City Year’s remarkable alumni, now a network nearly 35,000 strong, are showing up in communities and workplaces every day to help address serious challenges of systemic inequity and racial injustice facing our country—including in education, healthcare, public service, the economy and the environment.
City Year’s 2020 national alumni survey
City Year alumni are culturally competent, civically engaged and diverse changemakers who have experience bringing people together, working in collaborative teams, learning from and rebounding from setbacks, and taking action for the common good. They are leaders for life.
Matthew Wilhelm, New Hampshire ’06, ’07, now a New Hampshire State Representative, describes City Year as a ‘leadership laboratory.’ “The culture, shared values and ‘power tools’ like the organization’s Leadership Compass are foundational to how I engage with my neighbors in Manchester and my colleagues at the State House,” he says.
Snapshot of City Year's alumni survey results
93%
agreed
City Year helped them to develop relationships with people from different backgrounds than their own.
92%
said
through their City Year experience they learned about issues of systemic inequity in ways that have impacted their perspective.
91%
said
their City Year experience had a significantly positive impact on their lives.
67%
reported
they are more likely to engage in community service as a result of their City Year experience.
City Year is the best way to have the greatest impact on your community. Not only does it benefit students, families and student outcomes, but it educates, trains and promotes young people to work for equity, justice and to become community leaders."
– Anna Feely, Los Angeles ’09 Community Impact and Medical Education Coordinator at Advocate Aurora Health Care
Alumni profile
Nearly 35,000 City Year alumni continue to lead and serve across the country and the world, building on their innate talents, their commitment to contribute, and valuable skills they honed as corps members.
93% have an undergraduate degree 40% have a graduate degree
44% live or work in the community in which they served
57% people of color
34% Black or African American
16% Hispanic or Latino
7% Asian
5% Other
City Year alumni are making significant contributions as community members, professionals and leaders who can mobilize diverse groups to tackle complex challenges across a wide range of fields. We believe the skills, mindsets and experiences of our AmeriCorps members and alumni are increasingly needed in today’s world. Our alums have shown they are prepared to advance educational equity, social justice and community involvement where they live and work.
“While my City Year experience was definitely difficult, it was quite impactful on my career,” said Seeta Spence Banfield, Orlando ’13. Seeta is currently a Student Registered Nurse Anesthetist (SRNA) and a Doctorate of Nursing Practice candidate at the University of South Florida. “I have learned skills and applied them in every aspect of my life beyond my year of service. I am proud to say, that as an alum, I live and breathe ‘active citizen’ in my daily life.”
Impact in education sector
Thousands of City Year AmeriCorps alumni are contributing to a more diverse, prepared and committed talent pool for teaching positions and the education sector overall.
“When I pledged to serve as a City Year AmeriCorps member, I pledged to be a community leader for life,” said award-winning teacher Kevin Dua, Boston ’10, ’11, who works in Cambridge (MA) Public Schools. “My commitment to helping students succeed didn’t end when I no longer put on the red jacket every day.”
52% of City Year alumni work in the education sector as teachers, administrators, guidance counselors, youth practitioners and at education-focused nonprofits.
13% of City Year alumni are classroom teachers, and of those:
45% are people of color
45% live/work in the same community they served
29% have taught for 10+ years
Notes about this data: In 2020, City Year conducted its second biannual alumni survey and received 4,453 responses, a statistically significant response rate. Fifty-five percent of survey respondents graduated from City Year between 2015 and 2019; therefore, the data is most reflective of recent alumni sentiments. Alumni demographic data in the Alumni profile section is based on end-of-year AmeriCorps member data from 2018–2020.
