March 8th, 2024

The photo of the week features Projects and Resilience crews during their morning huddles at the new Umbarger lot for the Natural Resource Management department. (Yay for more parking!)

For a chance to be featured on the photo of the week, please email your best pictures to social@sjcccs.org or share your team updates on Slack!

AMERICORPS WEEK

Next week (March 11th to 15th) is AmeriCorps week! AmeriCorps Week is a time to recognize and thank AmeriCorps members and alumni for their service. During this week, corpsmembers can win AmeriCorps prizes by answering the daily questions posted on Slack! Stay tuned so you can win some cool prizes! 

WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH EVENT

In honor of Women's History Month, San Jose Conservation Corps + Charter School will host the 3rd annual Women's History Month event on March 15th from 6:00 to 7:30 PM. We would like to honor the outstanding achievements of our female-identifying corpsmembers who showed initiative and growth within our program. 

Come and enjoy:

• Storytelling from women at the Corps

• Catering from a local women-owned restaurant

• Bring your family and friends

This is FREE for all SJCC+CS corpsmembers, staff, and guests. Hope to see you there! 

OUTDOOR CLUB

Do you enjoy being outside? Do you want to connect with people who share your interests? You are invited to join SJCC+CS's OUTDOOR CLUB! Whether running, walking, hiking, skiing, finding new parks, general adventuring, or whatever awesome ideas you want to share, the outdoor club is a space to connect with people, share interests, and explore the GREAT OUTDOORS!  

Ways to get involved:

• Join the #outdoor-club slack channel!

• Come to a weekly meet-up at our rotating locations! (Every Tuesday @ 5 pm) 

• Contact Lexie Felix on Slack if you have any questions

Corpsmembers and staff are welcome to join! Hope to see you there!

S-212 WILDLAND FIRE CHAINSAW TRAINING

Last week, corpsmembers completed their S-212 Wildland Fire Chainsaw Training! The week-long training equipped them with essential skills such as safety protocols, precision cuts, and saw maintenance. We're incredibly proud of their achievement. Congratulations! Check out more photos from their training below!

BLACK HISTORY MONTH

Our recent celebration for Black History Month was lively and impactful, kicking off with a meaningful grounding ceremony. We were honored to have Milan Balinton (Executive Director at AACSA Silicon Valley) as our guest speaker, who shared inspiring words. The evening also featured a captivating showcase of local Black artists, presented by 1Culture, and a selection of African short films curated by the Silicon Valley African Fim Festival. To top it off, we enjoyed delicious soul food catered by Jackie's Place!

The Charter School also joined in the celebration by recognizing students on the honor roll and presenting perfect attendance awards. Community partners were invited to share valuable resources with our students, and Chuck Cantrell delivered a motivational speech.

Thank you to everyone who attended and helped make this happen. Let us carry the spirit of empowerment and recognition forward in February and throughout the year. 

TABLING AT VIVA CALLE PARKS

Supervisor Rubi Loaeza took Corpsmembers Luz Valenzuela and Jamie Rodriguez to a tabling event at the Viva Calle Parks event, where they shared information about the Zero Waste program and gave out masks, hand sanitizer, and used oil containers to the public. Thank you for helping out!

CORPSMEMBER LED TOOL REFRESHER TRAINING

Corpsmembers recently participated in a refresher training session on adequately maintaining and operating various power tools. The session was interactive, with plenty of questions answered and new skills acquired. Thank you to the corpsmembers for your active participation and dedication to learning!

AMERICORPS EDUCATION AWARD

Congratulations to Joell Alves for completing his Americorps educational award!

RECYCLING WORKSHOP

Luz Valenzuela, Vanessa Segura-Lara, and Belen Reyes attended the CA Workshop hosted by The Recycling Partnership last week. They participated in a two-day workshop addressing the need for effective and inclusive recycling programs. 

NEW GRADUATES

This week we have fourteen new graduates! Congratulations everyone!

BIRTHDAYS, ANNIVERSARIES, AND NEW FACES

Happy birthday to all the staff and corpsmembers who are having birthdays in March! 

Congratulations to all the corspmembers who have a work anniversary this month! 

Welcome to the Corps, Claudia Miramontes and Ken Vu!

CORPSMEMBER RECOGNITION

Natural Resources Coordinator Mayra Carrillo wanted to give corpsmember Kylee Leifson some recognition for her incredible work and role as the Natural Resources team's support system. Kylee consistently goes above and beyond to assist everyone in this place. Whether it's a small or large task, she always wants to assist us in the office to make our jobs easier.  "Sometimes, I'm not sure where I would be without Kylee's assistance. Thanks, Kylee for all your help!"

INTERNAL JOB OPENINGS

We have 3 additional internal-only job openings! Check them out below!

REFER A FRIEND, GET $100

HOW TO ACCESS YOUR BENEFITS

Don't know how to access your benefits under Guardian (Dental, Vision, and Life Insurance)? Follow this quick guide above.

403B RETIREMENT PLAN

Enroll now to invest in your future! Employees can sign up for their 403b retirement plan. For more information, you can contact

Violet Perez at vperez@sjcccs.org or (669)220-0078