Everything you need to know about returning for another year as a City Year AmeriCorps member

Every year, thousands of young people decide to join AmeriCorps programs for a year (or more!) of service, helping to tackle key education, environmental, veteran and social issues in their communities.

In exchange, AmeriCorps members experience powerful personal and professional growth. As corps members, they receive multiple benefits, including a stipend, ongoing professional development, a Segal Education Award, and access to exclusive scholarships and professional development opportunities.

Many AmeriCorps members return for a second (or third!) year of service

City Year annually recruits more than 2,000 young adults ages 17 to 25, who serve 10-11 months in public schools as “student success coaches,” or SSCs.

As student success coaches, City Year AmeriCorps members partner with classroom teachers, adding much-needed additional capacity in systemically under-resourced schools. SSCs provide academic tutoring and small group instruction; so-called soft skills coaching; mentoring; and afterschool enrichment programs, among other services.

But did you know that a quarter of those corps members—more than 500—elect to sign up to serve another year as a RACM, or returning AmeriCorps member? And as a returning corps member, you’re eligible for exclusive “continuation of service” benefits.

For the past couple of years, record numbers of City Year corps members have returned for a second year of service.

This school year, 24% of the incoming corps are returning for another year.

City Year San Antonio Team Leader Estella Chavez is serving her third City Year

Team Leader Estella Chavez is currently serving her third year with City Year in the same school district she graduated from, San Antonio Independent School District.

Estella says she had such a positive experience serving six graders in a math classroom at Davis Middle School in 2022-2023 that she, and several of her teammates, signed on for a second year. In 2023-2024, she was able to continue to serve the same group of students as seventh graders—something she found very rewarding.

“I really loved working with the kids, and I got to see how they developed over time,” Estella said. She says she also had great partner teachers both years, Ms. Vargas and Mr. Hernandez, to collaborate with.

“Overall, it was just a really positive experience,” she said.

This year, Estella says she still gets to see her students, who are now eighth graders in Davis College Prep Middle School, during occasional classroom visits or in the hallways or cafeteria. But her role is different, giving her a chance to hone new skills.

As a team leader, Estella no longer works directly in classrooms as a student success coach. Instead, she helps to support a group of eight first-year AmeriCorps members and one returning corps member, helping them to set goals, track their progress and provide feedback that motivates the team. As a team leader, Estella also helps to build a positive relationship with school administrators.

“I’ve had the chance to do a lot of project management and more leadership experience,” she says. “My communication skills, including public speaking, are getting better, which is important for my future.”

What motivates returning AmeriCorps members to come back?

There are many personal and professional reasons why a City Year AmeriCorps member would choose to come back for another year of service, says Jen Cone, vice president of operations overseeing a working group focused on returning corps members.

“We know from feedback and surveys of returning corps members that there are two main reasons they want to come back,” Cone says.

“For many corps members, they say they care about their kids, school and community and want to keep serving them. They just aren’t ready to complete their service yet,” she says.

“And others tell us that they really feel like they’re getting a valuable experience that will help them in their future career or grad school and so they want to extend that skill-building period.”

AmeriCorps members can also want to lean into leadership development, civic engagement, or durable skills that are valued in the workplace and in terms of personal growth, like problem solving and communication. Another year of service gives them additional time to figure out their next steps.

For Estella, serving with City Year has helped her to explore working with students and think about potential career options. She is thinking about how to apply some of her new skills to another kind of nonprofit environment next year, perhaps working with an organization that helps to support foster children. She’s also considering returning to school to get her associate’s degree.

“I have a lot of empathy in me, and I really enjoy service. I know I want to go on to make an impact,” Estella said. “I’m not the same person I was when I started and that’s something I’m thankful for. I feel like I’ve really grown and can be my authentic self at work. And now have skills I can transfer to a new opportunity.”

Serving with City Year can be a pathway into teaching

Then there are AmeriCorps members who know they are interested in careers in education and plan to enter a teacher pathway program while serving a second year. City Year is doing more now to help these corps members find more affordable and accessible pathways into teacher preparation programs.

Nearly half of alums who participated in a 2022 survey reported they currently work in the education sector as teachers, administrators, counselors, in education policy or at education-focused nonprofits.

Even if you are not interested in education as a future career, when you return for another year of service, you have several options about what your service experience will be.

Read more about the multiple options you have when you return to serve again as an AmeriCorps member with City Year.