Points of Light Announces 2018 Honorees of The Civic 50 at Service Unites

Points of Light, the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service announced The Civic 50 honorees of 2018, recognizing them as the most community-minded companies in the United States. Since 2011, The Civic 50 has provided a national standard for superior corporate citizenship and showcased how companies can use their time, skills and other resources to improve the quality of life in the communities where they do business. The Civic 50 were officially recognized at Points of Light’s Service Unites 2018 conference in Atlanta, where thousands of leaders in volunteerism and civic engagement gather to learn and share the knowledge, resources and connections needed to galvanize the power of people to create change globally.

“Points of Light believes that people drive change in addressing society’s growing and most profound challenges. The business community plays an important role in creating and delivering innovative solutions that drive social good in the communities where they live and work,” said Natalye Paquin, president and CEO, Points of Light. “This year’s honorees of The Civic 50 collectively gave $1.9 billion to their communities, and volunteered for more than 13 million hours in 2018. By focusing on profits and purpose, these companies exemplify authentic leadership in community and civic engagement, reinforcing that employee volunteering benefits our communities, companies and the employees themselves.”

The Civic 50 honorees are public and private companies with U.S. operations and revenues of $1 billion or more, and are selected based on four dimensions of their U.S. community engagement program – investment, integration, institutionalization and impact.

The 2018 Civic 50 Honorees

AbbVie
Aetna
Aflac
Allstate
Altria Group, Inc.
AT&T^*
Banfield Pet Hospital
Caesars Entertainment^*
Capital One
CenterPoint Energy
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
Citigroup, Inc.
Comcast NBCUniversal
Comerica Incorporated
CSAA Insurance Group, a AAA Insurer
CVS Health
Dell
Deloitte
Delta Air Lines
Dr Pepper Snapple Group^*
DTE Energy^*
Entergy Corporation
FedEx Corporation
Food Lion
Freeport-McMoRan, Inc.^*

General Mills
Hasbro, Inc.
Health Care Service Corporation^*
The Hershey Company
Hogan Lovells^†
IBM Corporation
KeyBank^*
KPMG LLP^*
Marriott International
MGM Resorts International
Motorola Solutions, Inc.
PIMCO
Prudential Financial, Inc.
Raytheon Company
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals
S&P Global
Symantec Corporation
Tata Consultancy Services^*
Toyota Financial Services
TSYS
UnitedHealth Group
UPS
Valero Energy Corporation^*
WellCare Health Plans, Inc.
Wells Fargo

^* Indicates a company that is a sector leader.
^† Indicates a company that is a Leadership in Volunteerism awardee.

The 2018 Civic 50 Sector Leaders

Consumer Discretionary: Caesars Entertainment
Consumer Staples: Dr Pepper Snapple Group
Energy: Valero Energy Corporation
Financials: KeyBank
Healthcare: Health Care Service Corporation
Industrials: KPMG LLP
Information Technology: Tata Consultancy Services
Materials: Freeport-McMoRan, Inc.
Telecommunications: AT&T
Utilities: DTE Energy

Key Statistics and Highlights from the Civic 50 2018 Honorees

Civic 50 companies are evolving from being supporters to engaging as stewards of social causes. Instead of confining themselves to writing checks or piggybacking off of not-for-profit sector work, Civic 50 companies are involving themselves in all aspects of the social causes which they champion.
- In 2018, 70 percent of Civic 50 companies took national leadership positions on four or more public education or policy efforts, an increase from 62 percent in 2017.
Civic 50 honorees continue to exemplify one of the core tenets of corporate citizenship: “doing well by doing good”. The 2018 honorees demonstrate that integrating community engagement initiatives into business strategy can support business interests. The 2018 honorees are using community engagement to drive key business functions, including employee engagement (86 percent), marketing/PR (78 percent), diversity and inclusion (74 percent), skill development (74 percent) and stakeholder relations (56 percent).
Leading innovations for purpose at work, Civic 50 honorees have found community engagement as a meaningful and valuable investment to inspire employee changemakers and create a strong culture of giving back.
- 68 percent of Civic 50 companies include community engagement as a formal component of employees’ performance reviews, an increase from 62 percent in 2017.
Civic 50 companies understand the importance of impact: to ensure the sustainability and success of their community engagement initiatives, Civic 50 companies are using measurement practices to not only measure quantifiable outputs, but social outcomes.
- Civic 50 companies are making sure to measure social outcomes as part of regularly implemented data collection. In 2018, 68 percent of Civic 50 companies collected and analyzed data on organizational grants and 42 percent did so for volunteerism.

The Civic 50 survey is administered by True Impact, a company specializing in helping organizations maximize and measure their social and business value, and analyzed by VeraWorks. The survey instrument consists of quantitative and multiple-choice questions that inform The Civic 50 scoring process. The Civic 50 is the only survey and ranking system that exclusively measures corporate involvement in communities. A key findings brief of 2018 findings will be released in summer 2018. For more information, please visit www.civic50.org.

