Tuesday, May 14, 1996
By Eugene M. Lang
Fifteen years ago this spring, I impulsively promised a college
education to 61 East Harlem sixth graders, if and when they
graduated from high school. The only catch: 75 percent of the
youngsters were projected dropouts. To make my promise meaningful,
I began a year-round educational program that, with ongoing
personal involvement, encouraged the youngsters to stay in school
and aspire to higher education and fulfilling careers. I called it
the "I Have a Dream" Program (IHAD), and the kids "Dreamers."
It turned out that, all over America, other individuals felt the
same way I did. Today, over 160 "I Have a Dream" projects in 28
states serve more than 15,000 children, mostly the minority poor.
Each project, with the support of volunteers, provides its Dreamers
with a program of educational, social and cultural activities from
elementary school through high school  with the guarantee of
tuition support for college or vocational school.
Each of our Projects is locally administered, locally funded and
tailored to the needs of its Dreamers. We believe that personal,
individual action is the key. In short, the "I Have a Dream"
Foundation is exactly the sort of private-sector charity that
opponents of AmeriCorps, the new national service program, say they
believe in. A success story like ours proves, they say, that
government should have nothing to do with volunteerism. It proves
that AmeriCorps is a waste of money. Worse, it may even harm
charities by undermining America’s great tradition of citizen
volunteers.
Two years of IHAD/AmeriCorps collaboration prove otherwise.
IHAD’s AmeriCorps members have had a dramatic impact on our program
in the 15 cities where they work. They teach, tutor, run
after-school programs, organize community service projects and help
Dreamers stay away from gangs and drugs and do better in school.
They serve as responsible role models for a generation that needs
real heroes. Since AmeriCorps came on board, Dreamers have been
studying harder and scoring higher. They have also built
playgrounds in vacant lots, fed the homeless and comforted the
elderly. And the members’ high-profile efforts have helped us to
attract more than 3,000 new volunteers from the Dreamers’
communities. Other national service organizations  the YMCA,
the United Way, the American Red Cross  report similar
dramatic benefits from AmeriCorps.
As I write, Congress appears to have overcome efforts in the
House and the Senate to kill AmeriCorps and is voting to provide
the funds necessary to continue the program. And well it should.
AmeriCorps is not an expression of government telling the private
sector what to do and how to do it  and I deplore beltway
critics who argue that it is a liberal gimmick. AmeriCorps members
help disadvantaged kids finish high school and go on to college:
That isn’t liberal or conservative. It’s smart. Nor is it a
gimmick. The Council on Educational Development calculates that the
average dropout adds a lifetime burden on the community of
$300,000. What value should we place on AmeriCorps, whose members
have directly helped to keep thousands of Dreamers in school and on
a positive track to productive citizenship?
Congress created AmeriCorps as a partnership between the private
and public sectors. It works. In just its first year, over $91
million was contributed to AmeriCorps programs, including $41
million from private business and foundations. Moreover, talking
about AmeriCorps’ budget alone fails to address the private money
which AmeriCorps brings into the communities in which the members
work. A team of conservative economists has calculated that every
dollar invested in AmeriCorps returns at least $1.60 to $2.60 in
direct, measurable benefits  findings confirmed by the
General Accounting Office.
AmeriCorps also provides some of the same societal benefits as
military service. It builds an ethic of citizenship and civic duty.
It helps young people from disadvantaged backgrounds gain work
experience and finance a college education. For the more
privileged, it provides real-world experience to supplement the
"ivory tower" environment of college. And in our increasingly
multicultural work, it gives those in their formative years the
experience of working closely with people from all segments of
society. Our AmeriCorps teams embrace all racial and economic
backgrounds, working together every day with a remarkable spirit of
community.
I’m a fiscal conservative. But when a new initiative works as
promised, when it is proven cost effective, when it promotes our
core values, then it should be preserved. AmeriCorps is such a
program.
Republican Governor Bill Weld recently had a valuable piece of
advice for a Congress grappling with tough choices on the budget:
"I have one word of caution: AmeriCorps. It is the baby that should
not be thrown out with the bathwater. AmeriCorps is one of the most
intelligent uses of taxpayers dollars ever." I couldn’t agree more.
Let’s put aside politics and simplistic slogans and do all we can
to improve  not eliminate  AmeriCorps.
Eugene M. Lang is the founder and chairman of the "I Have a
Dream" Foundation, an educational support and intervention program
for disadvantaged children.