Americorps -- perhaps community builders in training

For most of my life I have considered the idea of mandatory service to the country something that the United States should implement. I think we all owe something more to the country than our taxes. It is often viewed as an expensive proposition and we have never implemented a requirement for universal public service.

So, you know that my feeling is that we all need to give back to our country. That means that you will not be surprised that I find today's action by President Obama to expand Americorps a fantastic policy idea. In fact, over the past couple of weeks I have been encouraging many of the students graduating from Coker to think of a year or two of public service prior to starting their other full-time careers. At Coker College, we encourage our students to find ways to engage the community and I am hoping the expanded Americorps helps recent graduates and others the ability to become part of community building around the country.

It would be encouraging to hear some discussion about the concept of universal service and maybe even the particulars of the expansion of Americorps.