Mission and History

Mission Statement

The Massachusetts Service Alliance, established in 1991, is a private, nonprofit organization that serves as the state commission on community service and volunteerism. Its mission is to catalyze the innovation and growth of service and volunteerism by creating partnerships that maximize resources, expertise, capacity, and impact.

In support of our mission, MSA invests public and private funds in institutions and organizations; convenes and mobilizes individuals, nonprofits, corporations and government entities to link strategies related to service and volunteerism; builds capacity of programs and agencies through training and technical assistance; and advocates for the development and promotion of public policies and private initiatives that incorporate service and volunteerism as effective strategies to address community needs.

History
Massachusetts Service Alliance (MSA) has been a national leader in service and volunteerism since 1991. With a strong partnership with the state and the Corporation for National and Community Service, over the years MSA has been able to support thousands of people engaged in service and volunteerism, meeting critical needs in the Commonwealth. In 1991, after President Bush signed the National Community Service Act, Governor Weld created the Massachusetts Community Service Commission (MCSC) to support corps-based programming in the state. In 1993, President Clinton signed the National and Community Service Trust Act, requiring every state to have a state commission on service and volunteerism. MCSC was re-configured to meet the requirements of the new legislation. In 1994, AmeriCorps was launched on the Boston Common with Secretary of Education Richard Riley and Senator Edward Kennedy. Since the inception of AmeriCorps, MSA has supported dozens of organizations across the Commonwealth that have placed thousands of members in service to our communities.

In 1997, MCSC and the Massachusetts Youth Service Alliance became the Massachusetts Service Alliance. That year, the Governor designated MSA to coordinate The Massachusetts Summit: The Promise of our Youth, launching a two-year campaign to achieve five fundamental resources for children and youth. In 1998, the Legislature, in response to the Promise, allocated $1 million to support a mentoring initiative administered by MSA. While declining state resources have severely affected this funding for mentoring, MSA continues to receive funding annually to support mentoring organizations which we implement in partnership with the Mass Mentoring Partnership.

In 2001, MSA hosted its first statewide conference on service and volunteerism, which we continue to host bi-annually, with the next one scheduled for May 2011. In 2006, MSA launched Connect & Serve, a statewide volunteer connector web portal. Since 2007 MSA has co-convened the statewide Community Service Learning Conference with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

In 2007, Governor Patrick and his partners in the Legislature established the Commonwealth Corps as a way to connect the courage, drive, and idealism of the state's residents with the creative and entrepreneurial work of local nonprofits and public entities that are addressing the challenges facing Massachusetts. MSA was designated to administer the program. Over the first two years of the program, close to 500 Commonwealth Corps members filled a host of unmet needs in the Commonwealth - mentoring in communities; tutoring in schools; delivering critical health information; and spearheading neighborhood revitalization efforts.

With the passage of the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act in 2009, President Obama authorized the largest expansion of AmeriCorps in its history. MSA is poised and ready to take advantage of the opportunities afforded by the Act. In the 2010-2011 AmeriCorps program year, MSA is supporting 26 AmeriCorps programs with close to 1,500 members in service to the Commonwealth, a 36% increase in members from 2009-2010. In addition, the Serve America Act has allowed MSA to increase our support for the broader volunteer sector through the receipt of one of the first Volunteer Generation Fund (VGF) grants. With the support of VGF, MSA will undertake a comprehensive effort to increase the number of people engaged in meaningful volunteer opportunities in Massachusetts.