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Virginia Service CommissionCOVID-19 FAQsTable of ContentsAlternative Service Activities & Member Circumstances…………………………..1Grants & Fiscal Management………………………………………………………... 8Suspensions and Living Allowances………………………………………………...10Exits and Education Awards……………………………………………...…………..15Reporting and Performance…………………………………………………………..19Alternative Service Activities & Member CircumstancesWhat activities can be considered for alternative service activities?These are examples of alternative activities. This list is not all inclusive!Provide support to 2-1-1 or other community call centers/remote call center support—dial in remote call centers are ideal.Modifying in-person coaching around accessing higher education or other types of case management to Zoom or other web/phone-based coaching.Coordinating with schools to help with delivery of educational content using online resources (for example, reading books that can be shared with students, conducting science experiments, virtual tours, virtual lessons) material may be recorded or presented “live”.?Assist local health departments/offices with coordinating public health initiatives and health/safety education effortsProvide community-feeding support, such as meal and food prep, planning/coordination, packing, distribution/delivery, warehousing/inventory, safety inspection, and related activitiesConduct wellness checks on the elderly and vulnerable populations via phone calls, text messaging, or talking through the doorAssist with coordinating in-kind donations related to COVID-19 community needs (food donations, supply drives, blood drives, etc.)Assemble hygiene and disaster preparedness kits for high-need populations such as the homeless, those living in shelters, and other low-income communities or provide support to neighborhood initiatives such as stocking free community libraries, micro food pantries, etc.Participate in or lead virtual civic reflections or other discussions related to how to serve the community during COVID-19 or to engage with fellow AmeriCorps members in Civic Reflection activities or weekly team meetingsAssist with childcare or other support for first respondersAssist with data entry/analysis for response effortsStudent or client check-in callsSenior client reassurance callsNon-traditional Instruction (NTI) student supportNon-contact delivery of school work packetsDistance-learning events with student or clientsLesson planning for out of school instructional contentChild care services for essential personnelContact local nonprofits to recruit/assist with enrollment in digital volunteer hubFEMA TrainingWeb-based professional development Information was distributed previously about assisting COVID-19 food delivery at school sites. Are members allowed to volunteer with similar programming at non-school sites?Any alternative service activity that is not unallowable or prohibited will be approved at this time. We are remaining flexible and encourage opportunities like this. There is also a list of other ideas in this FAQ. Please make sure to include this activity on your COVID-19 program change request form.As a result of the COVID19 FAQ permission to disburse stipends during service interruptions, should programs suspend members from the program if service locations are closed?Programs may decide to suspend AmeriCorps members during a service interruption because COVID-19 temporarily halts the member’s service period. Subgrantees may develop alternative activities for the members. See FAQs on Member Suspensions.I have a member who is at home with her 3 children and having to "homeschool" them with assignments that have been sent electronically by the teachers of the children. She asked if she could count tutoring service hours while she is helping them complete their assignments.While we are trying to be as flexible as possible during this uncertain time, the Commission does not see homeschooling a member’s children as service.We do, however, allow programs to allow members to serve less than the agreed upon hours in their service agreements. That can translate to serving any amount of hours in a pay period, keeping in mind that members might not have a lot of flexibility to serve more than a couple per week based on their personal situations.We have one non-local member who was a local college student and living on campus, however, her permanent residence is in another county. Please advise.The Commission is encouraging all organizations to be flexible with allowing their members to complete as many of their required minimum hours as possible, in order to receive their full education award. If a member needs to relocate to another part of the state and is interested in continuing service, activities served remotely are allowable. However, activities would need to be approved on the change form, a teleservice agreement would most likely need to be signed if member will be serving remotely in that capacity, and depending on what service activities the member is engaging in, documentation would need to be provided that service hours were done and approved by someone who can verify them.We have two members with underlying health conditions and age (60+) that put them at increased COVID-19 risk.Please continue to follow the recommendations of the VDH and CDC for individuals who are at risk. Please also consider other options for your members to continue to serve, while not placing them in an unsafe situation. These can include teleservice options, which should be outlined in a teleservice agreement between the site and the member. Virginia