MLK Day

The Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service is a defining moment each year when Americans across the country step up to make our communities more equitable and take action to create the Beloved Community of Dr. King’s dream. While Dr. King believed the Beloved Community was possible, he acknowledged and fought for systemic change. His example is our call to action.

Observed each year on the third Monday in January, MLK Day is the only federal holiday designated as a national day of service to encourage all Americans to volunteer to improve their communities. AmeriCorps has been charged with leading this effort for the past quarter century.

Making time to volunteer for MLK Day of Service is a great way to engage with your community while honoring the legacy of Dr. King. Whether you plan on cleaning up a public space, mentoring a young person, or assisting those who are food insecure, what you do makes a world of difference.

Thank you for participating in the MLK Day 2022 Day of Service.

Below are photos from the 2022 MLK Day of Service featuring this year's MLK Day grantees.

Find a volunteer opportunity

Use the AmeriCorps Volunteer Search, powered by VolunteerMatch, to find an opportunity near you through one of these organizations: AmeriCorps, Idealist, Just Serve, California Volunteers, MENTOR, Volunteer.gov (National Park Service), and VolunteerMatch. For volunteer opportunities for MLK Day, please enter #MLK in the search box.

FIND VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Register a volunteer opportunity

Publicize your volunteer opportunities for the MLK National Day of Service by adding them to AmeriCorps Volunteer Search.

1. To be discoverable in search results for MLK Day, you must use #MLK in the title of the project.
2. Create a free project listing with one of these organizations: Idealist, JustServe, or VolunteerMatch
3. That's it, anyone searching for MLK Day volunteer opportunities on our site will see your post.

If your organization hosts volunteer opportunities and would like to promote these opportunities, please contact us. 

The above video may include external links to YouTube’s video platform. YouTube’s privacy and security practices and policies may differ from AmeriCorps'. AmeriCorps is not responsible for these links nor does it endorse the content of the third-party website. Find out more.

MLK Day grantees

For 2021, all grants have been awarded. Learn about funding opportunities with AmeriCorps.

2022 grantees

• The Center for Citizen Leadership DBA The Mission Continues
• The City of Murfreesboro, Tenn.
• The United Way – Augusta
• Samaritan’s Feet International
• New Stories/Compassion Games
• Stephen F. Austin State University
• Marietta College
• New York Cares, Inc.
• United Way of the Dutchess-Orange Region
• Center for Food Action, New Jersey
• Literacy New Jersey
• Montgomery County Maryland
• Hands On Atlanta, Inc.
• The Arc of the United States

Terms and conditions

• Days of Service Grants Terms and Conditions (2022)