Many of Stephen Menard’s former classmates, who graduated in the class of 2007 from Notre Dame High School, are planning their second year at college right about now.

But Mr. Menard, a 19-year-old from Hixson, really doesn’t have the time. He’s spending his summer waist-deep in the muck from a Midwest flood, ripping out moldy wallboard and soiled carpet.

“You definitely get dirty and covered in goo,” he said from Waverly, Iowa, where he’s working. “There are times when it’s actually heart-breaking. Like today, we took a man into his house for the first time. He didn’t realize how bad it was.”

His work as part of AmeriCorps’ National Civilian Community Corps has opened his horizons, he said.

“I just wanted to take a year off after high school and travel the country, and AmeriCorps does that for me,” said Mr. Menard, who is stationed in Waverly.

Before this tour of the flooded American heartland, Mr. Menard performed AmeriCorps work in Lorton, Va., Washington, D.C., and New Orleans.

Not all his assignments center around disaster relief. AmeriCorps dispatches workers to assist in public safety, humanitarian needs, environmental aid and educational projects, said Janet Boyer, a spokeswoman for the Perry Point, Md.-based organization.

Mr. Menard and other volunteers are cleaning up the mess left when the Cedar River, which flows into the Mississippi River, crested at 19 feet last month in Waverly, the worst flooding in 100 years, city leaders said. Between 400 and 600 homes in the town were flooded, according to media reports.

Mr. Menard’s latest assignment comes with long hours and back-breaking work. Speaking recently after his team had finished cleaning a flooded basement, he said he had worked nearly an 11-hour day, starting around 7:30 a.m. and not settling in at his sleeping quarters until after 6 p.m.

Preserving some of the homeowners’ family pictures and other keepsakes is a priority, he said.

“Sometimes you can’t save their personal items, and that’s pretty sad,” he said.

For Mr. Menard’s mother, Christine, the work is a continuation of her son’s high-school volunteerism.

“He went to Notre Dame and they require some volunteer hours, and Stephen just felt that if he didn’t do this sort of thing right after he graduated high school, he would never do it,” Mrs. Menard said. “I think he’s gotten a lot out of it. People tend to be insular and not realize how desperate some of these people are for help.”

The work Mr. Menard and his fellow AmeriCorps volunteers perform is aimed at teaching leadership skills to Americans between 18 and 24 years old, Ms. Boyer said. The work requires a 10-month commitment, and there are no educational requirements for participation, she said.

At the conclusion of the tour, the participants are given a $5,000 award that can be used toward college, she said. Participants also are provided housing and living expenses while they’re working.

“Many of our participants aren’t quite sure what they want to do when they finish high school or college,” Ms. Boyer said. “This gives them a chance to see the country and learn a skill.”

Mr. Menard said he plans to attend Chattanooga State Technical Community College and eventually transfer to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga when he returns home in November.

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