Wisconsin charities celebrate order restoring AmeriCorps funding, but uncertainty remains

Charitable organizations throughout Wisconsin are celebrating a recent court order that restores federal AmeriCorps programming.

But those groups still face uncertainty while the litigation remains open.

Wisconsin is among the states that sued in April after the Trump administration cut off nearly $400 million in funding to AmeriCorps, a nationwide agency that promotes service and volunteerism.

On Thursday, a federal court in Maryland handed down a temporary victory to those states. A preliminary injuction from U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman orders the federal government to restore AmeriCorps programs and funding in the the states that sued.

“This decision is an important reprieve not only for many programs supported by AmeriCorps that were affected by the Trump administration’s sudden and unwarranted cuts, but also for the many communities that benefit from those programs,” said Wisconsin’s Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul, who brought a suit forward on behalf of the administration of Democratic Gov. Tony Evers. “Congress should also step in and prevent the Trump administration from doing further damage to AmeriCorps.”

Wisconsin receives roughly $14 million annually from Americorps. That money supports organizations including schools, health clinics and local nonprofits.

Among those groups is the Wisconsin Association for Homeless and Runaway Services. Each year, WAHRS places AmeriCorps members at organizations across the state that assist youth who are homeless or in unstable housing situations.

WAHRS Executive Director Joli Guenther said the group’s current class of Americorps members has been told they will have jobs at least through June 15.

But, beyond that, Guenther said the program’s financial future remains hazy.

“This is incredible news, but it’s still really evolving,” Guenther said of the federal injunction. “We don’t know exactly what kind of protections this gives us moving forward.”

Before the federal government sent a notice of termination in April, Guenther said WAHRS had 13 Americorps members placed at six partner sites throughout the state. Since then, she said, two of those members left their yearlong service early because of uncertainty and stress resulting from the federal directive.

And Guenther said, because of the federal changes, the group was unable to enroll two new recruits who were ready to be hired at the time of the termination notice.

“This is more than just the federal dollars,” Guenther said. “This is also about treating our Americorps members who have committed to providing a year of service well.”

Guenther said the AmeriCorps programming has benefits both for participants and for the communities in which they’re placed.

“Many of the members that are working in our agencies are young people who have also experienced housing instability,” Guenther said. “They are often on their own transition into professional and educational development, and their year of service really gives them an opportunity to develop their professional skills.”

Paige Manges is a communications manager for Central Conservation, which works with Americorps members throughout the state. Those members do conservation work, including trail maintenance, invasive species removal, reforestation and educational programming such as summer camps.

She said the group is optimistic about the recent decision, although there are still “more questions than answers.”

“Our hope is that the legal process will take long enough that we can get through the rest of the program year (end of August) without any more disruptions,” Manges wrote in an email to WPR, noting that DOGE has the option to appeal rulings. “Our goal will be to utilize the AmeriCorps grant that we were awarded but are still in a holding position until we receive official guidance, before moving as quickly as possible to reinstate our members.”

In a news release this spring, Central Conservation said it lost funding for  17 existing AmeriCorps positions, in addition to 43 planned summer service positions because of the federal cuts.

In southeast Wisconsin, the Trump administration’s actions forced a program to shut down at the Milwaukee County courthouse.

The Milwaukee Justice Center worked with Americorps to create a free legal navigator program, designed to help people through the often-confusing process of dealing with the court system.

That included assisting with legal filings, guiding people through the sprawling court building and answering questions via a helpline and an in-person information desk.

The program’s former coordinator, Mark Guzman, told WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” late last month that cuts orchestrated through the federal Department of Government Efficiency caused 21 AmeriCorps members to be laid off from the legal navigator program. Guzman was also laid off from the program as a result of the cuts.

“That’s really going to make the courthouse a lot busier,” Guzman told “Wisconsin Today.” “It’s going to really burden a lot of the different departments here at the courthouse, because they might have people that are asking questions they might not be able to assist with.”

Across the state, Serve Wisconsin, a statewide agency that partners with AmeriCorps, recruits and trains around 800 members each year. Typically, members get small stipends to offset their costs of living.

In an email Friday, Serve Wisconsin Executive Director Jeanne Duffy called the injunction “great news.” She said she was waiting on guidance from the national AmeriCorps organization before commenting further.