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About Points of Light

Points of Light, the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service, mobilizes millions of people to take action that is changing the world. Through affiliates in 250 cities and partnerships with thousands of nonprofits and corporations, Points of Light engages five million volunteers in 20 million hours of service each year. We bring the power of people where it’s needed most. For more information, visit www.pointsoflight.org.

About True Impact

True Impact provides web-based tools and consulting support to help organizations measure the social, financial, and environmental return on investment (ROI) of their programs and operations. For more information, visit www.trueimpact.com.

About VeraWorks

VeraWorks is a global consulting firm that helps managers and companies offer employees the opportunity to do societal good through their everyday jobs. For more information, visit www.veraworks.com.

Statement from Natalye Paquin, Points of Light President and CEO, in Honor of Mrs. Barbara Bush

“Barbara Bush embodied strength, grace, and dedication to family and faith. Her life was the very definition of what we at Points of Light hold up and support through our mission, a life that includes service to others. A tireless advocate for volunteerism, Mrs. Bush helped countless charities and humanitarian causes during her years in public life. In a recent interview, when talking about her continued work with her literacy foundation and President George H. W. Bush’s continued work with Points of Light, she shared how proud she was that all of her children and 17 grandchildren are working and serving others in their own way.

“It is an honor to have known a woman so full of life and curiosity. We shared a passion for literacy, education, and service to others; it is humbling to know that we have traveled the same path of dedicating so much of our lives to the issues we care deeply about. We are grateful for her enduring legacy that will serve to inspire others for generations to come.”

“We have been fortunate at Points of Light to call her a supporter, a partner and a friend. We were privileged to have Mrs. Bush inspire us at the nationally televised 2011 Points of Light Tribute event and during the 2012 National Conference on Volunteering in Service. In 2013, we joined together to celebrate the commitment of volunteers to improving literacy outcomes by presenting them with a Daily Point of Light Award in recognition of their efforts. And in 2015, we were proud to partner with the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation for Read Across the Globe in which more than 10,000 corporate and community volunteers, educators and youth came together to read to children in more than 26 countries, across 17 time zones at more than 500 venues.

About Points of Light

Points of Light – the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service – mobilizes millions of people to take action that is changing the world. Through affiliates in 250 cities and partnerships with thousands of nonprofits and corporations, Points of Light engages 5 million volunteers in 20 million hours of service each year. We bring the power of people to bear where it’s needed most. For more information, go to www.pointsoflight.org.

Points of Light Civic Accelerator Launches Spring 2018 Class

The Points of Light Civic Accelerator – the first national accelerator dedicated to investing in civic ventures – announced the 12 ventures selected to participate in its spring 2018 program. The ventures come from across the country and include early-stage for-profits and nonprofits focused on bridging the digital divide and filling the growing digital talent pipeline.

“To truly unleash the talent across the country and transform our economy, we need these ventures to scale their bold solutions that are bridging the digital divide and preparing the workforce of the future,” said Ayesha Khanna, founder of the Points of Light Civic Accelerator.

With founding supporters, the PwC Charitable Foundation Inc. and Starbucks Foundation, along with Capital One, Vodafone Americas Foundation, Comcast NBCUniversal, Dentons, Singing for Change, and hotel sponsor Hilton, the Points of Light Civic Accelerator kicks off its spring cohort with ventures working to advance digital inclusion and 21^st-century tech skills for all to succeed in the innovation economy. This will be the 11th cohort of the Civic Accelerator since its founding in 2012.

The 12 teams will gather in San Francisco from April 17-20 for the start of an intensive, 10-week entrepreneur boot camp that includes mentoring, education, peer support and networking. The teams will join the first ever SEED Conference of impact investors while in San Francisco. They will then travel to New York and Atlanta. Points of Light will offer two of the most promising ventures – as selected by the entrepreneurs themselves – a $50,000 investment following the conclusion of the program.

“We are excited to support, along with our funders and partners, such promising ventures increasing digital skills and access to new economy jobs,” said Ayesha Khanna, founder of the Points of Light Civic Accelerator. “Nearly 80 percent of middle-skill jobs require basic digital proficiency and we have 500,000 computing jobs open nationwide, yet we produced fewer than 43,000 computer science graduates last year. Our ventures provide a wide range of solutions from K-12 STEM education and technical up-skilling for working adults to affordable access and digital services. To truly unleash the talent across the country and transform our economy, we need these ventures to scale their bold solutions that are bridging the digital divide and preparing the workforce of the future.”

Application and selection committees reviewed more than 65 curated applications before selecting the finalists. The selected cohort of ventures represents various sectors and solutions to increase employability and access to digital services for youth and adults across gender, class, race and geographies. Fifty-four percent of the ventures are led or co-led by racial or ethnic minorities, and 69 percent are led or co-led by females.

