The Corporation for National and Community Service released its annual Volunteering in America Report which looks at volunteering trends across all 50 states and the District of Columbia, as well as 50 large and 75 mid-sized cities.
District of Columbia’s Rankings and Information:
District of Columbia’s overall rate of volunteers was 31.3 percent, which puts the District well above the national average of 26.2 percent. District of Columbia residents had an average of 47 volunteer hours per capita per year, with 140,000 volunteers dedicating service each year.
District of Columbia also benefited from the intensive service of more than 4,700 people of all ages and backgrounds who are helping to meet local needs, strengthen communities, and increase civic engagement through 72 national service projects across the state. Serving through Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America, these citizens tutor and mentor children, coordinate after-school programs, build homes, conduct neighborhood patrols, restore the environment, respond to disasters, build nonprofit capacity and recruit and manage volunteers. This year, the Corporation for National and Community Service will commit more than $16.3 million to support national service programs in District of Columbia communities.
Financial Impact of Volunteering in District of Columbia:
On average (between 2005-2007), residents of District of Columbia annually contributed more than 20,924,000 hours of volunteer service totaling over $408 million ($408,227,832) of service annually. These figures are based on the Independent Sector’s annual estimation of the dollar value of a volunteer hour for 2007, which is currently $19.51.
Volunteering In America Study Information:
Based on data collected by the US Census Bureau, this report presents an overview of formal volunteering at both the national and regional levels, as well as state and city rankings determined by volunteering indicators such as volunteering rate, intensity of volunteering, total hours donated, the types of activities volunteers perform, the types of organizations where people volunteer, and civic engagement. All volunteer rankings are based on a three-year average (using data from 2005-2007).
VolunteeringInAmerica.gov:
As noted above, the Volunteering In America profile data is available online in an easy-to-use, interactive web tool. When you visit VolunteeringInAmerica.gov, you can test your volunteering knowledge, learn about other states and cities and their volunteering habits, as well as seek out volunteer opportunities in the District of Columbia. This comprehensive web tool was launched by the Corporation for National and Community Service.
For more information, please contact:
Serve DC
Dy Brown, Communications and Outreach Director
(202) 727-7200