CRCorps + Momentum = 2024

We’re at the mid-point of January already, and I can’t believe it! As I reflect on 2023 and look to the rest of? 2024, I want to take a moment to express my gratitude to everyone who has contributed to College Renaissance Corps ' journey.

Together, we’ve created a national leadership program that embraces the alignment of higher education, service and workforce development for community college students. We’re building meaningful connections with community and employer leaders, while engaging them in social media advocacy. We're encouraging reflection that will empower them to become industry leaders and remain civically engaged in their communities. CRCorps as a model has jumped to the forefront of national service/workforce development strategy. Now, it’s all about how we execute.

2023 was the year CRCorps went from planning to operation.

We spent time refining our planning process, building relationships, and designing an impactful and valuable experience for our CRCorps Industry Ambassadors, community colleges, and industry partners.?

We’ve built a nearly $2 million national initiative from the ground up - securing planning, start up, and strategy grants from OneStar , Serve Colorado , AmeriCorps , and Serve Connecticut . And innovative philanthropic partners like the Lumina Foundation and ECMC Foundation have helped us accelerate our work to launch and scale based on best-practices in the field. Thank you Chauncy Lennon , Shauna Davis and Stephen J. Handel for your support and guidance.

Austin, Baltimore, Denver, Grand Rapids, Hartford, Houston, New Orleans, San Diego, Washington DC were on the list of cities our team visited as we grew relationships with leaders across the national service, workforce development and community college landscape. We've pulled in incredible advice from thought leaders in the national service ecosystem - including partners at Service Year Alliance , Yasmeen Shaheen-McConnell , Terra Wallin , and Malcolm Coles . Our team has developed an incredible knowledge base around AmeriCorps programming from conferences and trainings developed by our funding partners and America's Service Commissions .

I’m incredibly proud of the team we’re building - a diverse group of seasoned and emerging leaders passionate about CRCorps and the vision we have for the college access ecosystem. Yvonne E. Nieves , Senior program manager has been a right-hand partner helping operationalize our launch in Texas, partnering with Raven C , our CRCorps Houston Program coordinator. Dan Ashurst served as our inaugural AmeriCorps VISTA member and provided essential capacity building support as we developed our outreach and training for members. Elizabeth Villarreal is our current Americorps Vista member and a City Colleges of Chicago-Richard J Daley College grad (woot woot!) keeping our social media fresh and helping us get the word out about CRCorps goals.?

We’ve also laid the groundwork for an incredible new exploration and engagement tool powered by Tassel Software . The CRCorps Communities Platform will showcase our CRCorps Industry Ambassadors and enhance how students and communities experience college and career exploration. Thank you Irving C. for being a thought partner and co-investor in CRCorps. Stay tuned for the public launch!

And of course, we launched CRCorps Houston at the Houston Community College . The partnership is anchored by two incredible thought partners and advocates Frances Villagran-Glover , President of HCC Southeast and Alberto Urbina , Dean of the Manufacturing Center of Excellence. Our work together is poised to change the narrative on advanced manufacturing with an empowered group of HCC students committed to serving their communities and becoming the future of this industry.

2024 will be a year of growth and impact.?

As we step into 2024, our team will continue to carry an entrepreneurial spirit and an unwavering dedication to supporting community college students, fostering inclusivity, and broadening participation in high-demand industries.

We’re excited to officially launch CRCorps Denver in partnership with Arapahoe Community College and Community College of Denver , and funded by Serve Colorado this month! Through our partnership with Keystone Policy Center , Yoni Dobie-Geffen serves as our Senior market advisor, helping learn more about Colorado’s education and workforce ecosystem. Julie Beggs and Katrina Wert have continued to be inspired and engaged partners helping us develop the work in partnership with both campuses. We've met with leaders from the Colorado Community College System and remain excited about partnering with Chancellor Joseph Garcia and members of his team.

I’m also thrilled about the team we’ve built in Denver, including Alicia Lozano who joined our national team as our Business partnerships manager in December. Just this week, we welcomed Leah Porter Ed.M as our CRCorps Denver Program manager - a product of Arapahoe Community College (woot woot!)

In addition, over the holiday break we found some time to submit our national operating grant to AmeriCorps , hoping to continue our growth trajectory to an additional 5 cities/states. Let’s go City Colleges of Chicago , Delgado Community College , Henry Ford College , Ivy Tech Community College and Wake Technical Community College !

We’re also leveraging our resources to expand our local connectivity and market operating capacity. We’re continuing our partnership with Rebecca Evans , Andrea Maga?a and Olivia Goethals at Stomping Ground Strategies to sharpen our marketing and digital strategy. We’ve brought on Vanessa Grover, M.S. , a seasoned college and youth development leader to support member recruitment strategies in #Houston. And are activating new work with Chantelle George Consulting , led by Chantelle George, Ph.D. and Bold Ventures , led by Paul Diego Holzer to thoughtfully engage the partner communities in Houston, New Orleans and Connecticut.

Lastly, couldn’t be doing this without the leadership at Campus Compact . Bobbie Laur and Matt Farley you’ve been steadfast in moving CRCorps forward. Thank you for your support, grace, and insight as we leap into the next phase of work.

Looking ahead - if you’re a community college looking to grow and diversify the talent that is flowing into your incredible #advancedmanufacturing training spaces - we’re ready to work with you.

If you’re an employer, industry association or state agency looking to tell new stories about #manufacturing in 2024 - we’re ready to work with you.

And if you’re a student at a #communitycollege interested in building your network and making a difference in your community - we’re ready to trailblaze with you.

Learn more on our Linktree !

#nationalservice #communitycolleges #americorps