10 Apr Young Californians Turn Service into Opportunity Through State Program

“California Service Corps has provided me with the opportunity to help students realize that college is not only a realistic option, but it’s an achievable one as well,” said Michael Atkins, a second-year College Corps fellow at UCLA. (Screenshot captured by the Office of Community Partnerships and Strategic Communications)

By Malcolm Marshall 

Michael Atkins, a second-year College Corps fellow at UCLA, remembers the moment a student told him he felt “completely lost” trying to write his college application essay. 

The student, a foster youth, struggled to see how his life experiences mattered. Over the course of a week, Atkins met with him every day, helping him break the process into manageable steps. By the end, the student had a personal statement he was proud of and was later accepted into his dream university. 

“It only takes one individual to help transform students’ beliefs and what is possible for themselves,” Atkins said. “[Serving in the] California Service Corps has provided me with the opportunity to help students realize that college is not only a realistic option, but it’s an achievable one as well.” 

Atkins is one of thousands of fellows in the California Service Corps, a statewide initiative recruiting 10,000 people into paid service positions across California. The opportunities support communities while building valuable experience. 

Saksen Hathaway’s path to service looked different. After studying environmental science in college, she struggled to break into the field. 

Now, as a fellow with the California Climate Action Corps, Hathaway helps run programs that bring fresh food to underserved communities in Ventura County. 

The two spoke during a Tuesday briefing for ethnic media outlets on the California Service Corps. 

Stories like theirs show how the program places fellows in schools and community organizations to support students with college access, tutoring and basic needs. The initiative is designed to address some of the state’s most pressing challenges while creating pathways for young people to gain experience and find purpose. 

“Service doesn’t just change communities; it changes the people who serve,” said Josh Fryday, director of the Governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement and California’s chief service officer. 

Fryday said members across four programs, College Corps, Youth Service Corps, AmeriCorps and the California Climate Action Corps, are working on issues including climate change, education and food access. 

“They’re planting trees to protect communities from extreme heat. They’re tutoring students who fell behind during the pandemic, and they’re helping families access food,” he said. 

In doing so, he said the fellows are tackling climate change, food insecurity, and the learning loss that many students are still recovering from because of the pandemic. 

The California Service Corps is the largest state service force in the country. 

The program offers paid opportunities for participants to work in their communities while building job skills and gaining experience. Fryday said the state aims to fill 10,000 positions. 

“It’s a very simple and yet a powerful model,” Fryday said. “We will pay young people to make a difference in their community and to start their careers.” 

According to Fryday, demand for those roles has been strong, with nearly four applications submitted for each position last year. 

Fellows at the briefing said the work can also come with challenges. 

“A big challenge is…maintaining a work-life balance,” Hathaway said. “The work is hard, and especially when it’s something that’s really close to home and something you care about deeply.” 

“My biggest issue is really getting the buy-in to the resources and the opportunities that we’re offering…and really getting them to be open to the opportunities,” Atkins said. 

The state is also launching a targeted effort to recruit more men, particularly young men of color, to the new California Men’s Service Challenge, aimed at empowering men through service, leadership and connection.  

Fryday pointed to rising suicide rates, declining college attendance and growing disconnection among men and boys as reasons for the focus. Doing service, he said, could help them find a sense of belonging and become leaders in their communities. 

“Gov. Newsom has had a very strong vision when we created the California Service Corps,” Fryday said. “If you want to gain experience, if you want to build connections, and if you want to get paid to make a real difference in your community, then we have a place for you.”

For more information about the California Service Corps, visit californiavolunteers.ca.gov/california-service-corps/.