Intended as the domestic counterpart of the Peace Corps, the AmeriCorps program--founded in 1993 under the Clinton administration--employs some 40,000 young people, mostly between the ages of 18 and 25. Motivated by stipends, educational incentives, and idealism, these young people of diverse ethnic backgrounds unite to serve their respective communities. Everyday Heroes follows 21 San Francisco Bay area AmeriCorps workers over their year-long program of mentoring other youths in school or providing after-school activities. Typical projects include using a school garden as the focus for environmental education, reading improvement tutoring, or jamming with kids in a Brazilian-style drum circle--followed by team meetings, evaluations, and constructive criticism. Although it's refreshing to see idealistic, articulate young people pursuing their dreams, the video seems to repeat every point at least three times, and as the documentary lumbers toward the two-hour mark, some sequences, such as the numerous team meetings, become a chore to watch (some judicious editing was seriously needed). Recommended only for in-depth library collections on grassroots community activism, this is otherwise optional. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)
Everyday Heroes: Documenting the AmeriCorps Experience
(2001) 109 min. $69: high schools & public libraries; $225: colleges & universities. Kovno Communications. PPR. Color cover. Volume 17, Issue 1
Everyday Heroes: Documenting the AmeriCorps Experience
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