Thankful Thursday: 2011-2012 Corps Members

This is to the City Year San Jose/Silicon Valley corps of 2011/2012.

Congratulations to all of you.  Thank you for your service.

As I was preparing to write this blog I came upon the realization that “Thank you” is such a trite way to express gratitude.

I can list the great accomplishments of your 2000 hours of service. The 100’s of students served, the difference you made in schools around attendance behavior and course performance. But that does not capture it all. There is “behind the scenes” work that no one sees that’s helps make this all happen.

Things like:

• Preparing lesson plans after 10 hour days
• In some cases, convincing your parents to let you do this
• Stepping up when a teammate was sick
• Minimum days (which were really maximum days)
• Living on a small stipend
• Piloting programs
• Data and all the entry, analysis, adjustment of same
• Serving on committees in addition to your regular responsibilities
• Staying late, with a great attitude, until the l a s t  s t u d e n t is  finally picked up
• Lunch with students, spending the time to get to know them and building relationships
• Walking students home
• Working with teachers, doing meetings, tracking student progress
• Talking with parents and siblings of students and building relationships with them

and

• End of year events

You took time from your life and devoted it to service. Pure service that entailed you giving your absolute best ALL the time to make sure students that were total strangers 11 months ago became the reason for your being.

You’ve been trained, observed and evaluated. You rose above daunting challenges and chose not be overwhelmed by your task of giving a year and changing the world.  You just did it. You put your shoulder into the grindstone and did it via your 50+ hour work week, minute by minute, line by line, math problem by math problem you did it. You changed the worlds of so many students. You worked with students who had no hope, no confidence and no investment in their own future. These same students now have goals, and aspirations. Once more, they can write about them and even figure out how to achieve them.

You chose this path perhaps for personal or professional reasons. Maybe both. All of you were challenged. Some left. But if you are a City Year San Jose / Silicon Valley graduate. You stayed.

And here you are, 53 friends who were strangers a year ago.  A corps of 53 change agents. You took a chance to join City Year and change the world. And you did it. Thank you and congratulations.

Beach Pace, Executive Director CYSJ/SV

Congrats to our PITW award winners!!

Putting Idealism to Work (PITW) is a collection of ideas written and edited by City Year CEO and Co-Founder Michael Brown, but contributed to by many people. It contains 182 pieces of collective City Year wisdom that guide our service and serve as a reference for ways to implement our mission in our daily work.  Our site gives out PITW awards to people who embody these ideals.

PITW #177- Laugh at least once a day. Everyday.

Awarded to Lauren Jordan, Corps Member on the 49ers Foundation team at Goss Elementary and Katie Judge, Corps Member on the NVIDIA team at Dorsa Elementary

Lauren Jordan

Ms. Jordan for always has a smile on her face and a dance in her step, literally. She always has such great energy and enthusiasm with her team and students. Her dedication to serve with positivity and an open-mind definitely shines through her service. I know I can count on Lauren to take her work seriously but also make it a really fun time for everyone involved.

Katie Judge

I don’t know where our team would be without Katie. Her sense of humor, innocence, and pure honesty keeps us going every day. Her ability to get her work done well and to make us laugh uncontrollably is something I’ll always be thankful for.

PITW #63- Refuse to fail. (aka “City Year refuses to fail.”)

Awarded to Emily Weber, Corps Member on the NVIDIA team at Dorsa Elementary

Emily Weber

Whenever times are challenging we have the option of staying to fight or running away. I don’t think Emily ever thinks about running away. She takes on each problem head on and if it’s not her problem, she offers to help the person it affects. Emily refuses to let our students, our team, or our organization fail.

PITW #53- Set very high expectations for yourself and others- especially people you are leading.

Awarded to Vanessa Palafox, Corps Member on the Applied Materials team at Mathson Middle School

Vanessa Palafox

P-fox has really brought this PITW to life for me. Throughout our service, she has continued to hold high expectations for her students, teammates, and herself. These high expectations have really motivated the students by showing them what they are capable of achieving inside and outside the classroom! Her creativity and passion for these students allows them to really enjoy and respect the structure within each enrichment. Her dedication and commitment to these students resounds through her perseverance in holding high expectations for herself. Thanks for your service!