The civic startups participating in the Civic Accelerator spring 2018 cohort represent California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, New York, Washington, and Washington, D.C:

Cell-Ed For-profit (Palo Alto, California) – offers a complete mobile solution to reach, train and upskill today’s workforce on any mobile device, including flip phones.

ELiTE Education Nonprofit (New York) – increases public schools’ capacity to integrate rigorous and engaging computer science and engineering programs as a part of their culture and curriculum.

Haven Connect For-profit (Berkeley, California) – allows low-income applicants to easily find and apply to affordable housing through streamlined leasing and waitlist management.

honorCode Nonprofit (Atlanta) – coalesces educators and local business communities to build future workforce ecosystems within K-12 schools.

Neture Inc. For-profit (New York) – provides free and low-cost broadband internet access to underserved communities and disconnected households.

Noirefy For-profit (Chicago) – is a digital platform connecting diverse professionals from under-represented backgrounds to corporations for career advancement opportunities.

Sparrow For-profit (San Francisco) – is a U.S. wireless company bridging the digital divide and connecting people with purpose by donating to someone in digital poverty for every new customer.

STEM NOLA Nonprofit (New Orleans) – designs and delivers engaging educational programs and events that bring exposure, inspiration and training in STEM to underserved communities.

Tech Exchange Nonprofit (Oakland, California) – generates equitable technology access by providing community members refurbished computers, internet, training and tech support.

The Mentor Method For-profit (Washington, D.C.) – is an all-inclusive system for better diversity and inclusion through mentorship.

Unloop Nonprofit (Seattle) – enables people who have been in prison to succeed in careers in tech through intensive software development training, re-entry support, and career opportunities with tech employers.

Young Creative Agency Nonprofit (New Orleans) – connects under-represented young talent to real-world work and support networks that increase inclusion in the creative economy.

About Points of Light

About the Points of Light Civic Accelerator

The Points of Light Civic Accelerator is the first accelerator program and investment fund in the country focused on civic ventures – for-profit and nonprofit startups that include people as part of the solution to critical social problems. The three-month, boot camp-style program convenes 10-15 teams in person and online with the goal of equipping each startup to seek investments and scale their social innovation. CivicX was launched in 2012, with support from founding partners PwC Charitable Foundation and Starbucks Foundation, and in partnership with Village Capital. In addition, we receive support from Capital One, Vodafone, Dentons, Singing for Change and official hotel sponsor Hilton. Visit cvcx.org for more information or follow the accelerator on Twitter at @civicacceleratr and across social media at #CIVICX.

AmeriCorps Alums Joins Service Year Alliance

Today, in an effort to boost the service year field and advance shared missions, Service Year Alliance officially acquired AmeriCorps Alums from Points of Light. AmeriCorps Alums, which had been an enterprise of Points of Light since 2005, is the only national network that connects the more than 1 million alumni of all AmeriCorps programs to resources that support their lifetime of service.

“We are thrilled to advance our partnership with Service Year Alliance to support volunteerism and national service in this country,” said Natalye Paquin, President and CEO of Points of Light.

“We are thrilled to advance our partnership with Service Year Alliance to support volunteerism and national service in this country,” said Natalye Paquin, President and CEO of Points of Light. “Strengthening our country’s civic culture has been at the forefront of our mission for decades and Service Year Alliance is well-positioned in their current work to foster the growing network of talented and driven alumni of AmeriCorps who share this vision.”

“There is no one who better understands the power of national service to unite our country, advance our workforce, and transform lives than the over one million AmeriCorps alums who have experienced this first-hand,” said Shirley Sagawa, CEO of Service Year Alliance. “Bringing AmeriCorps Alums to Service Year Alliance is an inspired solution that will build upon and fuel the work we do every day. From inspiring millions of young Americans to serve to growing the service year field and expanding funding for national service — adding the established AmeriCorps Alums brand to our organization’s existing efforts advances the service year field in an unprecedented way.”

As part of this transition, Ben Duda, the executive director of AmeriCorps Alums, has joined Service Year Alliance as the new managing director of corps members and alumni. Duda brings his extensive knowledge of the sector and over a decade of experience — including three service years of his own — to the team. In this role, he will be charged with increasing the value that service year corps members and service year alumni gain from their service year experiences, especially as it relates to improving pathways from service years to careers and higher education opportunities.

“I am delighted to join Service Year Alliance and bring with me the spirit of civic action of each and every AmeriCorps alum who believe in our mission to make a year of service a common expectation and opportunity,” said Ben Duda, managing director of corps members and alumni at Service Year Alliance. “I look forward to continuing to grow the AmeriCorps Alums network in support of every young person who is serving, wishes to serve, and continues to make a difference in their next steps after service.”

