AmeriCorps NCCC Leads to Teach for America

My name is Kate Kavouras, and I am a 2005 Teach For America (TFA) corps member and a proud member of NCCC Class VII (Denver Campus).  I know that you may already be familiar with TFA, but I am writing to share with you a little bit about my involvement with NCCC and how it led me to TFA.

I joined NCCC because I needed to know more – about life, about our country, about myself – than I was able to learn in my hometown.  I finished NCCC knowing how to shingle a roof, teach letter sounds, take down 10 acres of barbed wire fencing before lunch, and that never – under any circumstances – was I to drive a 15-passenger van.  More importantly, I finished NCCC with a conviction to continue to work with other equally committed, smart, and ambitious people to get things done for people, for communities and for our country. 

But where could I go from there?  They say that you can’t be an AmeriCorps member forever; you have to join the real world sometime, but that’s not completely true.  I first heard about TFA because it’s an AmeriCorps program.  As I learned more, I realized it was an opportunity for me to continue serving as an AmeriCorps member while beginning a career as a full-time, salaried teacher.  Even if a long-term career in education is not what you’re looking for, I’d still urge you to consider TFA.  The career and leadership development you receive as a TFA corps member is designed to help you succeed across multiple sectors. 

From 2005 to 2007, I served as a TFA corps member teaching middle school social studies in Harlem.  Along with more than one thousand other corps members serving in New York City, I worked relentlessly to close the achievement gap plaguing low-income youth.  Like my time in NCCC, I was having fun, serving with other young ambitious people from across the nation, and making a tremendous impact.

Let’s be honest –   

It’s hard – like building a trail at 10,000 feet in the winter or running an afterschool program without supplies or direction – but you know hard. 

It’s intense – like counseling families whose lives have been devastated by a disaster – but you know intense. 

It’s inspiring – like seeing Michael, one of my 8^th graders who had been expelled from his previous school, propose a graduated income tax as a way of rebuilding the nation after the Civil War. 

It’s impactful – like seeing Ivelis and Stephanie, my two 7^th grade girls that just-wouldn’t-stop-talking at the beginning of the year, channel their energy into starting a book club to read David McCullough’s 1776.  

It’s transformative – like watching my former 7^th grade students five years later, as they graduated with offers to four-year colleges. 

You know inspiring, and impactful, and transformative.  You’re an AmeriCorps member.  The problems facing students in low-income classrooms – the doors that will never open for them simply because of inadequate education – are too important for your service to end with NCCC.  By continuing your service with Teach For America you can become a leader in the effort to expand educational equity.  

Whether you’ve already considered Teach For America or not, I am writing to ensure that you remember to APPLY NOW to Teach For America’s final deadline, which is this Friday, February 15^th.. You can also email Molly Friedland if you’re interested in meeting with a TFA representative.  I hope that you will consider applying to Teach For America and continue having an impact on communities across the country.

All the best,

Kate Kavouras

FEMA Corps Member Brings Sandy's Lessons to White House

by Greg Tucker

(This post originally appeared on the National Service Blog on February 8, 2013.)

The chance to get in on the ground floor and build something new attracted recent college grad Ben Barron to the FEMA Corps AmeriCorps NCCC unit. Last fall his class went to work with the Hurricane Sandy relief and recovery effort in New York, where he learned a lot about himself and the strength of the human spirit.

Barron was on the path to law school when he learned about the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) and FEMA Corps from another student at California State University, Northridge. This idea led to him to join the first FEMA Corps class in July 2012 to begin training as a Team Leader with the new unit.

Change of Plans

Barron's team was on an assignment in New Orleans when Sandy struck the East Coast and altered their plans. Soon, he would be providing disaster assistance to victims of that storm and “sleeping in a hold with 149 of (his) best friends” on a ship docked off Staten Island in New York.

Barron was impressed immediately with the mobilization of people who assembled to provide assistance. As he continued in the recovery effort, Barron was also surprised by the resilience and selflessness he saw as people worked to regain control of their lives.

“I don't know how many times I heard from people who had just lost their homes -- lost pretty much everything they own --say, ‘Can you go down the street and help them because they got hit worse?'” said Barron. “We heard that every day … that sense of camaraderie was the most touching thing.”

Adapting to the Situation

As part of the roving disaster response center, Barron pursued an initiative to use laptops and iPads to register storm survivors for disaster assistance, as well as keep track of the areas that had received aid from other organizations.

Early on, people were borrowing FEMA Corps members' phones to call in and register for assistance because they had no computers or electricity to do so at home. By embracing mobile technology, they were able to make the process more efficient while maintaining face-to-face interactions.

At first, they set up stations at relief centers by tethering laptops to their Blackberry phones to create mobile internet connections. Later they moved to tablet computers.

“The iPads helped streamline the process,” said Barron. “They helped us get people registered in their neighborhood or even at their door.”

Through the program, FEMA reached and documented thousands who may not have received adequate disaster assistance, avoiding redundancy and wasted resources. Barron's efforts brought him to the White House earlier this week to speak at a FEMA Think Tank on innovation in emergency management.

His experience as a FEMA Corps Team Leader has taught Barron about working with a people who have “different personalities, different dialogues, and different objectives.”

“If you are looking for a future in emergency management, FEMA Corps will help you with that,” said Barron. “Where else are you gonna get that opportunity?”

Barron also learned about time management and prioritization, adding that the amount of resolve and the resilience needed to work in disaster relief is something that inspires confidence.

“Don't be afraid to jump in and do something. Being a bystander is not something that's going to get the job done,” he said. “Be ready to be amazed.”