President’s Volunteer Service Award
The President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA) is the United States’ premier volunteer awards program, encouraging citizens to live a life of service through Presidential gratitude and national recognition. SASO Inc. has been designated as an official Certifying Organization by the PVSA which gives us the authority to bestow Presidential recognition to our most exceptional volunteers who meet the criteria established by both the PVSA and SASO.
PVSA Awards are given for Gold, Silver, and Bronze levels of achievement. Medals for Teens (age 11-15) begin at 50 service hours for a Bronze award; Young Adults (age 16-25) begin at 100 hours of service. Recipients receive a letter of recognition from the President of the United States, an official certificate and a Medal of Honor. All service must be completed during the 12-month SASO membership year April 1st through the following March 31st. For additional information please visit the PVSA website: https://presidentialserviceawards.gov/eligibility
CRITERIA
Students meeting the criteria established by both the PVSA and SASO are eligible for an award:
PVSA Criteria (please go to PVSA website and read all rules carefully)
Recipient(s) must be a United States citizen or a lawfully admitted permanent resident of the United States.
Awards are issued for eligible service hours served within the certifying organization’s designated 12-month time period.
Awards are issued for volunteer service only; additional levels of participation with the organization (i.e., charitable support) are not a factor considered for the award.
Service that does not qualify: court-ordered community service; paid service or financial donations; religious instruction and/or worship; service for family members; political lobbying; proselytzing.
Awards are issued by approved Certifying Organizations.
Service must be certified with an approved Certifying Organization that is legally established in the U.S., Puerto Rico or one of the U.S. territories.
SASO Criteria
Recipient must be an active SASO member during the award year, and must finish the membership year in Good Standing (completed 3 Events and 1 Personal Growth).
All volunteer hours must be completed during the SASO membership year, April 1st through March 31st.
For service hours completed through SASO, the volunteer’s participation must be on record with the SASO Membership Coordinator (ie: you signed up for the event and received credit for the event).
All non-SASO event hours must be confirmed by a supervising adult at the organization by submitting a signed verification form.
Participating in clubs and hobbies, or participation where the student is earning a Varsity letter or receives class credit DO NOT count toward the PVSA. In general, meetings of any kind also will not count (pre-approval is required if the student is chairing an event for a non profit organization and it requires substantial planning). Please check with the SASO PVSA Coordinator if you are uncertain.
“Drives” such as food or toiletries to support local organizations qualify for a maximum of 2 hours per drive (even if the organization has awarded additional hours), for a maximum of 10 hours total of donations toward the PVSA.
Practices and performances (ie: dance, orchestra) do not count toward the PVSA.
Any project greater than 20 hours must be pre-approved by the SASO PVSA Coordinator. This would Include long-term volunteering opportunities or working with a non-profit organization in a leadership capacity (not as a participant).
Projects such as taking a mission trip or participating in athletic training will count for a maximum of 20 hours total toward the PVSA. Any project (regardless of number of times you participate) greater than 20 hours must be pre-approved by the SASO PVSA Coordinator.
Several projects will not qualify toward the PVSA. This would include caring for a school animal at home, participating in athletic performance course, or any activity related to religious instruction or political activism. This is not an exhaustive list; please check with the PVSA Coordinator prior to embarking on a large project for pre-approval.
We do not accept any double, padded, merit, or proxy hours. All hours submitted must be actual hours spent volunteering (regardless of what an organization offers).
To determine the appropriate age category, Teen (11-15) or Young Adult (16-25), a SASO volunteer will qualify for the age that they are for the majority of our membership year, at least 6 months + 1 day between April 1- March 31 (not necessarily the age they are on April 1st).
How to Get Started
At the start of the membership year, all members will receive a PVSA email with a link to express a student’s interest in working toward the award.
The Google form will ask for the student’s name, contact info, birth place/birth date, and class year. Filling out the interest form does not guarantee that the student will earn the award; it’s just a way to let us know that the student intends to work toward the award.
The PVSA coordinator will supply each interested member with a copy of the Volunteer Service Verification form (for volunteering with organizations outside of SASO).
The member is responsible for logging volunteer hours and ensuring that every hour has been verified by either SASO or an outside organization (this includes having an adult signature on each service log outside of SASO).
At the end of the SASO Membership year, March 31, the service log will be verified by SASO and all members who meet all the criteria will be submitted to the PVSA for an award.
If you are interested in achieving this prestigious award, it is critical to plan your service hours at the beginning of the membership year, taking into account the time during the year when your schedule will have the most flexibility and taking advantage of summer and school breaks.
We hope that this opportunity for Presidential recognition will inspire many of our volunteer leaders to take on the challenge and answer the President’s call to service!
If you are interested in the PVSA, please contact the SASO PVSA Coordinator, Rebecca Paredes (sasoboysnow@gmail.com).
Important Links:
2022 PVSA Award Recipients
2023 PVSA Award Recipients