Contact:
Diane Quest
Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Points of Light
[email protected]
(404) 979-2929

Aly Ferguson
Director of Communications, Service Year Alliance
[email protected]

About Service Year Alliance

Service Year Alliance is working to make a year of paid, full-time service — a service year — a common expectation and opportunity for all young Americans. A service year before, during, or after college gives young people the chance to transform their lives, make an impact in their community, and become the active citizens and leaders our nation needs. Expanding service years, with programs like AmeriCorps, the Peace Corps, and YouthBuild, has the power to revitalize cities, uplift and educate children at risk, and empower communities struggling with poverty. Learn more at ServiceYear.org.

About Points of Light

Points of Light Expresses Deep Concern Over Administration Proposal to Eliminate National Service Programs

Points of Light, the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service, is deeply concerned about the negative impact of President Donald Trump’s proposed fiscal year 2019 budget on communities across the country. The plan provides a small amount of funding to support the shutdown of the Corporation for National and Community Service, setting the agency and all national service programs up for elimination the following year.

CNCS, established in 1993, plays a critical role in strengthening America’s nonprofit sector and solving our nation’s toughest problems through service. Since its founding, CNCS has engaged millions of Americans in service through its core programs – Senior Corps and AmeriCorps – and through national volunteer recruitment efforts through Serve.gov. The elimination of CNCS would devastate community-based organizations that respond to natural disasters, serve children and the elderly, support military families and generally serve as the backbone of community efforts to address pressing challenges.

Points of Light is a long-time CNCS partner, collaborating on the Billion + Change campaign to engage companies in donating pro bono and skills-based service; mobilizing millions of Americans through annual days of service; and scaling several AmeriCorps programs including Service Works, a groundbreaking, national program that uses community engagement and volunteer service as a strategy to help underserved youth develop the skills they need to reach their college and career goals.

Each year, AmeriCorps engages more than 80,000 Americans in service, at more than 21,000 locations across the country. More than 1 million individuals have served in the program since 1994. Senior Corps engages Americans age 55 and over to tap their skills, talents and experience to give back to communities. In fiscal year 2017, more than 243,000 Senior Corps volunteers gave 74.6 million hours, serving more than 1.2 million people.

Points of Light is a member of Voices for National Service’s diverse coalition of national, state and local 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. For more information on how the administration’s 2019 budget will and end eight decades of bipartisan presidential support for national service program visit Voices for National Service.

Contact:
Diane Quest
Chief Marketing and Communications Officer
[email protected]
(404) 979-2929

About Points of Light

Points of Light Names Lorraine Kelly as Chief Financial Officer & Corporate Secretary

Points of Light announced today that Lorraine Kelly is its new chief financial officer and corporate secretary. Kelly, who joined Points of Light in mid-November 2017, oversees the organization’s financial management strategy, human resources, operations and facility management.

“Throughout my career, I have volunteered with organizations and causes that were important to me,” said Kelly. “I am honored to join the Points of Light team, where I can have a greater impact supporting organizations and individuals around the world that are helping solve society’s greatest challenges through volunteerism, service and civic engagement.”

“We are thrilled to welcome Lorraine Kelly to the Points of Light team. She is a results-oriented strategist and communicator with strong problem-solving skills, and a reputation for integrity in the financial community,” said Points of Light CEO Natalye Paquin. “Lorraine has developed a track record of leading by example in highly complex situations. Over the course of her career, she has successfully improved organizations’ financial and technology performance and increased productivity.”

Kelly previously served as chief financial officer at ASHINC Corporation. As a consultant at Delaney Consulting LLC, she provided financial expertise to help Fortune 1000 and private companies achieve their goals. She brings a wealth of experiences in finance, including profit and loss responsibility in her last four executive roles, as well as treasury, financial planning and analysis, budgets, tax and risk planning, and merger and acquisition management and integration. Kelly has also held positions at Tatum LLC, Novelis Inc., Verizon, and Parson Consulting LLC, among others.

Kelly has received numerous accolades for her professional work, including the Business Innovator – Best Executive Services, Georgia Award. presented by Corporate Vision Magazine, and she has been a finalist twice for the Leadership Character Award, presented by the Turknett Leadership Group. Kelly has also taught as adjunct professor at Emory University for MBA programs, including classes on ethics and accounting.

Dedicated to her community and serving others, Kelly has given her time and talent as a volunteer with a variety of organizations. She has served as a board member for the Partnership Against Domestic Violence and the Girl Scouts of Atlanta. She has volunteered as a mentor at the Girl Scouts Camp CEO and the Mercer University International MBA program.

About Points of Light

Points of Light Honors the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. through National Day of Service

Points of Light, with support from KPMG Foundation and the Corporation for National and Community Service, will celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Jan. 15 by engaging more than 90,000 individuals in acts of service through 1,575 service projects and civic dialogue events in more than 50 communities in partnership with local Points of Light affiliates and nonprofits across the country. MLK Day marks the beginning of the service year as hundreds of thousands of individuals will honor the memory of Dr. King by contributing their time, talent and voice to improve their communities.