Service Commission has posted a template for programs to use on its website: .How should we document oversight of alternative service activities? Can we use DocuSign or another electronic signature platform for member telework agreements and other documents?Yes, electronic signatures are acceptable.If members do teleservice, do programs need to submit a copy of the teleservice form and agreement to VSC? Or should it just be kept in member files? Programs should include teleservice activities on the program change request forms, and the signed agreements should be kept in the member files. A copy does not need to be sent to VSC.As we put together the Teleservice Form and Program Change Request Form, we wanted to verify how we would go about updating the estimated number of hours, should certain activities take longer than expected? There are certain online activities that we are starting, but have not implemented before, and it’s unclear how they’ll catch on with our families. Would it be possible to simply update this part of the form in a couple weeks?Yes. Please be as specific as you can. We understand there are still unknowns and this is an evolving process. The Commission wants to be flexible as possible and will work with programs in the coming weeks to make sure programs have sufficient documentation of activities. How should we document activities in OnCorps?OnCorps timesheets should be used to track any and all member hours as has been done. If a member is not serving in a capacity they are primarily accustomed to doing (at a site doing an assigned direct service activity), they are to use the ‘off-site’ option in the drop down menu of activities and provide a short description from the list of alternative service activities that have been approved. If they are doing training or fundraising, they can still use those options in the drop-down. If you need to edit your timesheet template, please contact your P.O.If you DO NOT have an ‘off-site’ option under service sites, please do not edit your service sites; ALL previous timesheets will default to that setting. Instead, you will need to add a subcategory in the service/training section, instuctions are as follows:You can name this additional category as teleservice or alternative service, or something appropriate for your program.The Enhanced format allows for up to 20 subcategories under each main category. If you have not met this limit yet, you can add additional categories until you reach the limit. To add categories, go to Tools > Administrative Tools > Timesheet Setup. Navigate to the “Categories” tab and add a new subcategory by filling out the fields in the “Add a New Category” section and clicking “Add”. Click on one of the save options at the bottom of the page to save your updates. This category will be immediately available for your members to submit time.Timesheets still require two approvers. If members are doing service off-site, you will need to have a way to verify the hours they are serving that are not at their primary service site. This may include a certificate of completion, a signed timesheet by someone in charge of an alternative service activity, a log they keep of activities, etc. Since supervisors will not be able to verify first-hand that members are serving the hours they report, a way to verify these alternative service hours must be in place. (4/1/2020)Can members participate in professional development or fundraising activities during this time?Members can continue to do allowable activities; per 45 CFR § 2520.50: No more than 20 percent of the aggregate of all AmeriCorps member service hours in your program, as reflected in the member enrollments in the National Service Trust, may be spent in education and training activities.Fundraising activities are addressed in 45 CFR § 2520.45:An AmeriCorps member may spend no more than ten percent of his or her originally agreed upon term of service, as reflected in the member enrollment in the National Service Trust, performing fundraising activities, as described in §2520.40.What documentation is required by VSC for the member file related to change in status (eg. suspension, exit for compelling circumstances, partial ed awards)?For exit for compelling circumstances, the same requirements still apply. CNCS has stated that grantees can deviate from existing medical documentation requirements they have in their existing policies and procedures related to compelling personal circumstances (CPC) as long as the programs retains contemporaneous documentation that the deviation from the requirement was related to COVID-19 (i.e., the member was exited for CPC because a sibling came in contact with COVID-19 and did not want to contaminate other members in the program) and the program recognizes that this health reason was beyond the member’s control pursuant to 45 CFR § 2522.230Please keep in mind, exiting or suspending members should be a last resort if appropriate alternative activities are not available. Members are asking us if they qualify for the Gov. stimulus package checks. Under my research, they have SSN, reside in the US and pay taxes so they should qualify for the full amount. Is that correct? Members should consult with a tax professional for their specific tax situation. The Commission cannot determine if a Member is eligible for or if they qualify for an economic impact payment under the CARES ACT. We can, however, point you in the direction of FAQs on the IRS website about Coronavirus and the Economic Impact Payments. (4/2/2020)We are an Education focused program, which many VA programs are. With schools being shut down for the remainder of the year, should we prepare long term teleservice opportunities for the rest of the school year? OR will CNCS give us guidance as to what/if we should plan for the next 2 ? months?If a service activity is disrupted due to COVID-19, grant recipients may develop other types of service activities that are not specifically defined in the grant and should obtain written (email) approval from their Program Officer as soon as practicable.Per Section 3514(a)(2) of the CARES Act, CNCS requires that the grantee exit a member when the grantee determines that completion of the originally scheduled service term is no longer practicable. Such a member is entitled to an education award consistent with the percentages specified in these FAQs.