Sí Se Puede Awards: January

The Sí Se Puede Awards are inspired by Cesar Chavez who was, and still is, an important role model in our community. The people of San José are familiar with his work and celebrate him to this day. This saying, “Sí Se Puede,” is part of that culture and pride.

For students, “Sí Se Puede” is a reminder that they can do well and be great, both in their academics and in the choices they make in life. When corps members assist them in these accomplishments, they are ultimately changing the students’ attitudes about themselves and their future. For corps members, “Sí Se Puede” can be used to get through this city year because it serves as a reminder that they are making a difference in children’s lives and in the world. It’s a symbol of their pride in the community and in the work they do.  With Sí Se Puede awards, we seek to recognize and celebrate exemplary corps member efforts.

This month’s recipient: Chelsey Flink, Corps Member on the 49ers Foundation team at Goss Elementary

Chelsey Flink

Chelsey received multiple nominations for this award. One nominator wrote, “There are numerous stories that capture why Chelsey deserves this award, but it is hard to capture her character through words alone. She can be described as a black pearl. A black pearl is a very rare, fine, admirable, and difficult gem to find in the world. Like a black pearl, Chelsey is the type of person who you do not see often. She would be difficult to replicate. Chelsey proves this daily in creating a welcoming and encouraging environment in her tutoring sessions and after school classroom.  The teacher who works closely with Chelsey has been impressed by the great gains her focus list students have achieved from the start of the year until now.”

Another nominator said this of Chelsey:

“I’ve seen her put heart and soul into everything she does. Whether she’s preparing literacy lessons for after school, a session for her behavior group or material for her literacy sessions, she puts a lot of thought and creativity into her plans. You can see the results of her time and effort when you look at her students’ faces. They’re all smiles. It’s refreshing to see quieter students come out of their shells and answer comprehension questions confidently. Chelsey is a breath of fresh air.”

This City Year Life: The Day Beach Pace Made My Mom Cry

Last week I described the benefits City Year provides to schools, students, and corps members to an intimate crowd of about thirty onlookers, including journalists, the mayor of Sacramento, and my very own mother. I spoke at a press conference at Oak Ridge Elementary School, where the mayor and the planning committee announced the opening of City Year Sacramento in January 2012.

Corps Member Sachi Takahashi-Rial (third from left) poses at the press conference with Corps Members Celina Chun, Shelbie Pool, Jeff Arnold, Ali Bueno and Christina Johnson

I was so nervous; I felt like each heartbeat was rocking my whole body.

I kept thinking, “I wish I had prepared more so I wouldn’t have to look at my notes so much. But…I wish I had prepared less because now I bet my whole speech sounds canned.”

In the end it all turned out alright. Better than alright, actually, because the event helped shed new light on my service as a whole.

First, it was the process of writing a testimonial. I had to think about how growing up in Sacramento impacted my decision to join City Year. I needed concrete statements about how City Year has impacted my life since I’ve started. I was forced to put words to emotions and reflect on my entire experience so far. Had it not been meant for such an important audience, I probably wouldn’t have put this much time or energy into reflection.

Next, it was meeting the players and the planners who are making the Sacramento site a reality: district officials, donors, and Mayor Kevin Johnson.

What really struck me during their lunch speeches was how much effort these people have put into bringing City Year to Sacramento and how much they believe in the work City Year does.

They raised $4 million over five years. This money could have gone to any number of projects or programs, but impressed by City Year’s results and reputation, they devoted it to bringing a site to their city.

For me, the most meaningful part of the day was when I stepped back from the podium and saw my mom crying, sitting next to our Executive Director Beach Pace. Turns out Beach had nudged her after my testimonial and said something like, “She did a good job, huh?” and then the waterworks began.

Sachi serves on the San Francisco 49ers Foundation team at Mildred Goss Elementary School

But I knew it wasn’t just my own accomplishment that my mom was bawling over. The whole press conference was a testimonial to the success and hope that City Year brings to every place it touches. When I talk to my mom on the phone, I mostly tell funny stories about the students I work with or I give vague descriptions of my day-to-day tasks.

This was the first time she could really grasp what it was I was doing, what it is we’re all doing, and the impact we’re making.