“Each year, we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life on his birthday through a national day of service. This year, we are also marking the 50th anniversary of his assassination and, in doing so, we are calling on everyone to ignite their passion to serve our communities and redouble our efforts to make his dream of a better world a reality,” said Natalye Paquin, CEO of Points of Light.

Dr. King once said, “Everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” His message and his work left a mark on many aspects of our society and resonate today just as much as they did 50 years ago.

Calling together its community of changemakers, Points of Light encourages people to reflect on gains won during the Civil Rights Movement and to address contemporary issues facing our nation through volunteer service.

Businesses, community leaders, parents, youth, educators and everyday citizens can connect to meaningful service opportunities through MLK Jr. Day of Service, where they will be encouraged to get involved in one of two ways:

Volunteer in Your Community – Individuals can search for local service projects, joining the hundreds of thousands of Americans nationwide who will make MLK Day a day on, not a day off.
Host a Sunday Supper – Inspired by Dr. King’s vision that people of diverse backgrounds would come together to discuss injustices of the day and create a plan for action, Sunday Suppers call people to engage in dialogue about issues affecting their communities. Individuals who pledge to host a Sunday Supper will be sent Points of Light’s exclusive facilitation guide.

Rob Arning, KPMG vice chair of market development who also chairs the KPMG Foundation, said “one of KPMG’s core values is giving back to the communities in which we live and work so it’s fitting that KPMG volunteers are taking action to honor Dr. King as part of this national day of service. As head of the KPMG Foundation, it’s also gratifying to see how Foundation support is enabling our firm’s volunteering spirit and continued commitment to inclusion and diversity to make a real impact on these communities. We congratulate all of the volunteers, the Points of Light, and our fellow sponsor, the Corporation for National and Community Service.”

Volunteers Unite Across the Country

With a grant from the Corporation for National and Community Service, Points of Light is supporting MLK Day volunteer activities run by eight nonprofits that will engage more than 70,000 volunteers across the country. Highlights include:

Hands On Atlanta is organizing “50 Acts of Service”, convening 1,500 volunteers at 50 projects throughout metro Atlanta, beginning on MLK Day and running through April.
Chicago Cares is hosting 11 projects in January to celebrate and honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The projects will be held at community partner sites and clustered mostly on Chicago’s south side, including the neighborhood where Dr. King lived in 1966.
Global Citizen is bringing together more than 5,000 volunteers of all ages and backgrounds to participate in 150 projects. The 23rd annual Greater Philadelphia King Day of Service focuses on the 50th anniversary of the Poor People’s Campaign.
Hands On Birmingham is hosting a civic dialogue in downtown Birmingham with more than 500 University of Alabama at Birmingham, Lawson State and Miles College students. Additionally, the nonprofit is mobilizing volunteers to organize neighborhood clean-ups and passing out financial literacy documents to low-income neighborhood residents.
Lake County Cares will host more than 500 volunteers in a variety of projects benefiting several area nonprofit organizations, including making English/Spanish flashcards for students in underserved schools, assembling personal care kits for low-income individuals in shelters, and making fleece scarves for military veterans.
Leadership Memphis is mobilizing volunteers to coordinate 50 FAFSA and financial literacy sessions for high school seniors.
OneOC is organizing a series of volunteer projects during MLK Day weekend, including a signature project at the Orange County Food Bank warehouse where volunteers will assemble and pack food boxes to be delivered to families and seniors in need throughout the community.
Volunteer Center of Greensboro is organizing a clean-up on Saturday, Jan 15, as well as partnering with the Center for Creative Leadership on a large service project involving 200 youth in its Golden Leaf Scholars program. Additionally, the nonprofit is hosting two community resource fairs benefiting financially insecure residents in Guilford County. Participants will gain access to career and education resources, free tax and insurance assistance, healthy food and more.
Volunteer Fairfax is honoring the MLK Day of Service though its Give Together: A Family Day of Service program, designed to gather families with elementary school-aged children to work on five service projects that support local charitable efforts. Give Together provides parents the opportunity to teach the values of volunteering and giving back to the community.

Scores of other nonprofits and community organizations will activate volunteers in partnership with Points of Light during the King Holiday.

In Washington, D.C., Points of Light will partner with the Project Management for Change on the fourth annual DC Regional Project Management Day of Service. During this marathon-style service event, project managers will provide pro bono speed consulting to nonprofit leaders, with the end result being a well-defined scope of work and project plan that nonprofits can then use to address specific challenges. Through the event, more than 200 volunteers will contribute more than 1,200 hours of direct service to more than 40 area nonprofits, making a collective contribution of more than $150,000 worth of business consulting in a single day.
generationOn, Points of Light’s youth division, created fact sheets to help youth understand more about key historical figures in the social justice movement and youth participation in social movements, as well as a family project guide, and four project guides for kids and teens. Additionally, generationOn created a lesson plan for youth development professionals and educators to help them incorporate civil movements and social justice into lessons. All materials are available online at generationOn.org.

