������Ƶ

Teamwork and Emerging Leadership at City Year Orlando

To honor and celebrate the dedication and talent of City Year AmeriCorps members during AmeriCorps Week, we’re shining a light on some of the defining experiences of our corps members—moments and relationships that shape not just their year of service, but the young professionals and leaders they are becoming and aspire to be. 

Three City Year Orlando AmeriCorps members—KiHyira Jones, Rodney Roberson and Thomas Richter—signed up for different reasons to serve students across Orange County. None of them expected one of the most powerful parts of their service to be the bonds they formed with one another.

KiHyira, Rodney and Thomas don’t serve at the same school, but all are AmeriCorps members who work as student success coaches (SSCs). These coaches are near-peer tutors, mentor and role models who are wise enough to offer students guidance, yet young enough to relate to students’ perspectives and help them navigate academic and interpersonal challenges throughout the school day.

KiHyira, Rodney and Thomas don’t work with the same grade levels or even tutor students in the same subjects. But the teamwork, encouragement and leadership that has grown between the three student success coaches has become a defining part of their City Year experience—and an example of what community looks like in action.

Their connection began during onboarding, weeks before their first day of serving students in ������Ƶ. And their bond continues daily through their work on the Corps Council, where they represent their individual school teams and work together to lift the entire Orlando corps.

What they’ve built—across differences, across campuses, and sometimes across challenges—speaks to the power of teamwork in service.

Three Different Journeys, One Shared Mission

Rodney Robertson – Returning for a Second Year

Rodney, 23, describes his path to City Year as “unexpected, but meant to be.” A psychology major who moved to Orlando to study at the University of Central Florida (UCF), he learned about City Year at a career fair and immediately connected with the organization’s focus on supporting students’ early development.

Now in his second year of service, Rodney brings experience—and honesty—to the team.

Some City Year corps members decide to return for another year of service. Here’s everything you need to know about returning.

“As returning members, we don’t sugarcoat things,” he says. “Service is hard. But we want the year to be digestible and positive for our first-years. So, we’re transparent. We talk openly. We support each other through the real challenges.”

Rodney serves at Meadowbrook Middle School, supporting sixth and seventh grade math and English Language Art classes.

Thomas Richter – Exploring Public Policy Through Service

For Thomas, 22, City Year is part of a clear purpose: understanding how public policy affects people’s real lives. After switching majors from engineering to criminal justice at UCF—and beginning a dual master’s in public administration and criminal justice—he joined City Year to experience firsthand what students and educators navigate every day.

“I want to know what nonprofits and ������Ƶ and communities are actually facing,” he says. “I didn’t just want to read about challenges in ������Ƶ. I wanted to be boots on the ground.”

Thomas serves seventh grade accelerated and regular math at Memorial Middle School, where he’s been navigating his own leadership growth amid changes. One of the biggest shifts happened after his impact manager, who had been a great support system for Thomas and his team, transitioned out mid-year.

“The adversity is real,” Thomas says. “But I know when I look back, this will be what made me a better leader.”

KiHyira Jones – “Be the Person You Needed When You Were Younger”

KiHyira, 23, began her academic journey in biology, imagining she’d one day attend medical school before realizing her heart was in public health and community service. A first-generation college graduate from coastal North Carolina, she’s now a master’s student in public health focused on community and behavioral health at East Carolina University.

A City Year recruiter encouraged her to take a leap—and she did.

Her guiding principle is simple and profound:

“Be the person you needed when you were younger.”

KiHyira serves eighth grade math at Walker Middle School, always keeping students’ social, emotional and academic needs front and center. She knows it’s harder for students to learn and engage deeply with their learning if they don’t feel supported, safe and seen.

City Year’s Whole School, Whole Child® approach is holistic—designed to support the learning, development and well-being of the whole student as they experience the entire school day.

City Year AmeriCorps members receive training during an onboarding experience and then once a week throughout the year, so they can better support student growth and learning.

Finding Each Other—and Their Leadership—Through Corps Council

Though the three student success coaches serve at different campuses, their roles as corps council representatives brought them together early.

Corps council members meet regularly to:

• advocate for their teams
• collaborate across ������Ƶ
• plan sitewide events
• address challenges that impact the corps

Their first major project was planning City Year Orlando’s Fall Conference—one team leading field day activities, the other coordinating a clothing drive for students.

Rodney recalls being inspired by the drive and initiative he saw in his first-year peers.

“Thomas and KiHyira came in and blew expectations out of the water. They acted like team leaders from the start. They ask questions. They take initiative. They care deeply. They jumped right in.”

KiHyira remembers the early days a little differently:

“At first, we were all just trying to figure each other out—Who are you? What do you stand for? But over time, we saw we shared the same values. The encouragement was constant. We clicked.”

Thomas adds:

“Knowing what Rodney and the other returning members wanted for this year—the accountability, the higher expectations—set the tone. They were clear about what was needed to be successful. And that helped all of us feel prepared before stepping into ������Ƶ.”

Showing Up for Each Other When Things Get Tough

Each AmeriCorps member faces challenges—long hours, unpredictable moments, emotional conversations, and demanding days.

And each has leaned on the others.

When KiHyira faced conflict within her school team…

She asked Rodney for help.

“I said, ‘How do I handle this?’ As a first-year, I didn’t know the conflict-resolution process. He walked me through it.”

When Thomas’s school lost their impact manager…

He leaned on both Rodney and KiHyira.

“It’s been tough. But the challenge is shaping my leadership. And having Rodney and KiHyira to talk through things with has been huge.”

When Rodney reflected on supporting first-year student success coaches…

He pointed to transparency as the key.

“We’ve all been stressed. But if we aren’t honest about that with each other, how do we grow?”

Leadership That Looks Like Community

Ask the three how they define leadership, and their answers align:

• Holding yourself accountable (Thomas)
• Being transparent and collaborative (Rodney)
• Seeing ahead and caring deeply (KiHyira)

But KiHyira offers the line that has stayed with her teammates:

“If not you, then who?”

For her, it’s about stepping in—to support students, to improve systems, to serve.

What They Want Future AmeriCorps Members to Know

They’re honest:

“This isn’t easy,” Rodney says. “But your students might come to school just to see you. That’s how much the work matters.”

“Life only gets harder,” Thomas adds. “But when you’re doing what you love—helping others—why not put your whole heart into it?”

“If not you, then who?” KiHyira repeats. “There’s a gap between students and teachers that needs bridging. Someone has to show up.”

Three Schools. Three Leaders. One Team.

KiHyira, Rodney, and Thomas didn’t plan to become a team.

But sometimes leadership grows naturally out of shared values, a willingness to learn, and a commitment to showing up—for students and for each other.

Their friendship, honesty and collaboration embody what makes a City Year experience so powerful: not just the work happening in classrooms, but the community of young leaders growing alongside one another.

Their service is proof that when AmeriCorps members support each other, the entire corps becomes stronger—and students feel the impact most of all.

Talk with a recruiter today to learn more.