Civicorps

Program Overview

Civicorps is the only school in the East Bay where adults 18-26 can receive their high school diploma, prepare for college, and prime for family-sustaining careers, At Civicorps we believe that every young person deserves a high-quality education in a supported and positive environment as well as a career that is rewarding, challenging, and personally fulfilling. In order to deliver the best services possible for our participants, we are fully staffed with professionals in education, social work, and job training. All staff are trained in the theories of Trauma-Informed Care, Harm Reduction, and Restorative Justice; with which our programs are aligned.

Civicorps was founded in 1983 as one of the first local conservation corps in California and is based on the California Conservation Corps model of land conservation work and formal education.After running a GED preparation program for 12 years it was evident that our participants were seeking a more robust education; therefore in 1995, Oakland Unified School District approved our charter to become a high-school diploma program, making us the only high school for young adults, age 18 – 26, in the entire district. We were also one of the first 100 charters approved in the State of California. Early on we discovered that a mix of rigorous academics and paid job training was an effective combination for adults who were disconnected from school and work and have worked to continuously improve our program model each year.

Student and Volunteer Success Stories

A "little girl lost, confused, and at a dead end" is how Withelma "T" Ortiz Pettigrew describes herself before coming to Civicorps in 2007. Growing up in the foster care system, she was transferred between homes over 14 times throughout her childhood. When she spent her 17th birthday in Juvenile Hall, she realized that she needed to change the trajectory of her life.

"Before Civicorps, I was a little girl who thought I couldn't do anything, couldn't be anything, and then I came into an environment that understood young people who are what society considers 'problem children' and they accepted me and pushed me. So many times I was like 'I can't do this' and my supervisors would be like 'Yes you can, you're stronger than this.'"

Civicorps staff helped connect T with opportunities like a Hip Hop Literacy program at Ohio State University where she began to picture college as a real possibility for herself.

"Civicorps was the first place where I got to see what I was capable of and it's the first place where I got to develop my self-esteem and have exposure to activities that helped build on who I was as a person. It just made me hungrier for more of that."

T is now a 4.0 college student majoring in Strategic Communications at Morgan State University in Baltimore. She is also a social justice advocate who speaks on behalf of foster youth and victims of sex trafficking. T has testified in front of Congress and she continues to speak on panels across the US related to these issues.

Named one of Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People behind President Barack Obama, and one of Glamour Magazine's 2011 Women of the Year, T has spent the last decade serving as a voice for so many who have had theirs silenced.

"We all have failures and downfalls," T says. "But realize that it's not how you fall, but how you pick yourself up and keep going that is most important."