Don’t Do What Makes you Happy

Thoughts on Charlie Day’s Commencement Speech

Charlie Day, co-creator of the television sitcom It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, gave a commencement speech at his alma mater Merrimack College last weekend, and one line in particular struck me: “Don’t do what makes you happy”. Whenever I ask students what they want from life, I often get an answer that includes “I just want to be happy.” Depending on how snarky I am feeling, I may respond, “Well, marry rich and lounge by a pool all day.” But I don’t think students actually want to just be “happy”; they want to be successful. They want the kind of success they define on their terms. For Charlie Day, this was making a TV show in which he gets to entertain the masses wearing a green full-body spandex suit and putting mittens on cats. Of course, his success was not without unhappiness in setbacks and challenges. The point is that once you define your success, you shouldn’t expect every subsequent minute on your journey to achieve it to be happy ones.

 

I have spent the past week sifting through stories from volunteers in preparing for the NGS CrowdRise campaign. I noticed the word happy was rarely mentioned. Volunteers did, however, mention fulfillment, rewarding experiences, challenges and learning. Most spoke about things like the injustice they saw (read the interview with Camille Tacastacas about life in rural Philippians), the pain they felt when they saw a family struggle (watch the video of Laura Hanley talking about a baby with severe lead poisoning from a contaminated home) and how this motivated them to make a difference. When they made a difference – no matter how small (Omar was able to teach a refugee family how to take the bus) – that success brought a joy that could only be felt after moments of unhappiness. I wish all you recent grads success in whatever happiness means for you, and peace on the not-always-happy journey.

Written by Anna Lenhart, Edited by Nicole Campbell

 

in Ideas  by 26 May 2014 0 comments

Breyn Hibbs on Leading from the Heart

Breyn Hibbs’ story is the epitome of what the NGS Movement is all about. As her grad school experience came to a close, she began looking for a way to put her passion into action. She discovered Shakti Rising in 2010 and knew she wanted to do a year of service there. After volunteering for about a year, she joined the staff as an AmeriCorps VISTA with a focus on resource development in 2011. Through her personal growth and career development as a VISTA and eventually a formal staff member at Shakti Rising, Bre gained the skills she needed to later start Sol Alchemy, a unique yoga studio in her hometown of Bend, OR.

Breyn has a distinct understanding about how being of service to others is identical to serving one’s self and is ultimately the key to a fulfilling life. Bre also talks about how experiencing heart-based leadership shaped her understanding of social change and her approach to social entrepreneurship.

 

in Podcasts  by 16 Mar 2014 0 comments

April 23rd Stories of Service

StoriesofserviceposterEveryday people are inspired by stories of entrepreneurs, CEO, PhDs, but there are not nearly enough stories about leaders who got their start as long term volunteers.

Come listen to Alumni of National Service (ie. AmeriCorps, Peace Corps) share their story through song, poem and story.

If you are currently or have previously served in a national service roll (AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, World Teach, etc) and want to perform, please email anna@ngsmovement.org

For details click here.

in Organizational News  by 15 Mar 2014 0 comments

Go Where There is Greater Need

Hanging out with the community,helping the world“Go where there is greater need,” these words on a poster promoting volunteer opportunities with the Jesuit Volunteers Philippines (JVP), caught Camille Tacastacas’ attention.  To participate in JVP, Camille needed to be a college graduate, so the poster got filed away in the back of her mind. A few years later, after graduating from Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines, Camille moved to the United States. In a struggling U.S. job market, she found herself working as a preschool teacher. She enjoyed her work but she could not forget the JVP poster and the pull to serve in the most under-resourced communities in her home country.  She applied to become a Jesuit Volunteer, got accepted, and moved back to serve full-time in Culion, Palawan.  Due to her background in early childhood education, she was placed with Cartwheel Foundation, Inc., an organization that partners with Indigenous Peoples (IP) to preserve their culture and empower the community through education programs. In Culion, Camille worked with two Tagbanua island communities.   I conducted an interview with Camille about her experience:

What were some challenges you faced on the island?

Camille spoke of the lack of luxuries on the island, so sparse compared to her life in the Philippines and here in the US. “[We] only had electricity from noon ‘til 11pm each day. We would go days without running water, which is funny because we lived in an island; getting fresh water was a problem.”

She mentioned the slower pace of life on the island. She was living a simple life – no toilets when she would stay a few days in the IP communities. But she reflects:

“Simplicity can teach you more than you could ever ask for… really seeing the beauty of life, there was no sitting down and watching TV. We were telling stories, and it was beautiful.”

