Serve DC is seeking individuals to review grant proposals for the 2009 AmeriCorps*State Competitive funding competition. This is an excellent opportunity to network with colleagues in the national service field, learn more about the grant-making process, develop your own grant-writing skills, and contribute your knowledge and experience to Serve DC’s efforts to select high-quality Washington, DC-based programs for AmeriCorps funding.

Notice: Reviewers are required to be available on Wednesday, November 5, 2008, from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm and Friday, November 14, 2008, 1pm -5pm. Reviewers will participate in a two hour training session on Wednesday, November 5, 2008, and a consensus review session on Friday, November 14, 2008. Please see the remainder of the announcement for further details.

What does a grant reviewer do? Grant reviewers will help to evaluate funding applications for the 2009 AmeriCorps*State Competitive grant competition. Reviewers read, score and evaluate proposals, and discuss their findings with a small group of fellow reviewers and a facilitator. The panel then comes to consensus to rank the proposals according to quality and recommend them for the next level of review.

What qualifications should reviewers have? Serve DC is looking for a diverse group of reviewers--males and females of all ages, races and ethnicities--that have experience with national service or community-based programs, and grant writing. For example, reviewers may be community service practitioners, educators, students, youth participants, national service alumni, people working in foundations, or individuals working on public policy issues. 

Reviewers must be comfortable reading a large volume of material in a short period of time and providing analysis in a small group.