(4/2/2020)Do we need a waiver for AmeriCorps directly serving?No. Programs should, of course, prioritize protecting the health and safety of members. If the members will need specific training, protective equipment, or other precautions to carry out the new service activities safely, the program should ensure that it can be provided. Members can continue to serve, however, organizations must institute safeguards as necessary and appropriate to ensure the safety of members. Members may not participate in projects that pose undue safety risks.(4/2/2020)Is there a timeframe for when members need to exited by? For example, if we see in July members will not finish their service hours due to the shut downs, will an exit for CPC be accepted?The Commission is encouraging all organizations to be flexible with allowing their members to complete as many of their required minimum hours during their agreed upon term as possible. In this way they are still able to receive a living allowance during that time. Exits for compelling personal circumstances will be accepted if members are serving reduced hours and consequently cannot finish their minimum required hours by the end date of their term of service. (ex: serving hours until contract end date of August 1st, then exiting for CPC)There is no specific timeline or time frame we are mandating they be exited by, and each organization and member’s situation is different. Please be in contact with your Program Officer about what is best for your program. Do not exit or suspend any member until you fill out a Program Change Request Form and have it approved by your P.O and the F.O. (4/2/2020) The Program Change Request Form we had approved was for teleservice activity until March 31st because our offices originally planned to be closed until that time. Now, our organization extended the quarantine until April 11th. Do we need to send a new Program change form with the new dates?Yes. We understand that things are constantly changing, please keep the Commission informed of these changes by updating your Program Change Request Forms ASAP. (4/2/2020)We have a member who volunteers on the rescue squad for his local rescue department. Can his hours count for AmeriCorps service during this time?As long as members are not participating in unallowable or prohibited activities, the Commission has been approving alternative service activities, such as volunteering with Non-profit organizations, educational institutions, and/or government entities providing alternate care or relief activities for students and adults impacted by COVID-19 closures and social CS COVID-19 FAQs: To earn hours, a member must engage in service activity. 42 U.S.C. §12602 (a)(2). Accordingly, grant recipients may not give members constructive credit for hours that were not served. However, to the extent training or teleservice is possible, CNCS will generously approve such deviations from the grantee’s normal policies and practices if the deviation is documented and approved by the grantee’s leadership and the planned national service is disrupted due to COVID-19.CARES ACT: ACCRUAL OF SERVICE HOURS(1) ACCRUAL THROUGH OTHER SERVICE HOURS.— Notwithstanding any other provision of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4950 et seq.) or the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.), the Corporation for National and Community Service shall allow an individual to accrue other service hours that will count toward the number of hours needed for the individual’s education award.(4/2/2020)We would like to create webinars about different useful topics for our service. Can they count as training?If your members are helping create the webinars for future members or volunteers, they can count it as service. If your staff is creating webinars on topics for members who will come on in the future, watching those webinars can certainly count towards training hours for your members. (4/2/2020)Is it possible to have Life After AmeriCorps done virtually for our members?Yes. Staff is currently working on providing virtual training.