What parts of service made you feel out of your comfort zone?

Camille answered this question by ranting (passionately) about the blatant injustices in her country and the world:

“It was a different kind of poverty. I met older adults in their 80s who had never sat in a classroom before, but are very eager to learn to read and write.”

“Watching a 9-year old kid learn to read for the first time was rewarding. That gave so much meaning to the mission. Then you remember what you started with: cement floors and empty rice sacks as seats. When we got funds and the communities got involved, they built their own chairs and put up their own classroom walls made out of nipa…They (the community) were grateful for the simplest of things – even to see make-shift chairs in their classroom in the islands.”

As Camille shared, she expressed her gratitude to nongovernmental organizations or nonprofits which partner with the government in filling the gaps and providing basic social services.

“In Cartwheel Foundation, we target education but we do not turn a blind eye to the other needs of the community. For example, we partnered with an organization that specializes in water systems when we found that one Tagbanua community had to hike a few miles through the mountains to transport potable water on their shoulders. Even the children did this for their families. They were content and saw this as part of life, but were grateful to have a water source closer to their homes.”

Is there a specific memory you can share?

“[Two of our students] were learning to read, so I would write on their notebooks and I would point to each syllable, one at a time. They were stringing letter sounds into syllables, syllables into words, words into sentences. We all just looked at each other, amazed, because these two 9-year olds just learned how to read.” Camille told this story with magic in her voice. “…Being a witness to the clicking of the light bulb is just something else. Thinking about these children starting their own families in the future, and being able teach their children how to read and write…it’s a drop in the ocean, but definitely one step to solving illiteracy in this Tagbanua community.”

How did this shape your career?

“I always knew I wanted to work in nonprofits, but [after JVP] I knew I wanted to work with programs.  I wanted to be on the ground, implementing programs and measuring outcomes.”

How did the experience change you?

“I began looking at people and understanding that they are going through a lot. So you have to treat everyone you meet with love and kindness…everyone has a story to tell.”

ECE teachers at workWhy should others serve?

“I read somewhere that a year of full-time volunteering corresponds to three years of employment.  The organization you will work with will definitely stretch you, challenge you, and bring out the best in you. More than any of that, though, we should serve because in this short lifetime, we ought to participate by giving of ourselves – our time, talent, and treasure. A disclaimer, though: at the end of it, you’ll be surprised that in your giving, what you receive is beyond any of your expectations. Go, fellow young adult, and embrace a life-enriching year!”

Jesuit Volunteers Philippines (JVP) is a lay organization of young men and women who assist in social, pastoral, and development work of NGOs, schools, and social development agencies across the Philippines.

Cartwheel Foundation, Inc. seeks to give indigenous youth and communities the chance to enjoy their right to quality and culturally-relevant education.

 

 

Interview conducted by Anna Lenhart

in Stories  by 14 Feb 2014 1 comments

Cap Corps Midwest: Transformation through Relationship

 

Story by Julio Guerrero

julio at alc eventDeciding to join the Capuchin Franciscan Volunteer Corps (Cap Corps Midwest) was a relatively easy choice for me to make. I had spent five years working in different non-profit roles in Milwaukee. I had over four years of experience working as a political and community organizer. When I got into political and non-profit work, I did so because I knew what it was like to watch my parents struggle from paycheck to paycheck to make ends meet. I have always felt that I should use my work to make a difference in people’s lives as best as I can.

In Milwaukee, I felt comfortable. All of my friends live in Milwaukee. I knew the scene. For most of my life, it was home. That’s why I left. I was worried about becoming complacent. I was worried about seeing the world through the the lens of one experience. By circumstance, my degree is in education but I never seriously thought of myself as a teacher or educator. Yet, I have always been drawn to opportunities that allow me to work with the Latino community and the Cap Corps Midwest gave me an opportunity experience a new city and do just that.

Every day, I get to go to work and teach English to folks in McKinley Park, Chicago. Some people come to the Aquinas Literacy Center because they want to pass a citizenship test. Others come through because they want to be able to help their children do their homework. Learning English for our students is not just a hobby, it’s a means of making tangible improvements in their lives and the lives of their families. It’s an act of self-determination. It’s both rewarding and humbling to be able to witness that.

Every day, I work with some of the best people I’ve ever met.  They are committed to their students and they are equally committed to improving the lives of residents in the McKinley Park neighborhood. Doing a year of service with Cap Corps Midwest at the Aquinas Literacy Center has given me an invaluable opportunity to do some of the most personally meaningful work I’ve ever done and I’ll forever be grateful for that.

