AmeriCorps NCCC

Building capacity through collaboration; supporting communities and survivors through national service.

BackgroundThe Corporation for National & Community Service (CNCS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have formed a partnership to establish FEMA Corps, a component of the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) program, to support the ‘whole community approach’ to incident management and assist FEMA with federal disaster management operations.

FEMA Corps is a historic collaboration that will create a new unit of AmeriCorps NCCC members who will be devoted solely to FEMA disaster response and recovery efforts. The five-year agreement provides a corps of 1,600 members annually who will be able to support FEMA's current disaster workforce.

The full-time residential team-based service program is for individuals ages 18-24. Members will serve a ten-month term including a minimum of 1,700 hours, providing support working to benefit disaster survivors. The first members began serving in August 2012 and the program will reach its full capacity by February 2014.

FEMA Corps will enhance the federal government’s disaster capabilities and diversity of the disaster workforce, promote an ethos of service, and expand education and economic opportunity for young people.

FEMA Corps

A FEMA Corps member and a FEMA Community Relations (CR) specialist review a street map while reaching out to residents in Union Beach, N.J., who may have been affected by Hurricane Sandy. Photo by Patsy Lynch/FEMA UNION BEACH, N.J., NOVEMBER 2012

FEMA-DR-4086-NJ

www.AmeriCorps.gov/NCCC www.FEMA.gov/FEMA-Corpswww.NationalService.gov

Quick Facts• Up to 1,600 FEMA Corps Members will be

integrated into the existing NCCC Program

• Each Corps Member and Team Leader commits to FEMA Corps for a total of ten-months, including training, serving a minimum of 1,700 hours

• Teams are formed during initial training on one of the five NCCC Region Campuses in the United States: Sacramento, CA (Pacific Region); Vinton, IA (North Central Region); Vicksburg, MS (Southern Region); Denver, CO (Southwest Region); and Perry Point, MD (Atlantic Region)

• FEMA Corps Team Leaders are responsible for the direct supervision, discipline, general safety, well-being, performance and personal development of their Corps Members

• Team Leaders are supervised by Unit Leaders from their NCCC Campus

• Teams maintain their integrity throughout their ten-month term of service and will continually be engaged in disaster management operations. Each team is deployed as a single resource (not broken up into individual member deployments) and remains together for purposes of assignments, training, travel, lodging, and meals

• FEMA Corps Members are provided housing, meals, uniforms, loan forbearance and transportation to and from the campus at the beginning and end of the program. They also have limited health coverage and are eligible for childcare support

• Members receive a living allowance of approximately $4,000 for their ten-months of service (about $200 every two weeks before taxes) and can earn a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $5,550 upon successful completion of the program

• NCCC provides housing accommodations (known as “SPIKE housing”) and meal preparation arrangements for the team(s) assigned to a disaster in instances where the disaster is beyond a reasonable commute (50 miles or more) from their respective NCCC campus

TrainingAmeriCorps NCCC Corps Training Institute (CTI)

CTI includes four weeks of training for all NCCC Members. Training includes team building, team development, NCCC policies and procedures, project safety, and specialty team roles.

FEMA Corps: Restoring Families and Communities after Disaster

Restoring Families and Communities after Disaster is a FEMA course that provides a foundational understanding of FEMA and prepares the members to contribute to the agency’s mission. Corps Members and Team Leaders learn the basics of emergency management, the mission and culture of FEMA, and their role and responsibilities in relation to the agency’s mission.

FEMA Position-Specific Training

During the FEMA training period (separate from CTI), FEMA train’s Corps Members in disaster positions identified by FEMA to support disaster management operations.

Other Ongoing Training

As needed, Corps Members receive on-the-job (work site) or online training, as well as on-campus training during transition periods.