The International Center for Innovation in Civic Participation, Washington, (now called Innovations in Civic Participation) conducted a two-day forum in May 2003 to stimulate new thinking about the future shape and purpose of national service.

Getting Things Done: The Impact of National Service on Critical Social Issues, held May 15–16, 2003 in Washington, explored the impact of national service in three areas:

• Youth development during after-school hours.
• Independent living for senior citizens.
• Rural development.

Key Recommendations
Conference attendees generated the following recommendations in each of the three issue areas:

Youth Development and National Service
National service programs should:

• Help more individuals who volunteer with youth development programs to consider careers in the field.
• Encourage better coordination among in-school and out-of-school programs.

Rural Development and National Service
National service programs should:

• Create targeted development goals (human capital, community infrastructure, small businesses, etc.) for rural areas.
• Support teachers in rural communities.

Independent Living for Seniors and National Service
National service programs should:

• Design a public relations campaign that highlights both the current crisis in independent living and all of the research showing that volunteerism works in this area.
• Make the "business case" for why this is a critical issue and how value is added through volunteer service.

Funding
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) contributed $35,000 to the project from May 2002 through July 2003.