President Volunteer Service Awards

The President Volunteer Service Award (PVSA) is an initiative of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) and is administered by the Points of Light Foundation. With a shared mission of inspiring more to answer the call to service, PVSA celebrates the impact we can all make in bettering our communities and our world.

Presidential recognition sets volunteers apart from peers. It is a tremendous honor. Even though volunteers may not seek recognition, their example can deliver a powerful message that encourages others to take action.

The President’s Volunteer Service Award recognizes United States citizens and lawfully admitted, permanent residents of the United States who have achieved the required number of hours of service over a 12-month time period or cumulative hours over the course of a lifetime.

Criteria

• Recipient(s) must be a United States citizen or a lawfully admitted permanent resident of the United States.

• Awards are issued for service hours served within a 12-month time period or over the course of a lifetime.

• Awards are issued for volunteer service only; additional levels of participation with the organization (i.e., charitable support) are not a factor considered for the award.

• Court-ordered community service does not qualify for the award.

• Awards are issued by approved Certifying Organizations.

• Service must be with an approved Certifying Organization that is legally established in the United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or one of the U.S. territories.

New Eligibility Criteria for 2014-2015

Individuals, families and groups that meet the criteria are eligible for the PVSA.

Hours are measured over a 12-month period and awards are designated based on cumulative hours. The awards are offered in multiple levels and are designed to recognize each milestone of your service achievement. Levels include bronze, silver, gold and the highest honor, the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award for those who contribute more than 4,000 hours of service in their lifetime.

Hours by Award	Bronze	Silver	Gold
Kids (5-10)	26 – 49	50 – 74	75 +
Teens (11–15)	50 – 74	75 – 99	100 +
Young Adults (16-25)	100 – 174	175 – 249	250 +
Adults (26 and older)	100 – 249	250 – 499	500+
Families and Groups*	200 – 499	500 – 999	1,000+
President’s Lifetime Achievement Award: Individuals who have completed 4,000 or more hours in their lifetime
* Two or more people, with each member contributing at least 25 hours toward the total

The Service-Learning Office will order awards the week of March 9, 2015. Volunteers need to create a file at the award website and link it to Casady as Certifying Organization using the record of service key: SCW-0931.  Awards are ordered directly from the Casady link in the PVSA website.

To make a personal file linked to Casady as certifying organization 

a. Go to http://www.presidentialserviceawards.gov/.  Go to volunteers and create a profile.  Complete all require and optional areas.  Write your password so you will be able to update your file in the future.

b. To set your record of service.   

1. Choose your age level: Teens: 15 - years old.  Young Adult 16+.   
2. Place the Casady record of service key in your profile SCW-0931.   The Casady ROS key connects the Casady's file to the volunteer file and allows the Service-Learning Office to certify hours and order awards.
3.  Record your volunteer experiences and hours: Enter one experience at the time.  After typing your activity, add what you did and how did you grow.  One sentence each.  This is the only time when we ask you to reflect your giving of time to the community in need.
4. In the calendar, place the date you began the activity and the total number of hours.  DO NOT apply FILTERS!  
5. Save when you are finished. You will see your full file, number of hours and level of award earned.   The Service-Learning Office verifies hours, reads  reflections, and  orders award.