A Time To Serve - The Case For National Service

TIME Magazine recently dedicated 12 pages to exploring how service and volunteering can transform America. The Special Report, Time To Serve - The Case for National Service examines why service is important to America, highlights activists already making waves on the ground, and proposes a 10-point plan to create a "universal national service" in the U.S.

TIME Managing Editor Richard Stengel asks readers to imagine volunteerism as a public service. What, for example, would happen if devoting a year or more to national service, whether military or civilian, became "a countrywide rite of passage." That is, what if there was a universal national-service in the U.S.?

In his article, Stengel proposes specific ideas on how Washington can help make this happen, including:

• Making National Service a cabinet-level department.
• Expanding existing national-service programs like AmeriCorps and Senior Corps.
• Creating separate corps focusing on education, health, the environment, and emergency response.
• Instituting a "Summer of Service."
• Starting a national-service academy.
• And creating a national-service Baby Bond and a Baby Boomer Education Bond to encourage young adults and retirees to get involved.

Thought-provoking stuff, to be sure -- and especially important in an election year, says Stengel: "The next President can harness the spirit of volunteerism that already exists and make it a permanent part of American culture."