Kansas City Chiefs President Mark Donovan to Receive Award for Support of National Service

Washington, DC (February 7, 2019) – Mark Donovan, President of the Kansas City Chiefs, will receive the Citizen Service Award from Voices for National Service for his tireless efforts to invest in the civic health of our nation through support of national service.

Voices for National Service is a diverse coalition of national service programs, state service commissions and individual champions, who work to ensure Americans of all ages can serve and volunteer in their communities.

The awardwill be formally presented to Donovan in Washington, DC at the 16th Annual Friends of National Service Awards on February 12, 2019. Honorees are selected based on recognition and support for national service as a solution to some of the nation’s most pressing challenges. Each award winner has helped to raise public awareness of national service and elevate service as a national priority.

“Mark Donovan is a vocal advocate for the impact service and volunteer programs are having in Missouri and across the country,” said AnnMaura Connolly, President, Voices for National Service. “Mark was instrumental in bringing the City Year AmeriCorps program to Kansas City in 2015 to ensure all students receive the educational opportunities they deserve. In 2017 and 2018, in the face of proposed budget cuts, Mark has worked to protect national service funding and expand this vital American resource. He has reached out to congressional leaders and helped explain how our federal service programs are being effectively leveraged to help local communities meet local needs.”

“I’m honored to receive the Citizen Service Award from Voices for National Service. I strongly believe in serving our communities and appreciate being part of an organization that promotes that value. The Hunt Family Foundation and the Chiefs are proud to have been part of the effort to bring AmeriCorps and City Year to Kansas City,” Donovan said. “AmeriCorps is a public-private partnership that works for both sides, matching federal grants with funds from local sources to enhance and maximize the local impact. For us, that means the ability to provide thousands of local students with the additional support they need to succeed in school and in life. CityYear KC works, and the impact on our community is real and measurable. I want to thank Voices for National Service for the tremendous honor and recognize the countless national service members around the country who are impacting lives every single day.”

As founding Board Chair of City Year Kansas City, Mark has helped to grow a pilot program with 16 AmeriCorps members working in two local schools to 58 AmeriCorps members in six schools, serving more than 4,000 students each year. Results over City Year’s first three years have been impressive: 40 percent of the Kansas City students served by City Year improved their attendance, meaning more kids are in school able to learn and 45 percent of students tutored by City Year went from a failing grade (D or F) to a passing grade (A, B or C).

Donovan joins a bipartisan group of distinguished leaders in government, business, and journalism from across the nation being honored, including Senators Chris Coons (D-DE), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Jack Reed (D-RI), New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu and First Lady Valerie Sununu, and the Tulsa Regional Chamber.

Details

16th Annual Friends of National Service Awards

Tuesday, February 12, 2019 from 6:30 – 8:30 pm (pre-reception 5:30 – 6:30 pm)

Hyatt Regency, 400 New Jersey Avenue, NW, Washington, DC

The full list of 2019 award winners is available here.

Background

In communities across the country, national service members of all ages and backgrounds provide critical services to fulfill unmet needs. National service members tutor and mentor struggling students, help fight the opioid epidemic, provide job training and other services to returning veterans, preserve the nation’s parks and public lands, offer disaster relief and recovery assistance after natural disasters and support independent living for seniors and Americans with disabilities. For every federal dollar invested in national service, there are returns to society of nearly four dollars in terms of higher earnings, increased output and other community-wide benefits.

Congress created the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency that oversees national service programs such as AmeriCorps and Senior Corps, to be a public-private partnership that invests limited federal dollars to leverage substantial private investment to improve lives and communities.In 2015, CNCS and its grantees generated $1.26 billion in outside resources from private businesses, foundations, and other sources, an amount exceeding the federal appropriation. Furthermore, a recent survey of AmeriCorps alumni found that eight out of 10 alumni say AmeriCorps benefited and advanced their career path, and that AmeriCorps alumni are more likely to attain a bachelor’s degree or higher than the average American adult.

The 16th Annual Friends of National Service Awards is sponsored by Comcast NBCUniversal, CSX, The Corps Network and Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

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Voices for National Service is a diverse coalition of national service programs, state service commissions and individual champions, who work to ensure Americans of all ages and backgrounds have the opportunity to serve and volunteer in their community.Founded in 2003, Voices for National Service has built strong bipartisan support among our nation's leaders and helped to elevate national service as a powerful strategy for tackling unmet needs, preparing young people for work, uniting our country and developing civic character.