CELEBRATING GREATNESS MULTIPLYING GOOD BAY AREA IMPACT 2017-18
Students In Action student leaders at the KPIX/KCBS Celebration of Unsung Heroes, January 2018.
Since 2007, approximately
In 1972 three remarkable people stepped forward to help change the perceptions of the country. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Senator Robert Taft, Jr. and Sam Beard created the Jefferson Awards to celebrate and honor all the volunteers quietly making change and multiplying good, and in turn, to inspire others to get involved. Since then, with the help of our Media Partners and Champions, we have presented Jefferson Awards to over 60,000 Grassroots Unsung Heroes and engaged 7.2M Champion employees. In 2007, the Jefferson Awards expanded to create a youth program called Students In Action (SIA), focused on developing youth into strong leaders and community change-makers, followed by Lead360 which makes service easy-to-do, fun and accessible for everyone by seeking outstanding youth ideas and replicating the best nationwide. As we share our accomplishments of this past year in the pages ahead, we are also excited about the even greater impact to come in 2019. By expanding our youth programs and using our awards platforms to highlight good, we are actively creating a better world! To paraphrase Mahatma Gandhi, we can empower our youth to be the change they wish to see in the world. We invite you to join us as a catalyst for this change. Your support will help us instill skills in our youth leaders that will remain with them for a lifetime and empower future generations to create positive social impact.
Artavia Berry
Regional Executive Director San Francisco Bay Area
Jack Russi
Chairman Board of Governors
Hillary Schafer CEO
2,050
Bay Area youth have been given the skills to be effective service leaders
These youth have generated over
2.8M
hours of volunteer service valued at approximately
$81.5M in community impact Fundraised over
$2.5M
to help those most in need in communities throughout the US and abroad
Thank you to our extraordinary Jefferson Awards Bay Area Advisory Board Jack Russi, Deloitte LLP (Chair) Larry Baer, San Francisco Giants Sandra Bass, UC Berkeley Public Service Center Artavia Berry, Jefferson Awards Foundation Lorraine Cohen, Deloitte Tax LLP Jose Corona, Office of the Mayor, City of Oakland Shana Daum, San Francisco Giants Marlon Evans, Nex Cubed Amy Lesnick, Pledge 1% Ronnie Lott, All Stars Helping Kids Darien Louie, East Bay Economic Development Alliance Greg Nemitz, Entercom Radio San Francisco Star Plaxton-Moore, Leo T. McCarthy Center for Public Service and the Common Good John Power, The Volunteer Center Wade Rose, Dignity Health Lisa Spinali, Cross Sector Independent Consultant June Sugiyama, Vodafone Americas Foundation Taj Tashombe, Oakland Athletics David Thompson, Reed Smith Kevin Walsh, KPIX-TV KBCW-TV San Francisco / KSTW-TV Seattle
June Sugiyama, Vodafone Americas Foundation, talks about multiplying good at the KPIX| KCBS VIP Reception.
My favorite part of volunteering as an SIA coach is watching the growth of the new SIA club leaders each year. It is amazing how they blossom into Theyoung Jefferson Awards buildsrealizing a sustainable model forand youth men and women their potential thedevelopment difference they can through power volunteerism. not just about doing something good makethe when theyofput their mindsIt’s and learnings together! today; it’s about creating a lifelong value of doing good. If you would like to have a footprint on young people providing service to their — Darien Louie, Bay Area Advisory Board member community – be a Jefferson Awards Students in Action coach! — Joy Jacobs, Deloitte
Darien Louie and Michael Fong 2018
The Jefferson Awards Foundation Students In Action (SIA) program is a unique service, leadership and recognition program that supports, trains and empowers today’s youth to be leaders, problem solvers, entrepreneurs and impactful global citizens. The SIA program has four core components: 1. 2. 3. 4.
Connects young people to their own service passions Develops core life and leadership skills Elevates and amplifies youth stories Provides year-round support
Students In Action is a Multiplier of Good In the Bay Area, high schools use SIA to build a culture of service. There is a notable and exponential impact to our communities through our youth leaders and their SIA Clubs:
1,040+
ENGAGED
GENERATED
by their peers in more than 170 projects
in community impact
9,300 VOLUNTEERS
BAY AREA YOUTH LEADERS from 40 high schools
Convent & Stuart Hall High School, San Francisco @siashhscsh
@SHHSService
48
team members engaged 85% of the school in volunteering
33,120
hours of service generated
$7.2 MILLION $28,000
amount fundraised
Volunteers from Convent & Stuart Hall preparing bag lunches for their One Less Hungry outreach.
Among several projects, One Less Hungry (OLH) was created in 2014 by an SIA member who wanted to aid San Francisco’s homeless population. Each month volunteers assemble an average of 200 lunch bags and go out in to the community to experience firsthand the plight of homelessness through interactions with the homeless, and positively engage with them. OLH has expanded from 8 students to over 50 students and parents. Through an innovative partnership with Replate, the 600 meals served in the first year have grown to 1,800 meals this school year.
SIA has been a truly positive experience for me. I got to expand my network through the multiple conferences we attended, and made a stronger connection with my officers. By becoming an officer next year, I want to encourage my fellow peers to be the change. I’m starting this by leading a give love project at our school as an attempt to make more students feel like they should, important.
After publicity about the death of Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford’s family member from asthma, San Leandro High School’s SIA team realized how many at their school were impacted by this disease, and felt it was important to spread awareness for those impacted. The SIA team ultimately raised over $6,000 for research.
— Student Leader, Tennyson High School
The SIA Team at De La Salle High School engaged 66% of their school in volunteer efforts, including their annual Laps For Life run to raise money and awareness for suicide prevention. Overall they generated 65,500 volunteer hours and fundraised $20k for their community!