 

In addition to the work at Aquinas Literacy Center offers other full-time job placements in legal aid, urban farming, teaching, campus ministry, immigration rights, and dietician, nursing, and more!  The positions are full-time volunteer positions, but we cover all of your needs for the year.

Cap Corps volunteers live with other people interested in building intentional, social justice and faith-focused communities and are given room, board, health insurance, transportation, and a small stipend during their 12-30 month commitments. Positions available in Milwaukee, Chicago, Detroit, Northern Cheyenne Nation (Montana), Nicaragua and Peru. Call Shelly at 414-374-8841 x29 for more info! Applications due February 15 for priority placement!

Join us in transforming the world through reverence.

in Stories  by 20 Jan 2014 0 comments

Alternatives to Teach for America

Teach For America has an average acceptance rate of less than 15%, the majority of the applicants from Ivy league schools…tough odds for the majority of young people. The good news is there are plenty of other ways to work to address the education disparity in this country and even in other parts of the world.  Some of these programs are service years, other are designed for people who want to become teachers for a longer period of time. If you would like help exploring these opportunities or completing the applications, sign up for an NGS mentor here.

City Year (nationwide)

“City Year’s mission is to build democracy through citizen service, civic leadership and social entrepreneurship. It is through service that we can demonstrate the power and idealism of young people, engage citizens to benefit the common good, and develop young leaders of the next generation.

City Year is wholly focused on fighting the national dropout crisis. We have committed to leverage the talent, energy and idealism of corps members to serve as tutors, mentors and role models in schools to help students stay on track – and get back on track – to graduate. “

World Teach  (worldwide)

As a WorldTeach volunteer, you will witness firsthand the challenges and rewards of education in a developing country. You will share the skills and knowledge gained through your education and life experience with your students, and you will make a lasting difference in their lives, opening their eyes to a world beyond their classrooms.

You will gain cultural understanding and the ability to work independently in a new and often challenging environment.

You will develop key skills– including teaching, language, cross-cultural communication, and leadership– that will be useful in any career path.

Americorps Builds Lives Through Education (Buffalo, NY)

“AmeriCorps Builds Lives through Education (ABLE) members serve K-12 students in the city of Buffalo, NY by tutoring and providing academic assistance. ABLE members commit to one year of full-time service as AmeriCorps members at a partner site. Many ABLE members come to the program as certified teachers, but it is not a requirement for service. In addition to serving at a host site, ABLE members participate in continuous professional development including monthly trainings, site visits with ABLE staff, reading & discussion series, and other opportunities provided through ABLE. “

Citizen School (nationwide)

The AmeriCorps Teaching Fellowship at Citizen Schools gives leaders real teaching and non-profit experience, while engaging them deeply in communities and schools. Two years of service helps to build the school of the future.

Build relationships with a team of middle-school students. Learn how to make lessons engage the toughest classrooms. Analyze student progress in academics and help teachers provide targeted support.

CoaHcorps (Boston)

The 2014-2015 CORPS will include 42 full-time staff members working with approximately 15 CoaH students each day. There will be 19 CORPS members at CoaH I with grades 9-12 (on Circuit Street in Roxbury), 14 CORPS members at CoaH II with grades 9-10 (on Washington Street in Roxbury) and 9 CORPS members at the New Bedford school, which will only have a 9th grade. CoaHCORPS members deliver individualized instruction in literacy and numeracy. The CORPS seeks to meet students at their entering achievement levels and advance them past grade level.

Japan Exchange Teaching Program (Japan)

The Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme, now in its 27th year, is aimed at promoting grass-roots international exchange between Japan and other nations. The number of countries sending participants has risen over the years, as has the number of participants. In 2013, the Programme welcomed 4,372 participants from 40 countries.

No matter where you go in Japan today, you will find JET participants developing strong relationships with their local communities through foreign language education and international exchange activities. After completing their time on the Programme, many former JET participants use their experiences in Japan to continue enhancing relations between Japan and their home countries.

Boston Teaching Residency (Boston)

Boston Teacher Residency (BTR) recruits talented college graduates, career changers and community members of all ages and gives them the tools to make an immediate impact in the classrooms of the Boston Public Schools (BPS). Combining a yearlong classroom apprenticeship with targeted master’s-level coursework, the program offers much more than just an affordable route into teaching. BTR provides every Resident with the practical learning, hands-on experience and ongoing support essential to any successful career in teaching. Download the program flyer.

