The mission of AmeriCorps is to improve lives, strengthen communities, and foster civic participation through service and volunteering.

The following non-federal entities (all of which are defined in 2 CFR 200.1) are eligible to apply:
- Indian Tribes
- Institutions of higher education
- Local governments, including school districts
- Nonprofit organizations
- State of Illinois agencies, departments, and commissions

Organizations that propose to operate only in Illinois must apply through Serve Illinois
Organizations that propose to operate AmeriCorps programs in more than one State or Territory must apply directly to AmeriCorps.

Serve Illinois works under the leadership of the Commission of Volunteerism and Community Service to distribute and administer Illinois AmeriCorps State funding from AmeriCorps, the federal agency.
AmeriCorps and Serve Illinois' legal authority to award these grants is found in the National and
Community Service Act of 1990, as amended, (NCSA) (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.)

Serve Illinois considers new cost reimbursement proposals from any eligible applicant,
as defined above, to:
- Assess the feasibility and fit to AmeriCorps with applicants’ ideas.
- In close partnership and assistance from select Serve Illinois staff: develop internal controls, hire and train new staff and/or re-focusing and training existing staff, develop AmeriCorps specific policies and procedures, train in the areas of AmeriCorps member recruitment, enrollment, member supervision, and cost-reimbursement grant management.
These various products will be developed in a structured, iterative process during the
planning period using Serve Illinois’s Program Manual.