Some local nonprofits that work to address food insecurity, overdoses and senior isolation are scrambling after the elimination of funding for the AmeriCorps program, which places volunteers with nonprofits across the country.
The Rural Health Network of South Central New York, which runs the program locally in Binghamton, learned on April 28 that funding through the AmeriCorps program had been unexpectedly terminated.
The organization said the termination of the public health grant led to the suspension of 11 AmeriCorps members and impacted the employment of three staff members.
“We really feel horrible about this and that we had to send this notice, we were mandated to send this notice out to members and host sites,” said Julie Pitts, program director of Rural Health Service Corps. “So it wasn't an option or a choice. It was that the program is terminated and everyone needs to basically cease and desist, and we feel awful.”
The news comes amid an effort by the Trump administration and the Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE) to dismantle the program.
In mid-April, DOGE put the majority of the program’s federal staff on administrative leave and canceled almost $400 million in grant funding. The administration argues the program has been mismanaged and wasteful.
Over two dozen states, including New York, are suing the government over the elimination of federal funding.
Mary Maruscak is the director of community health at the Rural Health Network SCNY. She called the funding cuts “unprecedented,” and said the program has received bipartisan support since it began.
“There have been studies and research done that show the value of this program and the cost effectiveness of this program,” Maruscak said. “And so to imply that this is done in the name of cost effectiveness, or efficiency or saving money, is just completely unfounded.”
New York Attorney General Letitia James recently announced she would sign on to a lawsuit filed by 24 other states, seeking a court order to bar the elimination of AmeriCorps funding.
Maruscak pointed out that the funding being eliminated had already been allocated and Americorps members had already begun their terms. She said the Rural Health Network SCNY is monitoring the ongoing lawsuit.
“The hope would be for an injunction and a temporary restraining order to pause the clawback of these funds,” Maruscak said. “At the very least, to give us more time to close out programs and to give AmeriCorps members and their host sites time to regroup.”
Local organizations that received AmeriCorps placements include Mothers and Babies Perinatal Network, the Lee Barta Center/Broome County United Way, the Broome County Council of Churches, the Astor D. Rice Foundation, VINES and Truth Pharm.
The organizations offer senior nutrition, support for new parents, overdose prevention and community garden programs, among other things.
“This impact doesn't stop here. It doesn't stop with our program. It doesn't stop with our AmeriCorps members,” Maruscak said. “These federal funding cuts are causing really devastating, really damaging ripple effects throughout the community.”
Last week, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York released a statement responding to the elimination of AmeriCorps funding. He said the sweeping cuts totaled nearly $13 million across upstate New York.
“I am all for cutting out inefficiency, but you use a scalpel, not a chainsaw,” Schumer said in the statement. “You don’t dismiss thousands of members who have dedicated their time to public service and giving back to underserved communities – it makes no sense.”
‘Just heartbreaking’
For AmeriCorps members, the elimination of federal funding and suspension of their positions, in some cases only a couple of months in, has come as a shock.
AmeriCorps member Alice Gurevich has been working as a “chop and chat” assistant at the Broome County Council of Churches since September.
The program offers group gatherings where participants explore new recipes and ingredients and then take the dishes they’ve made home. Gurevich said she has grown to love the program, and is concerned about the effects the loss of it could have on the community.
“This is a public health issue. This goes beyond just any individual,” Gurevich said. “It attacks every single person who's dedicated their life to service, who's dedicated their life to improving community health outcomes and just improving the community overall. It's just heartbreaking.”
Amelia LoDolce is the executive director of VINES, a small Binghamton-area nonprofit that runs community gardens, teen employment programs and a “farm share” meant to help residents access low-cost fruits and vegetables.
VINES lost three AmeriCorps members because of the cuts. LoDolce said with the growing season just beginning, the news of the funding elimination could not have come at a worse time.
“Something like this coming down with no notice threw the entire season into jeopardy,” LoDolce said. “We're in the middle of the busiest time of year for our organization. So to have an announcement like this with zero warning derails weeks of our time to try to regroup and figure out a plan. And the reality is that the people that are suffering are then the people that we serve.”
LoDolce said with food costs on the rise, this year has been one of the hardest for the residents they work with. She said they frequently hear from people who are struggling to afford nutritious food.
“People with full time, good paying jobs who say ‘I am cutting back the food that I have in my household because I don't have enough money to get by and pay rent at the end of the month, unless I'm really careful. I'm letting my kids eat the better food and I am going without so that they can have the nutrition that they need,’” LoDolce said. “‘That's the reality of what's happening in our country. And programs that are served by AmeriCorps help to provide a safety net to so many people.”
Americorps member Alexander Whitcomb has been working at VINES as a community garden assistant since March. He was meant to stay until the end of November.
He said he found out his position had been suspended while at a VINES farm-to-table event.
“I had to step out in the middle of the event, because I was going to cry. The work that I do, I love. I love the community that I'm working with. I love the people that I work with,” Whitcomb said.
Whitcomb’s job was to test VINES community gardens for lead, and help people hoping to grow their own food at home by testing their soil for contaminants. He said the program was not expensive to run, but the loss of it as a resource will have costly public health consequences.
“We are helping people be able to sustain themselves and not have to rely on these outside sources, and we've decided to take that away and force them to be reliant on the government,” Whitcomb said.
Whitcomb, an environmental science major at Binghamton University, said he has found a community in the city and wants to stay in the area.
He said even with the funding cuts, he plans to continue his work with VINES, whether or not he is paid.
“It was devastating, but we kind of refuse to bend so easily like this,” Whitcomb said. “This is a setback, but we're going to find a way forward.”