(4/2/2020)Grants & Fiscal ManagementCan members serve after August 31, 2020? Can 2019-2020 performance periods be extended?All 2019-2020 performance periods end on or before August 31, 2020. It is presumed that members serving after August 31 are the result of member suspensions. Extending service would require a modification to your VDSS subaward to allow you to incur and be reimbursed for expenditures. See related FAQs on Member Suspensions and fiscal implications of paying additional living allowances during member suspensions. Extensions could also result in two subawards running concurrently, if your anticipated 2020-2021 award will begin prior to ending your current award. Managing two distinct member cohorts and tracking grant funds separately would be required. This would be difficult to manage administratively and is not recommended at this time. Consult your program officer to discuss any need to request an extension. What if I have unanticipated costs due to COVID-19?Consult the fiscal officer for guidance on the allowability of these costs. You must also consider 1.) if the additional costs can be accommodated in your 2019-2020 budget based on your current spending and forecasted expenditures for the remaining months of the performance period; and 2.) maintaining compliance with grantee share (match) requirements. Based on these factors, a budget modification may be necessary.My organization’s ability to produce the grantee share approved in my application has been affected by COVID-19. Contributions from third parties and host sites have also been impacted. What should I do???Please evaluate if your program’s grantee share level will be impacted by disruptions to your organization and host site closures eg. your organization contributes the cost of training which could not be conducted. CNCS is waiving all match requirements for all AmeriCorps State and National (ASN) cost reimbursement grants that were awarded in FY 2019 and FY 2020, however the details regarding implementation of the waiver are unknown at this time. The Commission will communicate additional guidance, including any documentation requirements, as they are received from CNCS.? (4/10/2020)COVID-19 is impacting our ability to incur costs that were to be allocated to grantee share. If necessary, will projects be able to request match waivers?CNCS is waiving all match requirements for all AmeriCorps State and National (ASN) cost reimbursement grants that were awarded in FY 2019 and FY 2020. CNCS has the authority to issue a blanket waiver under 42 U.S.C. § 12571(e)(4) and consistent with 45 CFR 2521.70 when CNCS “determines that such a waiver would be equitable due to lack of available financial resources at the local level.” CNCS has advised that grantees (Virginia Service Commission) who wish to take advantage of this waiver in full or part do not have to take any action at this time. Details regarding implementation of the waiver must still be determined by CNCS. The Virginia Service Commission will communicate additional guidance to its subgrantees, including any documentation requirements, as they are received from CNCS. Please continue to report grantee share in the monthly periodic expense report. (4/10/2020)Will OVCS and/or CNCS be providing any guidance on how AmeriCorps Members are treated on the payroll loan under the CARES Act?We understand that when the application opens that funds will go very quickly. We are planning to submit an application due to the uncertain economic forecast for our next program year, and want to make sure that we are consistent with any provisos in the bill.The Commission does not have any additional guidance on how AmeriCorps Members are identified by the SBA under the CARES Act; we can only site guidance on current information provided by CNCS, which is below. You must consult with the Small Business Administration to determine your specific needs.? FAQs: C. 1. Are AmeriCorps members employees?AmeriCorps members are not employees of the AmeriCorps program or of the federal government. The definition of “participant” in the National and Community Service Act of 1990 as amended applies to AmeriCorps members. As such, “a participant (member) shall not be considered to be an employee of the organization receiving assistance under the national service laws through which the participant (member) is engaged in service” (42 U.S.C. 12511(30) (B)). Moreover, members are not allowed to perform an employee’s duties or otherwise displace employees.For the limited purposes of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, the member may be considered an eligible employee of the project sponsor. The Family and Medical Leave Act’s requirements as they apply to AmeriCorps Programs are contained in 45 CFR 2540.220(b).(4/10/2020) Suspensions and Living AllowancesI was hoping that you could point me to VSC training materials and other resources that explain member suspensions and what circumstances qualify, as well as what the steps are to set these up. I want to make sure I fully understand all of the options AmeriCorps Members have at this time.The period of suspension does not count toward a member’s required service hours. The Commission does NOT recommend suspension, as we want to keep members in active service for as long as possible, completing as many hours as they can.If you choose to suspend members, you’ll need to address a couple of items.Living allowance: If you decide to suspend members because of COVID-19, and decide to still pay the living allowance, when members are back in service, they will still need to be receiving the regular living allowance payments, which budgets are not usually prepared to handle. If you decide not to pay living allowance, that may put strain on members, as there is probably yet a plan to put them back in service, and during this time they were unable to accrue any service hours.Suspension happens in eGrants, and you would need to provide documentation as to the understanding between your site and the member as to the terms for suspension.Supporting materials for Compelling Personal Circumstances: There must be documentation in the member’s file for their suspension or release from the program due to circumstances that are beyond the member’s control or for reasons approved by CNCS, including contemporaneous documentation that the deviation from the requirement was related