To learn more, find volunteer opportunities and pledge to host a Sunday Supper, please visit www.pointsoflight.org/mlk-jr-day-of-service.

About MLK Day

Legislation was signed in 1983 creating a federal holiday marking the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This federal holiday was first observed in 1986. In 1989, President George H. W. Bush, accompanied by Dr. King’s widow Mrs. Coretta Scott King, signed the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday Commission Extension Act. In 1994, Congress passed the King Holiday and Service Act, designating the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday as a national day of service and charged the Corporation for National and Community Service with leading this effort.

About Points of Light

Points of Light – the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service – mobilizes millions of people to take action that is changing the world. Through affiliates in 250 cities and partnerships with thousands of nonprofits and corporations, Points of Light engages 4 million volunteers in 30 million hours of service each year. We bring the power of people to bear where it’s needed most. For more information, go to www.pointsoflight.org.

About KPMG LLP

KPMG is one of the world’s leading professional services firms, providing innovative business solutions and audit, tax, and advisory services to many of the world’s largest and most prestigious organizations.

KPMG is widely recognized for being a great place to work and build a career. Our people share a sense of purpose in the work we do, and a strong commitment to community service, inclusion and diversity, and eradicating childhood illiteracy.

KPMG LLP is the independent U.S. member firm of KPMG International Cooperative (“KPMG International”). KPMG International’s independent member firms have 197,000 professionals working in 154 countries. Learn more at www.kpmg.com/us.

About the Corporation for National and Community Service

The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in service through Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, the Volunteer Generation Fund, and the Social Innovation Fund, and leads President Obama’s national call to service initiative, United We Serve. CNCS leads the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service and supports grants to mobilize hundreds of thousands of Americans in service on MLK Day. Visit our website at NationalService.gov.

Points of Light Civic Accelerator Invests $100,000 in Two Startups Advancing Workforce Innovation

The Points of Light Civic Accelerator announced today that it will invest $50,000 each in SpringFour (Chicago) and The Virtual Scholarship Center(Atlanta) – one for-profit and one nonprofit startup. Both ventures are focused on financial well-being and economic mobility to help more individuals and families succeed.

The Civic Accelerator is the first accelerator and investment fund in the country focused on “civic ventures” – for-profit and nonprofit startups that solve social problems by tapping into human capital as part of the solution. The goal of the accelerator is to equip each startup to seek investments and scale their social innovations.

The investment came at the end of The Civic Accelerator’s ninth bootcamp-style startup program and investment fund. The Spring 2017 program convened 12 startups over 10 weeks for three in-person, weeklong sessions in Atlanta, New York and Seattle, in addition to an in-depth virtual curriculum. The participants peer-selected the two ventures that received $50,000 investments.

All 12 ventures are working toward the shared outcomes of accelerating financial well-being and economic mobility for underserved populations. They represent various sectors, approaches and solutions, including inclusive financial education and health, economic resilience, and innovations around work-ready skills, employment, employer products and succeeding in the gig economy.

“It’s so inspiring to work with our corporate partners, faculty and mentors, to help accelerate these 12 teams of entrepreneurs who are building and scaling solutions from direct to consumer tech products, to platforms that enable education, workforce solutions and students and families to access financial resources. Some ventures are also disrupting systemic cycles, like low-wage jobs in communities, and working with populations that are often overlooked,” said Ayesha Khanna, founder of the Points of Light Civic Accelerator. “Our teams represent the diversity of this country – 50 percent led or co-led by women, over 50 percent by racial/ethnic minorities – with domain expertise and proximity to these issues so they can best solve them.

SpringFour, a Chicago-based for-profit, improves loan performance for financial institutions by equipping call centers and consumer facing applications with the most up-to-date and comprehensive financial health resources.

“SpringFour is excited and honored to have been selected by our peers. It provides strong validation of our mission and solution to connect consumers to resources that increase opportunities for financial health,” said Rochelle Gorey, co-founder and CEO of SpringFour. “With this investment, we plan to continue to provide people with the resources they need to reduce their household expenses so that they can begin to pay back past-due bills and save again.”

The Virtual Scholarship Center, an Atlanta nonprofit, is a scholarship preparatory platform that empowers students, counselors and parents to create 4-year college funding strategies.

“The investment gives us an opportunity to truly re-envision what college access looks like in underserved communities,” shared Jessica Johnson, founder and executive director of The Scholarship Academy. “It will allow us to use the Center as a training tool for college counselors and connect local scholarship providers to low-income students via a mobile app. We don’t take it lightly that a group of the nation’s most innovative entrepreneurs found validity in our work and invested in our scaling potential.”

