Serve Indiana is the state service commission and division of the Department of Workforce Development. Our mission is to advance service and volunteerism by informing, connecting, and promoting opportunities and resources that enrich the lives of Hoosiers. Our team oversees AmeriCorps funds and programs in the state, and we work with our partners to connect people with opportunities to serve our communities.
Staff
Executive Director - Stefonie Sebastian
Director of Grants - Vacant
Director of Programs- Willie Brooks
Employer Based Volunteer Manager- Kirstyn Nohlechek
State Service Plan
All state service commissions are required by federal law to develop a three-year, comprehensive national and community service plan. The State Service Plan serves as a vehicle for creating a broad vision for promoting national service and volunteering and for building a solid infrastructure of high-quality service programs and support services.
As part of the process, Serve Indiana gathered input from 1,398 individual Hoosiers, through the Citizen Survey, to help us chart the course for service and volunteerism for the next three years. This data informs the 2025-2027 State Service Plan, All IN: Hoosiers Helping Hoosiers.
Programs
AmeriCorps*State provides opportunities for individuals to make an intensive commitment to service with the goal of “helping others and meeting critical needs in the community.” This is a national program administered by AmeriCorps. In Indiana, the AmeriCorps*State grant is administered by Serve Indiana. Serve Indiana manages the grant application process for AmeriCorps*State, including issuing requests for proposals, conducting application reviews, and awarding grants. It also provides training and technical assistance to support sub-grantees and in turn, monitors programs, host-sites, and members to ensure compliance to federal and state grant requirements. The performance of each program is tracked and measured to established targets and outcomes.
Initiatives
Service Project Mini Grants: Mini-grants are offered to provide resources to coordinate Day of Service projects. The goal of the Mini-Grant program is to demonstrate the power of service as a solution to community needs. Serve Indiana encourages Day of Service projects that (1) demonstrate community connections and use of local resources, (2) build capacity of local volunteer centers and national service programs through regional networking and co-planning of activities, and (3) increase national service participant and volunteer understanding and commitment to national service and volunteerism.
Corporate Volunteerism: Serve Indiana is working to increase volunteerism within the for-profit sector in Indiana. This initiative includes our Corporate Volunteerism Toolkit, Indiana Employer-Led Volunteer Challenge, and highlighting Indiana corporations who are already making an impact in their communities via employee volunteerism.
Disaster Assistance: The Serve Indiana team collaborates with numerous state and federal agencies to help assist and support disaster relief efforts should the need for those efforts arise.
