The first day I started in my permanent classrooms, I had an experience that assured me I would be accomplishing great things this year. The last two periods of the day, I am assigned to a 6th grade math class. When I first walked in, I introduced myself to the teacher and took some time to get accustomed to the culture of the class.

Almost immediately I noticed one child being very disruptive. He was calling out, getting out of his seat, and keeping other students from doing their work. The teacher seemed too overwhelmed to discipline the child, so I took it upon myself to try to get him to pay attention. After a few failed attempts, I whispered to him, “I have asked you a few times already. If you do not settle down, I will have to pull you aside and work with you in the back of the class.” He looked at me and immediately called out.

It seemed he only wanted some attention. When I sat down with him, he was able to grasp the concepts with ease. Once he finished his assignment, he ran up to his teacher and said, “Look! I finished!”

At the end of the day, the teacher took my aside. “ I just wanted to thank you, and let you know that was the first assignment he has handed in all year.” Being that it was mid-October, I was stunned. However, the experience was a great start to the year. I continue to work with that student, along with many others. I will always remember that day, as it was one of my most rewarding in-class experiences thus far.

- Caitlin, 23, City Year corps member, Berwind team at Hopkinson School

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May 6, 2009 (Boston, MA) - Today, City Year marks the milestone of corps members providing 20,000,000 hours of service to children and communities. This year, as City Year celebrates its 20th anniversary year at 20 locations across the United States and South Africa, 1,500 corps members are reaching this milestone as tutors, mentors and role models, helping students and schools succeed.

City Year, a nonprofit organization, unites young adults, between ages 17 and 24, from all backgrounds for a year of full-time service. These diverse leaders serve in schools to improve student attendance, behavior, and course performance - helping students get on track and stay on track to graduate and succeed. City Year corps members also run youth leadership programs for middle and high school students and lead children and communities in transformative physical service activities.

Each hour of service is about corps members making a difference: 19-year-old corps member Isabel Bernegger tells of one of those hours, “One of the students I work with is a 15-year-old girl who is in the 7th grade, for the second time. This year, she and I worked together during our morning check-ins and afternoon homework sessions to complete her assignments for English, math, chemistry and social studies. Today, I celebrate the hour when she ran to tell me she received a high grade on an English composition. She was so proud to earn a good grade and it inspired her to work harder. We are both proud that, with only a few months left in the school year, she is on track to pass the 7th grade.”

At a time when President Obama is calling on Americans of all ages to serve, young people like Isabel are stepping forward in record numbers to serve in communities across America. This year, City Year has seen triple the number of applications and received the most applications in the organization’s history – over 5,200. Support for national service opportunities has also increased with the passage of the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America, which will increase service opportunities for Americans to meet the most pressing problems in our communities and country.

“City Year was founded 20 years ago on the belief that young people can change the world. Now, 20 years later, 20 locations later and 20 million hours later, it is more than an idea – City Year taps the energy and idealism of young adults to strengthen community and country,” said Michael Brown, CEO and Co-Founder. “We are proud to mark our 20 millionth hour of service and celebrate the 11,400 City Year alumni who have given a year to change the world.”