I don’t think she realized how big a deal we are. It was cool for me to see City Year from her eyes, seeing my year of service as a gift, a sacrifice, and a huge push toward positive change.

-Sachi Takahashi-Rial, Corps Member CYSJ

Wordless Wednesday: Opening Day slideshow

Enjoy this slideshow of photos from our Opening Day that took place on Friday, October 7 at the San José Athletic Club.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

-Photos by Romel Antoine, Program Manager CYSJ

Thankful Thursday: Starry Starry Night Supporters

Corps Member Ali Bueno was joined on stage by her mother Lisa Arellano to share their story.

Last Thursday night, City Year San Jose/Silicon Valley celebrated our service at Starry Starry Night, our annual fundraising gala. We were joined by teachers, administrators, elected officials, sponsors and community members to share in our joy and learn about the impact we are having on the hundreds of students in San Jose we serve everyday.

This was our site’s chance to really share our story.

It was truly inspiring for me to see students performing a school launch on stage in front of a large group of people. I teared up when corps member Ali Bueno and her mother shared their heart wrenching story of overcoming the obstacles of raising a child as a teen mother. I swelled with pride when corps members Christina Johnson, Alyssa Chun and Alejandro Belden did a spoken word performance about their service.

But the celebration wasn’t only about our contributions to the community.

CEO of Applied Materials Mike Splinter with corps members Jeff Arnold and Celina Chun. Splinter was the recipient of the City Year San Jose/Silicon Valley Service Leadership Award.

We also had the pleasure of honoring Mike Splinter, CEO of Applied Materials, for his commitment to serving the Silicon Valley community. Applied Materials is a huge supporter of City Year; this year they are sponsoring a school-based team serving at Lee Mathson Middle School.

Thanks to the incredible support of the more than 360 attendees, we were able to raise more than $160,000 during the Fund-a-Need portion of the dinner which was co-led by City Year Vice President and Regional Director Stephen Spallos and City Year San Jose/Silicon Valley board chair Carl Guardino, President & CEO of Silicon Valley Leadership Group.

Overall, we were able to raise more than $230,000!

We couldn’t have done it without the support of our event sponsors.

If you’d like to see more of this inspiring event, please check out the City Year Flickr.

And if you’d like to donate, visit cityyear.org/donate and designate San Jose/Silicon Valley as the recipient of your gift.

Below is a video that includes interviews from some of our guests.

Children “CAN” help in large ways

When my Team Leader first mentioned to me about how nice it would be do a big event for our school the first week of February, I could not help but agree with her. But what could we do that would be low in cost and big in change?

After agreement from the team, we decided to proceed with a food drive with help from Second Harvest Food Bank which provided all materials for free including a delivery and pick up service. Initially, when registering online, we thought that four barrels would be enough to collect all of the donated canned food. We made it exciting for the kids by making it a school wide competition where classes competed for the top three slots for bringing in the most cans.

Everyday, the Goss team would filter out to all the classrooms to gather all the cans that each class brought in. The first day was promising, but it seemed that the four barrels that we initially asked for would be just enough for the entire week. Were we wrong. The second day, kids were coming in dragging their heavy backpacks full of canned food. There were classes that brought in 75 cans in one day. The competition was on. Outside the City Year classroom, we had a running total with the top three classes highlighted each day.

By Wednesday, the four barrels were overflowing, with cans being placed on the floor in our City Year room. We called Second Harvest to bring in more barrels to accommodate all the extra food that the kids were bringing in. The Goss team was inspired by the community and uplifted by the children’s reactions from the amount of food that they were giving to help those in need. In the end, a school of 300 kids filled seven barrels and donated a total of 1,683 cans, with the smallest class of 13 donating 139 cans for the week!

The entire event was moving and inspirational. The kids and families were excited to participate and the corps members were happy with the turnout of the week. It can be easily said that there was no prouder moment to be a Goss Gator. CHOMP!

Yvette Licea, Corps Member CYSJ

Thankful Thursday: Teachers at Mildred Goss Elementary

Each week, City Year San Jose/Silicon Valley will thank a person or organization for inspiring us in our service. This week, corps member Katherine Grundt thanks the teachers at her service site for their inspiring work at Mildred Goss Elementary School.