Match Education (Boston)

In the first year, residents are trained in Boston. During the year, they participate in our Match Corps tutoring program Monday through Thursday and receive MTR training on Fridays and Saturdays.  For more information on the Match Corps component of the program, click here. The intense Friday/Saturday MTR training sessions are a mix of graduate school classes, simulations, and ultimately student teaching.  In the spring, we help our residents find teaching positions in the nation’s top urban charter and turnaround schools.  School leaders covet Match Teacher Residents; many folks get multiple job offers. This first year culminates in residents receiving a Massachusetts teaching license. At this point, 80% of the MTR experience – and the work towards earning a Master’s Degree in Effective Teaching – is complete.

During the second year, residents have left Match Teacher Residency. They have full-time teaching jobs elsewhere.  However, they continue to participate in MTR in two ways: First, we provide ongoing support and coaching to residents who take teaching jobs in the Boston area. Second, residents take a yearlong distance-learning course that is closely connected to their work as full-time teachers. Ultimately MTR evaluates each resident’s performance as a first year teacher to determine if they earn the Master’s in Effective Teaching.

NYC Teaching Fellowships (New York)

Our mission is to recruit and prepare high-quality, dedicated individuals to become teachers who raise student achievement in the New York City classrooms that need them most. We value individuals from a broad range of personal and professional backgrounds who are passionate about making a lasting impact in New York City public schools. Learn more about our mission and values.

In New York City, almost 4 in 10 New York City public school students do not earn a diploma within four years, and black, Latino, and low-income students in New York City score, on average, several grade levels below their peers on standardized tests. We know that when students in high-poverty areas have equal access to the resources available to their more affluent peers they are able to achieve at high levels, and we know that effective teachers are the most influential factor in determining student success. Fellows are committed to ensuring that all students in New York City receive an excellent education—and they are making a dramatic difference. Learn more about why teachers matter in New York City.

Reach to Teach (worldwide)

Reach To Teach is a FREE ESL Teacher Placement Agency. We never take a percentage of your salary and there are no hidden fees. We have placed thousands of happy native English teachers in ESL teaching jobs and volunteer positions in destinations all over the world. Our extensive experience with placing teachers in government teaching programs and private language schools allows us to give simple answers to your questions and help you make informed decisions every step of the way.

Inner-city teaching corps of Chicago (Chicago)

Inner-City Teaching Corps (ICTC) energizes urban classrooms with tomorrow’s high-impact leaders today by recruiting top recent college graduates and accomplished career changers into urban education.

Inner-City Teaching Corps is an elite group of future leaders working to close the achievement gap. Committing to teach in Chicago’s urban schools for two years, corps members obtain their certification and receive ongoing, personalized coaching and support, living either independently or in a faith-based community

In collaboration with Northwestern University’s nationally ranked School of Education and Social Policy, ICTC develops beginning teachers through a rigorous academic curriculum, expert coaching, and opportunities for collaboration with other educators to develop the skills needed to be leaders within their schools. The path to educational leadership begins with outstanding, results-focused teaching. Focusing on qualities and skills that comprise The Alain Locke Initiative Leadership Framework, corps members provide the high-quality instruction that energizes schools and closes the achievement gap, opening opportunities for all students to achieve regardless of income level.

Teaching Fellow TNTP (nationwide)

Operating in more than a dozen U.S. cities, TNTP’s Teaching Fellows programs hold the highest standards for effective teaching of any teacher preparation program in America. Each of TNTP’s programs trains teachers to meet district needs in key subjects, such as math, science and Special Education. Click the logos below to visit each program’s website.

in Ideas  by 19 Jan 2014 3 comments

Service > Grad School

I recently had dinner with a dear friend of mine and like many twentysomethings, she has been struggling to get out of the dead-end job rut.  As she told me she wanted to attend grad school for administration, I gawked, “do you even like administration?” Her answer was a lack-luster, “well it is something.”  I am all for expanding horizons and skill sets but at a cost of $70,000- that education better be worth more then “something.”

 

I asked her if she had considered participating in a year of service, and her response (typical of most young people I talk to) was “I need to make money to pay off student loan debt.”

 

This is a valid response, but it highlights the misconception that a year-long service commitment is equivalent to stuffing envelopes at the local church or serving soup at a soup kitchen (while still powerful acts of service, they are often temporary and less of a career-boosting experience than a year-long volunteer post).