In its fifth year, the Civic Accelerator has invested $850,000 in U.S.-based social entrepreneurs and has paired 113 teams with more than 150 mentors, partners and strategic advisors. The graduated teams have generated over $54 million dollars in revenue to-date and reached over 5 million individuals to solve the most critical social problems facing communities across the country.

The graduated ventures in the Spring 2017 Class are:

CommunityShare (Tucson, Arizona, Nonprofit), puts the public back into public education by connecting local community partners with the needs and goals of educators and their students.

Edquity (New York, For-profit) offers the first-of-its-kind college financial planning app, supporting students through every financial decision on their road to graduation.

Hip Pocket (Lincoln, Nebraska, For-profit) is a FinTech software company that creates apps to help people make better financial decisions from their phone in just minutes.

Mission Bit (San Francisco, Nonprofit) interrupts generational poverty by expanding coding education to high school students and offering affordable coding courses for low-income adults.

Mytual (Detroit, For-profit) helps owner-only businesses and freelancers maximize their retirement savings by streamlining access to individual 401(k) plans.

NaTakallam (New York, For-profit) provides an income to refugees by leveraging their native language skills and connecting them to users worldwide for online language practice and learning.

Project Basta (New York, Nonprofit) bridges the gap between employers and first-generation college graduates through an intensive professional placement and career mentoring program.

Sou Sou (Washington, D.C., For-profit) is a mobile-first investment platform that allows women investors to invest in women-led startups and build wealth together across the globe.

SpringFour (Chicago, For-profit) improves loan performance for financial institutions by equipping call centers and consumer-facing applications with the most relevant, up-to-date and comprehensive financial health resources.

The Prison Scholar Fund (Seattle, Nonprofit) opens access to postsecondary education and employment opportunities for incarcerated students with financing and mentoring.

The Virtual Scholarship Center (Atlanta, Nonprofit) is a scholarship preparatory platform that empowers students, counselors and parents to create 4-year college funding strategies.

YourCasa (Atlanta, For-profit) increases Hispanic homeownership nationally by educating, preparing and connecting homebuyers with bilingual professionals that can help them achieve their American dream.

About Points of Light

Points of Light – the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service – mobilizes millions of people to take action that is changing the world. Through affiliates in 250 cities and partnerships with thousands of nonprofits and corporations, Points of Light engages 4 million volunteers in 30 million hours of service each year. We bring the power of people to bear where it’s needed most. For more information, go to www.pointsoflight.org.

About The Points of Light Civic Accelerator

The Points of Light Civic Accelerator is the first accelerator program and investment fund in the country focused on “civic ventures” – for-profit and nonprofit startups that solve social problems by including people as part of the solution. The three-month, boot camp-style program convenes 10-15 teams in person and online with the goal of equipping each startup to seek investments and scale their social innovation. The Civic Accelerator was launched in 2012, in partnership with Village Capital, and receives generous support from founding partners PwC Charitable Foundation and The Starbucks Foundation, and from CapitalOne Investing for Good, Vodafone Americas Foundation, U.S. Small Business Administration, Dentons, Singing for Change, and official hotel sponsor Hilton. Visit cvcx.org for more information or follow the accelerator on Twitter at @civicacceleratr and across social media at #CIVICX.

About PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc.

The PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc., a section 501(c)(3) organization, makes charitable contributions to the people of PwC in times of financial hardship, and to nonprofit organizations that support and promote education and humanitarianism.

About Starbucks

Since 1971, Starbucks Coffee Company has been committed to ethically sourcing and roasting high-quality arabica coffee. Today, with more than 24,000 stores around the globe, Starbucks is the premier roaster and retailer of specialty coffee in the world. Through our unwavering commitment to excellence and our guiding principles, we bring the unique Starbucks Experience to life for every customer through every cup. To share in the experience, please visit our stores or online at news.starbucks.com and Starbucks.com.

In Search of the Most Community-Minded Companies in the Nation, Points of Light Launches Survey for the 2018 Civic 50

This week, Points of Light opened the survey for the 2018 Civic 50, an annual initiative that recognizes the 50 most community-minded companies in the nation each year. Now in its sixth year, the Civic 50 provides a national standard for superior corporate citizenship and showcases how companies can use their time, skills and other resources to improve the quality of life in the communities where they do business.

In today’s changing times, research has shown 63 percent of consumers want corporations to drive social change and be responsible leaders in the community and beyond. Civic 50 honorees are operating ahead of the curve by integrating community engagement practices, volunteerism, and social impact strategies into their business model. Other findings from the 2017 survey include:

Multi-faceted investment is on the rise. Nearly 45 percent of grants from Civic 50 companies provide additional support through volunteers, in-kind goods or multi-year pledges, an increase from 38 percent in 2016.
Nearly 65 percent of Civic 50 companies measure the business impact of their community engagement work on diversity and inclusion.
64 percent of Civic 50 companies offer employees volunteer time off to support their service to the community.