to COVID-19 (i.e., the member was exited for CPC because a sibling came in contact with COVID-19 and did not want to contaminate other members in the program) and the program recognizes that this health reason was beyond the member’s control pursuant to 45 CFR § 2522.230. Documentation can include official notes from doctors, the government, or other items that qualify as proof of the event or circumstance.How do I proceed with member suspensions where members plan to return later to complete their hours? Do I go into eGrants and suspend them until they can resume their ordinary service hours?We recommend finding alternative service activities for members before exploring a suspension. If you have exhausted every option, you would use eGrants to suspend a member’s term of service. You should also document with the member that they understand what that means and that they agree. Per CNCS at order to provide grantees the maximum flexibility as a result of COVID-19, CNCS has determined that AmeriCorps State and National members may be paid living allowances and benefits while they are in a Suspended from Service status, if the reason for suspension is due to COVID-19. Programs can also elect not to pay living allowances if they suspend their AmeriCorps State and National members.If an individual is suspended for any other reason, the living allowance and other benefits are also to be suspended. If a grantee organization decides to continue to pay members while they are in a Suspended status, they must be prepared to obtain additional funding to cover living allowance and benefit expenses once members are reinstated.Programs should keep in mind that if or when they re-start the program and take members off suspension, they will have to continue paying the living allowance and benefits as members accrue hours. This may necessitate some programs raising additional funds for those costs as they are unlikely to have budgeted for living allowances and benefits beyond their initial program duration. [updated 3/13]”Does this section of the member agreement clear us from having to come up with additional funds to cover more than the stipend that were agreed to initially? The member agreement states: “Should a member receive the total living allowance amount prior to completing the number of hours required under this contract, s/he must continue service without receipt of living allowance until the required hours are completed in order to be eligible to receive the education award.”No, if a program elects to provide a living allowance during a period of suspension because of COVID-19, when the member commences service to serve their minimum number of hours, they should be receiving a living allowance during the completion of their term. Think of providing the living allowance during a period of suspension when a member is not able to accrue hours as ‘over and above’ their agreed upon living allowance payments. You should also consider the match requirement when thinking about this decision.Do the limits on maximum living allowances still apply?Yes, maximum living allowances for members referenced in the Code of Federal Regulations at §2522.240 and updated annually in the CNCS Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) still apply. Programs must ensure that additional living allowances disbursed due to suspensions do not exceed the limits for the service term. For 2019-2020, they are: What are the fiscal implications of member suspensions which require additional funds for living allowances?The Commission recommends finding alternative service activities for members before exploring a suspension. At this point in time, the Virginia Service Commission is unable to increase 2019-2020 CNCS funding to its programs. To manage the fiscal implications of suspending members while continuing to pay living allowances, and health care for FT members, programs must:Confirm that members suspended intend to resume service hours at a later date. You should also consider the period at which you may need to re-evaluate this decision. A member may decide today that they could resume hours if service hours are interrupted for only 30 days, but other personal circumstances may prevent a member’s service beyond a 30-day disruption.Review the CNCS maximum living allowance limit for the member slot. This limit is regulatory and has not been waived. Determine by member and living allowance disbursement period (bi-weekly, monthly), the costs that will be incurred for members who are suspended and will need to have hours with living allowances “added to the back-end.”For example, suspension of two 900 members on “x” date who are paid $1,166 monthly= $2,332 in additional living allowances needed for each period service is suspended. *Ensure official member suspension dates (eGrants) are consistent for your budget analysis.Review your current budget balances and forecast spending within line items. To pay additional living allowances, you must identify sufficient unobligated funds to direct to the living allowance line item. To avoid a budget shortfall, you must not incur additional living allowance costs without an analysis first to determine from what line items funds will be redirected. Determine if the PCR submitted on March 20th to your program officer notes the number of members suspended with living allowance. Work with your program officer (PO) and fiscal officer to modify the PCR if necessary and propose details of an intended budget modification. Do not initiate a budget modification in OnCorps prior to discussion with your PO.Due to changing conditions, you must monitor