Katherine posing with some of the panel murals that students created on a Starfish Corps service day.

This year I have had the pleasure of serving my first year as a City Year San Jose/ Silicon Valley corps member on the San Francisco 49ers Team at Mildred Goss Elementary School. What drew me to Goss six months ago was the energy of the teachers and principal. Since starting my service here, one thing is for certain: these groups of teachers are some of the most passionate individuals I have ever gotten the pleasure of meeting.

Everyday the teachers go above and beyond figuring out new and interactive ways to energize their students. From first grade all the way through fifth grade, these teachers’ passion and drive to never give up on their students is both heartwarming and inspirational.

Working in a high-risk neighborhood, the staff at Goss does the best they can with the limited amount of resources they are given. This however does not stop them from doing everything in their power to inspire their students.

Having teachers like these during elementary school will drive and motivate these students to want to succeed and create a life for themselves.

These are teachers that the students will never forget from: Ms. Barkley who with her kindness teaches her first graders how to use their words to work out their problems. Ms. Neff in the second grade whose energy and praise keeps her students motivated to do their best. Ms. Shawghnassy, who has taught her third grade class that they can all be rock star scholars. Ms. Harral, who always maintains a calm attitude and positive outlook even with her rambunctious fourth grade class. Ms. Wyatt, who empowers her class of 33 fifth graders by creating a fun and open learning environment.

What all of these powerful teachers have in common is their shared goal to see their students succeed. The entire staff has the willingness to collaborate together as a whole for the common good of the school. The community welcomed City Year back for a second year with open arms and high hopes for the upcoming year. I have never seen such a supportive staff in my 16 years of schooling. The experience at Goss will truly live on throughout these students’ lives.

Everyday they are making an extraordinary impact, and although some days may seem difficult, if you look into the eyes of these students you see the difference that is being made. These teachers care, they will never give up hope and that is what makes a strong community that is what makes a strong teacher.

Katherine Grundt, Corps Member CYSJ

Girls Empowered and Motivated

Corps Member Terese McWilliams leads an enrichment at Mildred Goss Elementary School that helps young females feel empowered.

Confidence, self-image and respect are all terms commonly used when discussing adolescent girls; but most girls don’t have an adequate understanding of how these issues are relevant in their own lives. Few have experienced the long term effects of gossip.

They don’t understand how someone’s opinion of themselves is just as important, if not more important, than the public’s opinion. Many have never even questioned the idea that men are more capable of doing things than women.

Girls Empowered and Motivated (GEM) is a club dedicated to providing young women with multiple opportunities to realize their worth, power, beauty and potential.

GEM helps fourth and fifth grade girls take a purposeful look at some large concepts that affect them daily.

The goal of GEM is for the students to develop a positive self image and as a result, become examples for other young women. In order to reach this goal, the students are involved in activities that will motivate them to challenge any harmful mindsets and replace them with an encouraging outlook.

One of these activities requires the students to take a look at the power of language and to see how the types of words used, mean or kind, can affect the message. Another activity aims to highlight that all people are connected in one way or another so when we support others then we are helping ourselves as well. The students will also be asked to define their own concepts of beauty by comparing what is presented daily in the media to what they see in their own communities.

The club is not only a safe and respectful environment, it is also a place where knowledge is passed from student to student and awareness is raised. Knowledge leads to empowerment which then leads to a motivation to be your personal best.

For example, one day many of the students arrived at our meeting feeling very sad or frustrated with the way their day had gone. They complained about everything from homework to friends, but not one of them seemed to have an idea of what they could do to turn their day around. We came together as a group and created a list of techniques that we could use the next time we weren’t so happy; things like exercising, writing in journals, listening to music, and talking to friends.

The girls were not only able to vent about their daily annoyances, but they were also able to share knowledge with one another.

I did not have a group like GEM while growing up; in fact I didn’t participate in anything similar to it until I reached college. I believe that it is never too early to learn that every person has great potential and that’s why I lead this group. These girls will go out into their schools, neighborhoods and the world and leave a legacy of confidence and respect. My hope is that each and every one of them feels capable, empowered and motivated from participating in this program.

Terese McWilliams, Corps Member CYSJ