“In this digital and global environment, we are witnessing a shift in what corporate citizenship means and what it looks like. By understanding the new and emerging trends, we can ignite a new wave of civic culture in the business community,” said Natalye Paquin, CEO of Points of Light. “Civic 50 companies exemplify what it means to be a ‘point of light’ by putting communities and employees at the center of their business.”

Companies that are prioritizing community-building, putting corporate citizenship, and building robust and innovative employee volunteer programs are invited to apply for the 2018 Civic 50. Participation in the Civic 50 survey is open to companies with revenue of $1 billion or more, and applications will be accepted through March 1, 2018. The survey is powered by True Impact, a web-based measurement tool and benchmarking network for the charitable sector.

Results will be announced at the Points of Light Conference on Volunteering and Service, which will take place in Atlanta, June 18-20, 2017.

The Civic 50 for 2017, in alphabetical order, are:

AbbVie
Adobe Systems Inc.
Aetna
Allstate
Altria Group Inc.
AT&T*
Baker Hughes Inc.
Banfield Pet Hospital
Baxter International Inc.
Caesars Entertainment*
Capital One
Charles Schwab & Co. Inc.
Citigroup, Inc.
Comcast NBCUniversal
Comerica Incorporated
CSAA Insurance Group, a AAA Insurer
CVS Health
Dell
Deloitte
Dr Pepper Snapple Group
Ecolab
Entergy Corporation
Exelon Corporation
FedEx Corporation
Food Lion
Freeport-McMoRan Inc.
General Mills
Hasbro Inc.
Health Care Service Corporation
The Hershey Company
The Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company
IBM Corporation
KeyBank
KPMG LLP
MGM Resorts International
Motorola Solutions Inc.
Pacific Gas and Electric Company
PIMCO
Prudential Financial Inc.
Raytheon Company*
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals
Steelcase
Symantec Corporation
Tata Consultancy Services
Toyota Financial Services
TSYS
UnitedHealth Group
UPS
Valero Energy Corporation
WellCare Health Plans Inc.*

* Indicates sector leader.

Applicants are invited to register for a Points of Light webinar offering additional insights and technical assistance for the 2018 Civic 50 survey. To take the survey, learn more about the initiative, or register for an upcoming informational webinar about Civic 50, visit Civic50.org.

Points of Light, the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service, mobilizes millions of people to take action that is changing the world. Through affiliates in 250 cities and partnerships with thousands of nonprofits and corporations, Points of Light engages 4 million volunteers in 30 million hours of service each year. We bring the power of people where it’s needed most. For more information, visit www.pointsoflight.org.

True Impact provides web-based tools and consulting support to help organizations measure the social, financial and environmental return on investment (ROI) of their programs and operations. For more information, visit www.TrueImpact.com.

Points of Light Names Rose McManus Coleman as Chief Development Officer

Points of Light announced today that Rose McManus Coleman, senior vice president at NeighborWorks America, has been selected as its new chief development officer. McManus Coleman, who will join Points of Light in November 2017, will oversee the creation and execution of all development strategy, including annual giving, major gifts, sponsorships, government, corporate, foundation and special campaigns.

“My parents set the example for all of us by their service to our country and the communities in which we lived,” said McManus Coleman. “I learned early on about the power of volunteers to connect people and transform lives in multiple ways. I am honored to follow this tradition of service by becoming a part of Points of Light team.”

“We are thrilled to welcome Rose McManus Coleman to the Points of Light team. She is an accomplished leader with expertise in developing vision, direction and strategies for cultivating effective relationships and successful resource development,” said Points of Light CEO Natalye Paquin. “Rose brings more than 20 years of experience in managing cross-functional and collaborative teams to achieve and exceed organizational objectives.”

McManus Coleman is currently the senior vice president of resource development at NeighborWorks America, a congressionally chartered nonprofit focused on strengthening communities, and often a Points of Light collaborator. In her role, McManus Coleman raised funds to build resilient communities through NeighborWorks America and its network of more than 240 organizations across the country. At the Virtua Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Virtua Health, McManus Coleman previously served as senior vice president, securing funds from individuals, corporations and foundations that increased access to healthcare for all members of the community. Her career, across both corporate and nonprofit organizations, has been guided by the opportunity to engage individuals and organizations in contributing to the sustainability of their communities.

About Points of Light

Points of Light – the world’s largest organization dedicated to volunteer service – mobilizes millions of people to take action that is changing the world. Through affiliates in 250 cities and partnerships with thousands of nonprofits and corporations, Points of Light engages 4 million volunteers in 30 million hours of service each year. We bring the power of people to bear where it’s needed most. For more information, go to www.pointsoflight.org.