Eight AmeriCorps/City Year members are working at Parker Junior High this year as part of a pilot program that expands the program outside of Chicago.
Seven math and English language arts classrooms have a permanent City Year member, referred to as a Corps member, who spends most school days assisting teachers and motivating students throughout the year. An onsite impact manager leads the group, holds weekly team meetings and coordinates with administrators and teachers about the program. One Corps member also acts as a service leader with additional responsibilities, like leading team-building activities.
City Year is a member of the AmeriCorps national service network, and is supported by the Corporation for National and Community Service, school district partnerships, and private philanthropy from corporations, foundations and individuals. City Year strives to foster a generation of empowered, experienced, and idealistic leaders.
“We are very pleased with our partnership with City Year at Parker Junior High School,” Director of Learning and Instruction Amabel Crawford said. “This is our first year collaborating with City Year, and Parker is also the first school outside of Chicago Public Schools to have an onsite partnership.”
The Corps members are more than just classroom assistants. They aren’t allowed to grade papers or supervise classrooms without teachers. Instead, they are there to engage students and build relationships, according to the program designers. As the school year progresses and they get to know the students better, they hope their presence will increase student performance through positive mentoring.
According to its website, schools partnering with City Year are up to three times more likely to improve proficiency in math.
“The City Year team provides crucial social-emotional and academic support for individual students and the entire school community,” Crawford said.
James Junior, an 18-year-old Chicago resident and recent Fenger Academy High School graduate, signed up for the program because he grew up in a poverty-stricken area and wanted to impact underserved youth positively. His senior year at Fenger was the first year City Year was at his school, so he thought working as a Corps member in the program’s first year at another school would be interesting.
Junior helps out in a Parker classroom where Markus Starks teaches math to eighth graders. He answers questions, helps the students understand the lessons and assists with solving problems students might have in the classroom. According to Starks, Junior does some of the things typically left up to him.
Junior always feels like he has plenty of support. “If I need time to prepare, he gives me the opportunity,” he said.
“It has been a pleasure working with Mr. Junior,” Starks said. “He is extremely helpful, has developed positive relationships with the kids and his professionalism, encouraging words and overall positive demeanor serve as a great model for the students. He also takes notes from things he observes about the learners in class and shares them with me in our meetings. There’s always one or two things that were unknown to myself and beneficial to helping the specific learner feel comfortable and confident in the classroom.”
Junior said that Starks has taught him that when working with students, “sometimes you have to be firm so they don’t take advantage.” He said it can be challenging to find a balance, but it helps that he is not much older than the students.
Junior is considering a second year as a Corps member, and the experience may have convinced him that a career as a PE teacher would be the right choice for him. “I want to be around kids,” Junior said. “They are our future.”
The other Corps members working at Parker have similar stories. Some are college graduates who struggled to find a job in their field of study, while others just took the opportunity to serve the community.
Service Leader Joy Brady is earning her master’s degree in education and said being a Corps member would give her additional experience working in a school.
Despite only having one quarter at Parker under their belts, they have all had some positive experiences.
Having an extra adult in the classroom is not without its challenges. Teachers might already have a co-teacher.
“It could get quite noisy during small group instruction because you have three adults leading conversations all across the room,” Starks said. “It’s a good problem to have, but the volume level could be counterproductive to small group instruction, especially for students who would rather have quieter settings.”
Crawford said, “We are incredibly grateful to the teachers at Parker who have welcomed the City Year team into their classrooms to engage with students on a daily basis. We are currently in the planning stages for the next school year and will begin discussions about it soon.”
City Year’s full-time AmeriCorps members earn a living allowance and health care benefits. Corps members who complete a year of service receive a $6,495 Segal AmeriCorps Education Award they can use to pay for job training, tuition or qualified student loans.
