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As we work with students to be successful inside and outside of the���������������Ǵdz�, we��also work��with them to be open-minded and mindful of their peers who may be different than one another. With discrimination still taking a toll nationwide and here locally in San Antonio, ��ɫ��Ƶ has created safe spaces for AmeriCorps members���ٴ� express��their concerns and to brainstorm how school teams��can incorporate culturally responsive practices��in the classroom and schoolhouse.����

As a��Corps��member,��I learned during my onboarding with ��ɫ��Ƶ that��it��is important to understand that everyone comes from different��backgrounds and cultures. In order to have a comfortable and safe work environment, there must be mutual respect. As��Corps��members, we��learn that diversity, belonging,��inclusion��and��equity��(DBIE)��is not only fundamental to the values at ��ɫ��Ƶ, but focusing on DBIE is critical to our work in schools.��More than 30 years ago,����ɫ��Ƶ was built on the belief that uniting and empowering diverse teams of idealist young people and charging them with solving some of our country’s most difficult challenges can change the world for the better.��Today, we continue to��hold onto the importance of��DBIE because we know that real proximity to people from different backgrounds gives us empathy, improving our ability to develop meaningful relationships with other Corps members,��with��our��students��and��with the��other people in our lives.��

As a way of showing support and care, ��ɫ��Ƶ has spaces for AmeriCorps members to be a part of��affinity groups based on how��we��identify. Having these spaces��is��significant because not��all��jobs offer these��kinds of��opportunities,��and it is a way to let members know��that��we��are not alone. ��

When I first started City��Year and learned these identity spaces existed, I was��a bit��skeptical.��I thought, “How is this going to work?”��O�Գ��� I��entered the Black affinity group, I was mind-blown. There were��more than two other people who looked like me!��I felt��comfortable��talking��about things that��in��previous professional��roles��would��have��been labeled as��too��taboo for dialogue. This was my first time letting my guard down��and��the��first time��I felt��truly��comfortable in my own skin��at work.
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I appreciate the way in which ��ɫ��Ƶ��keeps DBIE at the forefront of our work in schools. As an organization that is committed to long-term partnerships with students in systemically under-resourced communities and schools,����ɫ��Ƶ’s��focus on DBIE helps me to be a more effective tutor,��mentor��and role model��to the students I have the privilege of working with each day.��