your plan and budget very closely communicating any additional modifications that will be necessary as soon as possible to the program officer and fiscal officer.Can we extend our current member’s contracts so they can continue to serve hours? If we do this, can we recalculate what’s left of their living allowance over the newly extended term? If your program design is for a specified period for all members, you should specify in the contract how the living allowance will be paid out. You cannot change an individual member’s contract so he or she receives a higher living allowance (or lower) than other members who will serve for the full period.Below is a question from “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Distribution of the AmeriCorps Living Allowance – AmeriCorps” that demonstrates this concept:right93789500Can you give us examples of how the living allowance distribution policy could play out for members that start at different times? See the chart below. EXAMPLE: The program design is a 10‐month program with a living allowance of $12,100, paid on a monthly basis of $1,210 per month.So member serves past their originally agreed upon term, they would still receive?the same living allowance even though they are finishing 'late'.?(4/10/2020)If members are finishing their hours earlier than expected or we decide to exit them, can we pay them the remainder of their living allowance?The living allowance is designed to help members meet the necessary living expenses incurred while participating in the AmeriCorps Program. Programs must not pay a living allowance on an hourly basis. It is not a wage and should not fluctuate based on the number of hours members serve in a given time period. Programs should pay the living allowance in increments, such as weekly or bi‐weekly. Therefore, programs should not provide the full living allowance to a member who completes his or her required hours before the end of the agreed‐upon term of service.(4/10/2020)Exits and Education AwardsOur members are concerned about not reaching 1700 hours by our program end date, and are asking more questions about pro-rated Ed Awards. If we had to go that route and exit anyone for compelling circumstances, is the Ed Award prorated based on the chart below, or is it more specific (i.e. their exact number of completed hours gets put into a formula)A participant who is released for compelling personal circumstances and who completes at least 15 percent of the required term of service is eligible for a pro-rated education award.The program must document the basis for any determination that compelling personal circumstances prevent a participant from completing a term of service.To determine the amount of the pro-rated education award earned: (# hours completed / # minimum hours required for the position) x maximum value of education award. Segal AmeriCorps Education Award amounts for national service positions approved in Fiscal Year 2019 (October 1, 2018 - September 30, 2019)Participation Types Minimum # of hours AmountsFull-time (FT)1,700(365 days for VISTA)$ 6,095.00Reduced Full-Time (RFT)1,200$ 4,266.50Half-Time (HT) 900$ 3,047.50Reduced Half-Time (RHT) 675$ 2,321.90Quarter-Time (QT) 450$ 1,612.43Minimal-Time & Summer Associate (MT & SA) 300$ 1,289.95(4/2/2020)Is there a way to shorten a members contract (number of hours, not date range) given compelling circumstances. The guidance in the Program Director's manual, page 27, comes from CNCS guidance in the Terms and Conditions:Programs may not request a transfer of currently enrolled members to a lesser term status simply to provide a prorated education award if the member would otherwise be released for cause.Programs may not request to convert a slot to a lesser-term slot at the end of a member’s term of service to award a prorated education award when the member has not completed the hours required by their original term. (4/2/2020)Can members be exited early with a full education award?*NOTE: Do not exit any member for CPC until you have completed a Program Change Request Form and it has been approved by your Program Officer and the Fiscal Officer.Please reference the CNCS FAQs about early exits found here:AMERICORPS STATE AND NATIONAL PROGRAM SPECIFIC QUESTIONS, question #20. Please find additional guidance from the Commission below. Served less than 15 percent of the minimum required hours for the Term of Service at time of exit.Documentation: Members are exited in eGrants and OnCorps just as they have been, citing the number of hours they have served on their exit forms, and choosing the option “Not eligible for education award”You may choose to keep a memo in the member file about exiting this member because of COVID-19 (you can use the Program Change Request Form) with a screen shot/print out of their complete hours for monitoring purposes at a later time.Exiting a member at this stage will affect your retention rate as they will have exited with ‘No Award’ Served between 15 percent and 50 percent of the minimum required hours for the Term of Service at the time they are exited.Documentation: Members released for compelling personal circumstances qualify for a prorated education award, and the position is not available to be refilled. The grantee is responsible for determining and documenting compelling personal circumstances. i. Make sure to fill out a Program Change Request form to exit a member early for CPC. ii. Document that they are exiting early because of COVID-19. This can be done through a memo and/or an email to/from Member. iii. Take a screenshot or print out the member hours from OnCorps to