projects” related to that area. The Special Focus Area for the 2007 Honor Roll program is: high school completion (dropout prevention) and college readiness support services for youth in disadvantaged circumstances. Such services include, but are not limited to: tutoring, mentoring, college awareness and financial aid awareness activities. This Special Focus Area replaces the 2006 application section on Hurricane Relief Service. Ongoing hurricane relief projects during 2006-07 should be reported under the General Community Service section of the 2007 application.

Selection Criteria:

Honor Roll: Applicants are listed on the Honor Roll only when: (1) all appropriate sections of the application are completed, (2) the projects described are deemed meaningful and relevant; and (3) for those participating in the Federal Work-Study (FWS) program, the institution is meeting the statutory seven percent minimum FWS community service requirement.

Awards: Applicants will be evaluated relative to other applicants on the basis of the following factors:

1. the percentage of students participating in academic service-learning relative to total student enrollment;

2. the percentage of students participating in community service activities overall relative to total student enrollment;

3. the percentage of students who engaged in at least 20 hours of community service per semester relative to total student enrollment;

4. whether community service or service-learning is cited in the institution’s mission statement or strategic plan;

5. whether the institution has at least one full-time staff member responsible for coordinating student community service or service-learning activities;

6. the institution’s latest Federal Work-Study community service participation rate as reported to the U.S. Department of Education;

7. whether the institution provides scholarships or other financial rewards for community service, such as “matching” the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award;

8. the number of academic service-learning courses offered by the institution;

9. whether the institution requires academic service-learning as part of the core curriculum of at least one major;

10. whether the institution rewards the use of academic service-learning through faculty promotion and tenure decisions, or other means;

11. the ratio of institutional alumni who are current AmeriCorps members relative to current total student enrollment;

12. the ratio of institutional alumni who are current Peace Corps members to total current student enrollment;

13. the percentage of total current students who are Army, Navy, or Air Force ROTC members, and most importantly,

14. the relative Scope, Innovativeness, and Evidence of Effectiveness of the student service projects described in the application. For this purpose,

• Scope includes: number of volunteers serving (relative to school size), time dedicated to service, institutional staff support time, level of difficulty providing services, level of volunteer skills/ expertise utilized, collaboration with other organizations/ leveraging of resources.

• Innovation includes: use of new or creative solutions to persistent problems, producing unique or surprising impacts.

• Evidence of Effectiveness includes: the number of individuals served, other measurable results (e.g., number of houses cleaned/ renovated/ built), likely long-term benefits, and evidence of sustainability/ institutionalization.

Information provided in the “Federal Government Supports for Service” sections of the application will NOT be considered in the selection of award recipients.

Award Categories

With Distinction: Based on the above criteria, it is anticipated that approximately 10 to 20 percent of the Honor Roll members will be listed in the “with Distinction” category.

Presidential Awards: Based on the above criteria, Presidential Awards will be made to the most outstanding applicants for General Community service and for service in support of this year’s Special Focus area.

In addition, depending on the number and quality of applications received, Presidential Awards may be made to the top scoring institutions in these categories within specific institutional segments, such as 2-year and 4-year colleges.

Honor Roll membership: Honor Roll members will receive certificates recognizing their accomplishments, and will be listed on the CNCS website, www.nationalservice.gov and may be publicized in other ways. The Honor Roll website will highlight successful college student service projects, particularly those that promote the high school completion and college readiness of youth in disadvantaged circumstances.

Awards and Ceremony: In addition to being listed on the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, Presidential Award winners will be presented with special certificates signed by the President. Awards will be presented at an event and date yet to be determined. At that time Honor Roll members will also be announced, along with data about student service projects of the honored institutions.

Selection Process:

Honor Roll: Institutions to be listed on the Honor Roll will be tentatively identified by a panel of CNCS staff and approved by the Chief Executive Officer of CNCS.

Awards: From among applicants identified for membership on the Honor Roll, a panel of CNCS and Education Department staff, and representatives of the higher education community will review applications and identify a slate of nominees —using the selection criteria set forth above. Final selections will be made by the Chief Executive Officer of CNCS.

Application Process and Deadline: Applications must be submitted electronically, either via the electronic application system that is available on the CNCS website, www.nationalservice.gov or, if not possible, via email to honorroll@cns.gov. The deadline for institutions to submit applications is July 31, 2007, at 5:00 PM, Eastern Daylight Time. Nominations received after this date may not be considered.

No Supplementary Information Needed: Applicants should NOT submit supplementary materials, such as brochures, video tapes, or testimonials from project beneficiaries along with their applications. Applicants may be invited to provide such information at a later point. Such requests would be used for publicity and not in the selection of award recipients.

Application Guidance: In general, please be as thorough and complete as possible in completing the application.

• Note that in many cases “estimates” are requested. Estimates should be based on the best available information. This approach recognizes that many colleges do not yet have sophisticated data systems to collect and maintain comprehensive data on student community service.

• Note that requested information and estimates are for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2007.

• The form cannot be submitted until all questions are answered. However, in many cases, the applicant may answer by indicating that requested information is not known or not available.

• An error message will appear and red boxes will appear around required questions if an applicant attempts to submit the form without completing all questions. In this case, the applicant only need fill in the missing information; questions already answered do not need to be changed.

• Applicants should save the completed application for their records.

• The applicant’s receipt will be an email message from CNCS thanking the institution for its submission of an Honor Roll application.

Privacy Policy: An applicant institution’s name, as well as all submission material, may be used for news or publicity programs connected with the CNCS. Contact information, however, will not be shared with anyone outside the CNCS, and only with individuals within the CNCS who have an official need to know the information.

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