CIVICORPS

Located in West Oakland, Civicorps was founded in 1983 as one of the first local conservation corps in California, based on the Civilian Conservation Corps model of land conservation work and education. Our mission is to re-engage young adults, age 18-26, to earn their high school diplomas, gain job skills, pursue college, and embark on family sustaining careers. We envision a world where all youth have the education and resources needed for college and career success.

Civicorps assists youth who struggle with multiple systems failures and barriers to their success by connecting them to opportunities, access, and education they need to move toward their full potential. We believe that education and workforce development are powerful tools to promote racial and economic equity.

According to the Bay Area Equity Atlas, prior to the pandemic, 8% of Oakland youth were disconnected from employment and college. The majority of these were young people of color. Work-based learning programs provide a powerful structure to counter this dynamic. A 2020 Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program report concluded that work-based learning programs create equity and economic opportunity for disconnected youth by providing “…supportive relationships with adults, connections to broader social and professional networks, and authentic work experiences that provide hands-on learning opportunities and the chance to take on new roles and responsibilities.” Our long tenure in this field has demonstrated that work-based learning programs help disconnected youth mitigate obstacles, access opportunities, and move toward their full potential.

Civicorps partners with local employers to provide young people with high-impact training and work experience that serve as bridges to sustainable careers in land management, conservation, climate change mitigation, and recycling. We offer one of the only paid youth employment programs in the East Bay. Each year we deliver job training, college and career readiness preparation, and wrap-around support services to more than 175 youth who want to create positive change in their lives.

Our annual goals are as follows:

• Serve 175 youth in our Conservation Career Pathways
• Provide 150 young people paid job training opportunities in our Environmental Management social enterprise, delivering high-impact exposure to employment and career opportunities
• Provide 25 young people paid pre-apprenticeship/apprenticeship opportunities in our Recycling social enterprise, delivering high-impact exposure to employment and career opportunities

Focusing on conservation career pathways, Civicorps is creating opportunities for a diverse group of young people to have a voice and impact within the environmental movement. Our objective is to create long-term employment opportunities for communities underrepresented in the green economy and to empower the next generation of environmental stewards.

We serve young adults through the following year-round programs and services:

Paid Job Training in Conservation and Recycling
At our Environmental Management and Recycling social enterprises, participants build their resume and network as they work on conservation projects for major regional organizations throughout the East Bay, gaining paid job training and experience with potential future employers. Corpsmembers earn a starting wage of $14.36/hour working as interns on projects for major regional employers with whom Civicorps has developed strong partnerships. Youth receive regular performance reviews and acquire indispensable soft skills including leadership, teamwork, problem-solving, work ethics, and communications while mastering a series of technical competencies and career readiness milestones. As they complete their objectives, participants become eligible to train for leadership roles within Civicorps and qualify for postsecondary education scholarships through AmeriCorps.

College and Career Readiness Preparation
From the moment they arrive and as they progress through our program, youth receive personalized college and career counseling as they work to achieve milestones and plan their next steps. Youth engage in career and college exploration (including research, campus tours, and informational interviews) and meetings with mentors (including alumni, employment partners, and former staff). Their training includes resume building, job search skills, and mock interviews. Participants who have not yet earned their high school diploma are required to enroll at Opportunity Academy, an onsite charter high school managed by the Alameda County Office of Education, in order to participate in our job training programs. For one year after Corpsmembers exit our program, staff continue to help them pursue higher education and employment, assisting them with enrolling and excelling in college, applying for financial aid, and securing internships and jobs.

Wrap-around Support – A Unique and Critical Component
Amongst re-engagement and job training programs, Civicorps excels because of the comprehensive services we provide. Participants can access two full-time social workers, as well as support with childcare, housing, and transportation. More recently, Civicorps has provided resources to navigate the pandemic such as PPE, grab and go groceries, and free COVID testing. Because nearly all of our participants live in poverty, we provide daily and weekly meals. We deliver our services through a trauma-informed care lens, and everything we do is intended to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Civicorps was started to provide low-income youth with education, paid job training, and a vehicle to serve their community by protecting and restoring the environment. Our founders saw a need for a rigorous work-based learning program that prepared local youth for family-sustaining careers. We continue to utilize the Conservation Corps model of service learning to prepare youth for college and career success and to protect the environment.

Amongst re-engagement and job training programs, Civicorps excels because of the comprehensive wrap-around services we provide. Participants can access two full-time social workers, as well as support with childcare, housing, and transportation. Because nearly all of our participants live in poverty, we provide daily and weekly meals, as well as emergency response. More recently, Civicorps has provided resources to navigate the pandemic such as PPE, grab and go groceries, and free COVID vaccinations and testing. From the moment participants arrive and as they progress through our program, youth receive personalized college and career counseling as they complete a set of technical competencies and career readiness milestones. We deliver our services through a trauma-informed care lens, and our work intentionally encompasses diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Our work at Civicorps is driven by the following:

• Young adults, age 18-26, entering Civicorps with the initiative and the motivation to succeed,
• Responsive and equity-minded staff ready to ignite Corpsmembers’ inner spark through wrap-around trauma-informed support services, and
• Committed Community Partners, representing educational institutions, nonprofits, public sector organizations, and employers.

Youth who successfully complete programming at Civicorps can go on to pursue fulfilling and family sustaining careers, enter into a lifelong process of learning and growth, gain exposure to a broader world around them, expand their ideas of what they can do and who they can be, and become leaders in their communities who model self-efficacy and civic engagement.

We have been advancing our work at the intersection of racial, economic, and environmental justice since our inception. Located in West Oakland, Civicorps was founded in 1983 as one of the first local conservation corps in California, based on the Civilian Conservation Corps model of land conservation work and formal education. Our mission is to re-engage young adults, age 18-26, to earn their high school diplomas, gain job skills, pursue college, and embark on family sustaining careers. We envision a world where all youth have the education and resources needed for college and career success. Furthermore, we are proud to nurture a new generation of Californians committed to environmental justice and civic participation for the benefit and wellbeing of our community.

Civicorps offers one of the only year-round paid youth employment programs in the East Bay. Each year we deliver job training, college and career readiness preparation, and wrap-around support services to 175 youth. We do this by partnering with local employers such as East Bay Regional Park District, East Bay Municipal Utility District, the City of Oakland, and Waste Management to provide youth with comprehensive training and work experience that serve as bridges to sustainable careers in land management, climate change mitigation, conservation, and recycling. Through hands-on experience, our enrollees earn tool certifications and build experience for today’s workforce.

At Civicorps' nationally recognized Teamster Truck Driver Career Pathway youth work as paid pre-apprentices in our Recycling social enterprise. Corpsmembers learn all aspects of the recycling operation, earn Class B commercial driver's licenses, and upon completion, can advance to lucrative Teamster careers. Built on a pioneering partnership with Waste Management, Teamster Local 70 Union, and the City of Oakland in 2014, we offer the only free truck driver training program for youth ages 18-26 in the East Bay. This program was acknowledged in 2019 by the New York Lawyers for the Public Interest as an example of an effective job training program reaching communities historically excluded from good jobs. Civicorps plans to duplicate this successful program with our partners at East Bay Municipal Utility District in October 2021.

Our long tenure in workforce development for youth helped us support Corpsmembers at the height of the public health pandemic. Civicorps sustained operations and kept participants in paid job training, continuing to nurture their momentum in our program. During FY 2020-21, 152 Corpsmembers participated in our paid job training and career readiness curriculum, working a total of 92,183 hours and earning a total of $1,602,608.