document that they have completed between 15% - 50% of required hours Served more than 50 percent of the minimum required hours for the Term of Service at the time they are exited.Part 1: Exit of the member andPart 2: Document the difference between the served hours and the hours entered on the exit form. (The exit form is in eGrants and reports on hours and education award)Part 1. Exit of the memberIf an AmeriCorps State and National member is no longer able to serve as a result of circumstances related to COVID-19, a program may enter the minimum number of hours needed for a full award for the member’s Term of Service on exit formExit the member with a status of “Eligible for Partial Award (member did not complete service for compelling personal reasons).” Service TermMinimum # of HoursFull-time1700Three Quarter-time1200Half-time900Reduced Half-time675Quarter-time450Minimum-time300Part 2. Note the difference between the served hours and the hours entered on the exit form and submit a report to the Virginia Service Commission identifying:Each member who was exited for a partial award for a compelling personal circumstance due to COVID-19 and their NSPIDThe hours served by the memberConfirm that those hours were more than 50 percent of the minimum required hours for the Term of Service (screen shot or print out of OnCorps time for member)The hours that were not served due to COVID-19 to equal the full hours reported on the member exit formDocumenting Compelling Personal Circumstances:The program must document the basis for any determination that compelling personal circumstances prevent a participant from completing a term of service. We realize there is not a ‘one size fits all’ for documenting CPC, some examples to document for COVID-19 include:Internal or external memos about program activities being suspended or canceled/host sites being closed for a length of time signed by a person in a position to make or who made those decisions for COVID-19 related reasons A request letter or resignation letter by the member expressing the need to be exited from the program due to Compelling Personal Circumstances and external documentation from a source other than the member that validates the CPCOther forms of documentation that serve as proof that COVID-19 is rendering it impossible for your program to keep members in service or serving the required number of minimum hours by the end of their term to receive a partial or full education award AmeriCorps Exits for Compelling Personal Circumstance (COVID-19)Service TermMinimum # HoursLess than 15%15% - 50%More than 50%Full-time1700254255 - 850851Three Quarter-time1200179180 - 600601Half-time900134135 - 450451Reduced Half-time675100101 - 338339Quarter-time4506768 - 225226Minimum-time3004445 - 150151The final report will be due with the final FY19 AFR on September 10th, 2020 (VSC will send out a template for this report in the coming weeks) Virginia Service Commission will keep these documents in your grant file, but you MUST keep a copy in each member fileIn reading both the CNCS and VSC FAQs, I think I have a handle on this but want to make sure I’m on the same page as you.? Given the new provisions of the CARES act, what I understand for our program is this:We will continue to have members serve to the best of their ability, following activities submitted in the Tele-Service forms.At our program end date (June 30th) if Members have served over 50% of their hours, they will be eligible for the full Ed Award amount as long as we document that the loss in hours was due to COVID-19?Looking to reassure our Members that if they continue to serve students, follow their teleservice agreements, and meet all other program/performance expectations that come 6/30 they will be able to exit with a full education award.Yes. This is the guidance from CNCS and VSC. (4/10/2020)Reporting and Performance Indicators GPRs are due April 10th. Should we plan to submit those with data we currently have? We would like some guidance as to how we strategically move forward now that schools are closed.Yes, please submit the GPR with the data you have available. There will be a follow up survey soon to assess the impact on performance measures on a case by case basis. In the case that normal service activities are interrupted or discontinued, please keep a list of alternative activities members participate in during this time period. Please contact Analise at analise.adams@dss. if you have any further questions.(4/2/2020)One of our concerns is that we are supposed to be bringing on a large part of our cohort on May 15. The concern we have is what happens if the COVID-19 restrictions are extended and we aren't able to bring on these members?CNCS has not put out any guidance that adherence to performance indicators is being lifted (enrollment, retention, exits, etc.) With that said, we understand that this pandemic has potentially created a situation where you cannot bring on any additional members as previously planned (summer programs, filling unused slots, etc.), you may need to exit members early, and performance overall has been affected. We ask that you document any discrepancies in your performance that would permit you from meeting any of your grantee goals. For example: If your service sites are closed and you traditionally have a summer program, keep documentation in your grant file(s) that speak to site closures, any recruitment updates, and/or documentation about performance measures not being met. This information should also be reported in your GPR. (4/2/2020) ................
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