AmeriCorps

Continue your commitment to community with a Segal Award match

Since its inception in 1994, AmeriCorps participants have contributed billions of volunteer hours in conjunction with underserved nonprofits, and it engages more than 80,000 members a year in meaningful service. Members of every branch show their dedication to civil society through their service, and this aligns perfectly with the mission and spirit of our school.

We offer a dollar for dollar match of your Segal Education Award. See below for more details.

We hope that you will consider our programs in your next step towards continuing a commitment to your community with a career in the field of philanthropy.

AmeriCorps School of National Service badge
AmeriCorps Alums logo

Why choose philanthropic studies at our school?

  • We pioneered the field of philanthropic studies to educate socially responsive students in the emerging field of philanthropy and nonprofit organizations in the local, national, and international arena.
  • AmeriCorps awards over $200 million in education awards every year to its graduates for use towards paying off student loans or continuing their education. In exchange for successfully completing a term of service, members earn a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award that can be used to pay for college or graduate school or to pay back qualified student loans. We will match this award.
  • We will consider your AmeriCorps experience for up to three credit hours (or one academic class) toward our master’s degree.
  • We educate future leaders in this field by offering Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Ph.D. degrees in philanthropic studies. We also offer a graduate certificate that can be completed entirely online.
  • The curriculum explores the historical, philosophical, and economic “whys” of giving and volunteering as well as the “how to” of working within nonprofit organizations.
  • There are over 1.6 million nonprofit organizations in the U.S. alone, and these organizations need well prepared leaders and staff to continue making an impact on millions of lives across the globe.
  • Big Brothers Big Sisters
  • Central Indiana Community Foundation
  • Goodwill Industries
  • Exodus Refugee Immigration
  • Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra
  • Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
  • Mayo Clinic Department of Development
  • March of Dimes
  • Music Academy of the West
  • Second Helpings
  • Schools on Wheels
  • YMCA

Make your passion your profession

Our graduates serve in roles such as:

  • Marketing Operations, Eli Lilly & Co.
  • Program Assistant, Gill Foundation
  • Outreach Specialist, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
  • Marketing Manager, National Human Services Assembly
  • Development and Major Gift Officer, The American Red Cross
  • Events Coordinator, The Nature Conservancy
  • Senior Philanthropic Relationship Manager, U.S. Trust
  • Associate Director for Planning and Development, University of Notre Dame

Meet our AmeriCorps alums

Jaycee Greenblatt

Through the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy and the AmeriCorps program, I am engaging in conversations and learning from those who are at the forefront of understanding philanthropy. What drives me to work hard is knowing I can make an impact. I want my footprint to make a change in this world.

Jaycee Greenblatt, alumna, AmeriCorps; student, executive master’s program in philanthropic studies; development associate, Habitat for Humanity of Dallas
Nick Burks

Being an AmeriCorps volunteer really sent me in the right direction. Observing the impact volunteering had on Central Indiana nonprofits prompted me to want to learn more about the field of philanthropy, guiding me to pursue my graduate degree at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

Nick Burks, alumnus, AmeriCorps; student, executive master’s program in philanthropic studies; match support specialist, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Indiana
Rachel Ogorek

While AmeriCorps solidified my goal to work in the nonprofit sector, the philanthropic studies program has provided me with valuable tools to become a more knowledgeable practitioner as well as encouraged my desire to continue to be an engaged and active citizen in my community.

Rachel Ogorek, alumna, AmeriCorps; student, Master of Arts in Philanthropic Studies and Public Affairs in Nonprofit Management; graduate assistant, Center for Service & Learning Office of Neighborhood Partnerships, IU Indianapolis

Serve Reflect Repeat

Rachel Ogorek has also published a book that is a compilation of AmeriCorps stories to help people understand AmeriCorps and the types of experiences available through the program. Learn more:

Serve Reflect Repeat book

Questions?

To learn more about the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy degree programs and certificate opportunities, contact us at apsop@iu.edu.