Nominations Open for the Governor’s Volunteer Awards – US

Across Texas, there are countless examples of how volunteering can transform lives and communities. The Governor’s Volunteer Awards shine a spotlight on these inspiring stories and offer statewide recognition to the diverse ways that Texans are giving back with their time and talents.

This annual volunteer recognition program, administered by OneStar, culminates in a special ceremony at the Texas Governor’s Mansion hosted by Texas First Lady Cecilia Abbott, Honorary Chair of the Governor’s Volunteer Awards.

Award Categories

• Governor’s Lifetime Volunteer Achievement Award: This award recognizes the outstanding service of an individual who has volunteered for a minimum of 15 years in Texas communities. Lifetime Volunteer Achievement Award winners are those rare individuals who recognize a community need and create and engage in innovative and sustained volunteer service to achieve positive change.
• First Lady’s Youth Volunteer Rising Star Award: This award recognizes the extraordinary contributions of Texans 18 years of age or younger serving and inspiring their community through service. These young volunteers demonstrate leadership, commitment to service, and the ability to inspire others of all ages to serve.
• Volunteer of the Year Award: This award recognizes extraordinary contributions of Texans 19 years of age or older serving and inspiring their community through service. The Volunteer of the Year showcases exceptional leadership and dedication to address community challenges while inspiring others to serve.
• Volunteer Family of the Year Award: This award recognizes outstanding families (two or more related individuals) that volunteer together to create meaningful impact in their communities. The Volunteer Family of the Year is a true champion of service and a role model for family involvement in their community.
• Corporate Volunteering Champion Award: This award recognizes private sector corporations and small businesses for implementing employee volunteer programs that have demonstrable community impact and set community service as a core value and business strategy.
• Service-Learning Champion Award: This award recognizes institutions of learning, including K-12 public and charter schools, community colleges, and universities, that utilize service as a key component of their academic curriculum. Service-Learning Champions go above and beyond to develop the next generation of civic-minded, socially engaged Texans.
• Innovation in Volunteerism Award: This award recognizes organizations supporting or engaging volunteers that truly think outside the box to make volunteerism more accessible, more productive, and more available to their fellow Texans.
• Excellence in Disaster Volunteerism Award: This award recognizes organizations, cities, and counties that do an exceptional job of utilizing volunteers to meet the needs of Texas communities during all phases of disaster – mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. Awardees exemplify communication, coordination, and collaboration and are a model for disaster volunteerism in Texas.
• National Service “Make a Difference” Award: This award recognizes the exemplary achievements of an AmeriCorps member or AmeriCorps Seniors volunteer who is currently serving or has served in the last three years in the state of Texas. Awardees go above and beyond the scope of their service requirements and inspire others to serve while creating meaningful impact.

Eligibility Criteria

The Governor’s Volunteer Awards program abides by the following guidelines to maintain fairness and transparency.

• The volunteer service must have been performed in Texas, serving primarily Texans.
• A significant amount of volunteer service must have been performed within the last 18 months (with the exception of nominations in the Governor’s Lifetime Volunteer Achievement Award category).
• Nominators may submit multiple nominations.
• Self-nominations, including those submitted by employees of the organization, will not be accepted.
• Previous winners are ineligible for nomination again for five years after receiving an award.
• Current OneStar staff and board members and their immediate families are ineligible to receive an award.
• Nominations must be submitted through OneStar’s online nomination form or via mail or fax.