 

While they do not pay well, long-term service opportunities often defer your student loan debt (AmeriCorps, PeaceCorps and Teach For America all do). These programs provide positions where the volunteer has an opportunity to be a leader without needing past experience to do so. In these roles, volunteers are empowered to take initiative, and in most cases they are given responsibilities similar to paid staff.  Being a staff member within a non-profit organization requires wearing multiple hats, and can include everything from coordinating volunteer teams to managing a website, to training program directors- all of this being accomplished by one person! Consider this scenario: You are a mid-twenty something trying to discover your life calling. You are unsure of what to do with your current skill sets, and you have the desire to learn more- Why would you pay thousands of dollars to acquire “mastery” in a specific field if you are not sure that is the field that makes you come alive? Long-term service opportunities may not pay off monetarily, yet its value in experience is far greater, and will not put you in debt like years of grad school would. In fact, check out this initiative from the Brandeis University, offering a minimum of $10,000 in scholarship to Americorps Alumni!

 

Once my friend reoriented to service learning not as a high school graduation requirement, but instead as an actual means to discover her purpose, while building skills- she was then able to look at a year of service parallel to how she was looking at grad school-as an investment.

 

Written by Anna Lenhart, Edited by Nicole Ryan

in Ideas  by 25 Dec 2013 0 comments

Zahn Innovation Center at SDSU

Zahn-250Nicole Campbell, The Next Generation of Service (NGS) Chief of Fundraising, recently pitched NGS’s Idea in the second annual Zahn Challenge at San Diego State University (SDSU)… and we won $3,000!

We are incredibly grateful to the Zahn Innovation Center for their commitment to investing in students who are creating companies with social impact. The NGS Movement’s success depends on understanding and connecting with universities such as SDSU to refine our business model. We also appreciate the opportunity to work with fellow change makers and mentors who believe in our idea. Check out the other members of the Zahn Innovation center here.

in Organizational News  by 25 Dec 2013 0 comments

Nicole, Oakland, CA

To me, public services hjumpstart,human services,volunteer opportunities, volunteer experience, education servicesave always liked felt like the foundation of any community, supporting individuals to thrive despite social, educational, economic and other disparities. As both a recipient and provider of services, I feel drawn to these efforts. I have been fortunate to work with several organizations whose missions align with my passion, and I am building a truly a fulfilling life path for myself along the way.

My first adventure in human services was working in a teaching group in Oakland, California for the AmeriCorps’s program Jumpstart. Jumpstart is a national early education organization serving preschool children in underserved neighborhoods. Its mission is to help children develop language and literacy skills in preparation for kindergarten and beyond. Over two years of service I worked as a practitioner of educational services as well as a group organizer to include the community in our educational endeavors.

Some of the most rewarding moments with my Jumpstart class were witnessing students engage with their parents through their education. Helping my students display schoolwork to their parents or share a book they read with them was very satisfying. Pick-up time became a sort of show-and-tell for the things students learned that day. Parents are truly children’s foremost educators, and having students link their formal education with them was tangibly accomplishing Jumpstart’s mission.

My utmost goal in my service with Jumpstart was to foster a sense of competence in all of my students. Every effort as a corpsmember – from instruction to parental contact to community programs – was to help students feel empowered in their own education. In turn, my service and my students empowered me to put my skills and interests to best use: to henceforth maximize resources for non-profit organizations. It became clearer to me that my life’s work should be to organize operations to provide the best services to the greatest amount of people. I am now working on this mission as a career by promoting leadership, organizational sustainability and community engagement. I thank Jumpstart for an amazing service experience and I thank my students for all of their hard work and optimism.

in Stories  by 14 Nov 2013 0 comments

Change Maker Fest 2013

USDChangemakerworkshop

NGS (the Next Generation of Service) launched our services this past Thursday, October 3rd, 2013 at University of San Diego’s (USD) Change Maker Fest.  USD has a campus mission and spirit that inspires young people to make a difference by working on innovative solutions to social problems; it is a great place for NGS to being the pilot of our mentorship program.

In the morning we hosted our “Introduction to Vocation” Workshop, where we explored the relationship between work and life calling and the difficulties of balancing money with finding our passions.  We talked about what the world would look like if more young people considered participating in service as part of their career path.

In the afternoon we had a table at the “fest” where we met with students and let them know that we have mentors available to help them uncover their passion and learn more about year long service opportunities.

We are excited and grateful to be working with USD to develop and improve our services.

in Organizational News  by 06 Oct 2013 0 comments