FAQ's

What is the National Service Trust?

The National Service Trust is a fund established by the National and Community Service Act of 1993.  It is used to pay for AmeriCorps Education Awards and interest that accrues on qualified student loans for those who have successfully completed approved terms of national service.  The money is kept in an account in the U.S. Treasury and is invested in Treasury securities.

 

The Office of the National Service Trust (frequently referred to as the Trust) is the office within the Corporation for National and Community Service that manages all of the various functions related to the AmeriCorps Education Award.  These functions include:

 

How does the AmeriCorps Education Award process work?

To qualify for an AmeriCorps Education Award, an AmeriCorps member must successfully complete the required "term of service" for the program in which he or she is enrolled.

An Award can be used in the following ways:

  1. To repay qualified student loans

  2. To pay for CURRENT educational expenses--all or part of the cost of attending a qualified institution of higher education

The amount of an Award depends upon the length of service--whether the term of service is full-time or part-time. The full-time award is $4,725.00, and the part-time award is $2,362.50. Occasionally, a special program will be offered (for example, a summer program) that includes a "reduced part-time" award.  The Award must be used within seven years of the completion of the national service and it can be divided up and used any way the AmeriCorps alum chooses, as long as it is for authorized expenditures, such as current educational expenses and payments on qualified student loans.  The AmeriCorps alum must first authorize the payment and then you, the loan holder or school, must complete the rest of the information before sending the payment request back to the National Service Trust for payment.  These payments will be made directly to the school or loan holder, not to the individual.

 

AmeriCorps members who are earning an Award may be eligible to postpone having to make payments of the principal and interest on their qualified student loans while they are serving.  During this period of forbearance, interest continues to accrue on the loan.  However, if the individual successfully completes the term of service and earns an Award, the Trust will pay all or a portion of the interest that accrued.  When an AmeriCorps alum requests an Interest Accrual payment, the loan holder needs to enter in the amount of interest that accrued on the Interest Accrual request, so that the correct payment can be made to that Institution.

 

How can I contact the Trust for more information?

If you need additional information, you can contact the Trust by sending an e-mail to epayments@americorps.gov or calling the toll-free number 1-888-507-5962.  Customer service representatives are available Monday through Friday from 8am to 6pm. (EST).

From within the system, click the "Contact Trust" link at the top of the screen to send an e-mail directly to the Trust.

 

How do I access the online system for the first time?

If this is your first time using the AmeriCorps online payment system, you will need to complete a simple registration process in order to be granted access.  From the AmeriCorps homepage, click on the link located under the “For Organizations” banner and you will be brought to the registration page.  Simply enter in the required information and submit.  A Trust Officer will contact you and provide any additional information you may require.

 

Once I am a registered user, are there other ways to access the online system?

From the AmeriCorps.gov website, there are a number of different ways you can access the system.  The easiest way will be to enter your username and password in the login box that will show up on the AmeriCorps.gov homepage.  There will also be a link to the online payment system under the “For Organizations” banner.

 

What if I forget my password?

If you cannot remember your password, click “forgot your password?” on the login page. You will then be prompted to enter either your username or your e-mail address.  An e-mail will be sent to you with a link to change your password. 

 

How will I be notified that a request has arrived and is awaiting action?

You have the choice either to receive notification e-mails or simply log in to your account to view the status of pending requests.  The default option in the system is to receive e-mail notifications so that you are made aware of any change to your account.

 

How do I select my notification method?

You have the choice either to receive notification e-mails or simply to log in to your account to view requests that are pending your approval.  The default notification method will be to receive notification e-mails.  However, if you prefer not to receive e-mails, the Institutional Security Administrator can change the notification method in the Institution profile from the homepage.

 

Why do I see Forbearance, Interest Accrual and AmeriCorps Education Award requests in my list of pending requests?

If you see different types of requests, this means that your Institutional Security Administrator has set you up to be able to process multiple types of request.  However, you are able to sort the list of requests to see only a specific type of request, if you choose.

 

Why do I only see one type of request?

For security purposes, the Institutional Security Administrator has the responsibility to set up all the of the Institution’s users, as well as what type of requests each user will be processing.  Only seeing one type of request means that you have been granted access to only that one type of request.  Contact your Institutional Security Administrator to request access to more items.

 

Can I update my Institution’s information?

The Institutional Security Administrator has the ability to edit and update all information except for the Institution name and payment address.  To make changes to these two items, you will need to contact the Trust at 1-888-507-5962.   In order to provide you the best service possible, please try to keep all your contact information updated.

 

What if I find an error in the pre-populated information?

If you discover that some of your institution contact information is incorrect in any of the pre-populated forms, close the request page and contact your Institutional Security Administrator who has the rights to update and correct information in your Institution’s profile.

 

The Institutional Security Administrator will log in to the system and select “Edit Institution Profile” from the left-hand navigation bar.  From this screen, the Correspondence Address, the Primary Contact information, and the Notification Method can all be changed. If the Institutional Security Administrator is successful in correcting the error, all you need to do is to click on the request again and the information will be updated.  If the error cannot be corrected, contact the National Service Trust at 1-888-507-5962 for further assistance.

 

What are the security measures on the site?

According to OMB and NIST guidelines, electronic signatures can be achieved in a Level 2 system via verified user registration methods.  OMB reveals that Level 2 systems generally contain information that, if violated, would be financially harmful to an individual and cause a small degree of financial exposure to the related agency.  For the purposes of the Trust Automation system, we will be using a method that requires two separate steps.  First, the user must identify him/herself to the system using predetermined data elements.  Second, the system will verify the individual’s identity, and then require him to establish a username and password for subsequent reentry.

 

What happens to the request once I approve it?

The request will be directed back to the Trust to process the payment request and if approved will be sent to Treasury for payment.  

 

If I deny a request, do I need to explain why?

Yes; if you deny a request, you will need to add a comment to explain why it was denied.  There is a drop-down where you can choose from a list of reasons that would result in denial.  If you don’t find the appropriate reason, you can select “other” and write in the rationale for your decision.