Through SIA, youth develop into confident individuals with tremendous leadership skills, well equipped to positively impact the lives of those around them. In the process, they develop their strengths and passions, propelling them to future success in school, career and life.
El Camino High School South San Francisco @echsSIA
@echsSIA
Some of the most valuable lessons youth will learn about life can only come from putting others’ needs ahead of their own. We asked the students’ advisors to tell us what youth in their SIA teams had learned:
88%
improved leadership skills
88%
improved collaboration skills
87%
increased communication skills
74%
understanding of community needs
El Camino High School’s SIA team assembling Lead360 Emma’s Art Kit packages
62
student leaders engaged 68% of their school in volunteer activities
39,000
volunteer hours of service generated
$22,000
approximate cash and in-kind donations raised
SIA has changed our campus culture for the better by empowering students to create and lead their own service projects, helping them to grow as leaders and expanding service in the school. — Faculty Advisor, El Camino High School
Projects included three Lead360 activations which resulted in 350 Art Kits created to benefit UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital & Stanford Hospital. They led many events including an online campaign to promote inclusion (#SIALOVESDIVERSITY), an anti-bullying week at school, CPR classes, tutoring sessions, clothing and toy drives, and are the drivers of volunteer service at their school.
Carondelet High School’s SIA team raised over $14,000 in cash and in-kind to benefit organizations including Monument Crisis Center, A Friendly Manor, and for senior victims of the North Bay fires.
In their first year in the SIA program, Deer Valley’s Students In Action team held several events including a donation drive for a hospital in Kenya – raising over 1,100 items to help the medical facility.
The Jefferson Awards gives us a framework to celebrate what we value; community service. The SIA program gives us the tools to act in our community. These programs embody ideals that are important … help us become better student leaders and create a better school climate and culture. — Student Leader, San Mateo High School
w
Tennyson High School’s SIA team members volunteering at The Kids Breakfast Club in Hayward, CA.
SIA team members from KIPP King High School taking a break at the fall leadership conference.
Learning and leading are fundamentals my team has learned from Students in Action, as new opportunities have taught my team and I to step out of our comfort zone. Suddenly leading and advocating for others’ ideas became easier and Students in Action has 100% helped me achieve that. We are forever appreciative and grateful! — Student Leader, KIPP King High School
250+ SIA members from 30 high schools were trained at our leadership conference last year.
In-School Sessions – Online This year, our new self-guided courses designed for SIA Team Advisors/Coaches/ Student Leaders to review and facilitate with the SIA team during SIA team meetings will allow us to expand our reach and supply more youth with the ability to confidently lead and serve. Sessions are offered via an online Learning Management System (LMS) and available on a weekly and monthly basis. There are monthly sessions which provide the basics for each topic, and there are weekly sessions which delve deeper into each topic. SIA Teams can choose which set of courses to pursue within the LMS. Course topics include SIA 101, investigating social issues, preparing for service, taking action in your community, sharing your impact and a final evaluation.
Instructor Tom Drews, WhatWorks! with some of his students at the mid-winter conference.
Student leaders are trained throughout the year to support deep levels of learning. In-person and online are two different yet complimentary ways in which youth receive our training,
Student Leadership Conferences - In-Person Twice year (Fall De andLaWinter), all School, youth in a region LukeaAnderson, Salle High Concord CAattend our Student Leadership Conferences. The purpose of these conferences is to bring together youth of differing backgrounds and beliefs to learn from and with each other about service and leadership. The Fall Leadership Conference focuses on: • Team building • Diversity & implicit bias • Project management • Fundraising • Media • Leadership
The Mid-Winter Conference focuses on: • Storytelling • Project management • Evaluation • Reflection • Leadership
San Mateo, Burlingame and Mills High Schools and Oakland Military Institute at the year -end presentations - an important part of leadership!
Sports Partners— Celebrating Volunteers, Inspiring Fans Many of the Bay Area’s professional sports teams are committed to celebrating our youth. The San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics provide a platform for our outstanding SIA members by honoring them on the field throughout the season during home plate ceremonies. Deserving youth are celebrated before the first pitch is thrown and their impact is multiplied as they inspire thousands of fans with their stories. We are grateful to San Francisco Giants Pitcher Hunter Strickland for embracing the mission of Students in Action by engaging with our students and their advisors during our events at AT&T Park; we also thank current Giants Community Ambassador and three-time World Series Champion Jeremy Affeldt who is also a champion for SIA. In addition, NFL Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott and his All Stars Helping Kids organization are instrumental in providing leadership inspiration at our youth leadership conferences and other events.
Luke Anderson with SF Giant Hunter Strickland
Mahtop Ranjber, Dozier-Libbey Medical High School was honored by the Athletics for her response to recent disasters. She collected donations to create 80 Disaster Relief Boxes that were distributed to victims of last year’s North Bay fires. In addition, she has clocked in over 400 hours volunteering at Kaiser Hospital. She has also been a leader at her school as a Diversity Trainer and Conflict Manager.
Chloe Duckworth, Pioneer High School Jefferson Award winner, was honored by the Giants as a volunteer all-star for starting her own patient cheer service called Sunshine Cart, which distributes toiletries, magazines, and patient rights handbooks to hospitalized patients. She also created a Clothes Closet where homeless patients are able to find clean clothes before leaving the hospital. With 15 volunteers and growing, Sunshine Cart will be expanding to Los Angeles area hospitals later this summer! Chloe runs the program and trains the volunteers herself to assure the Sunshine Cart is run to her high standards.
Community service has always held a special place in my heart, and it was very inspiring to see my service’s effect on others from a different perspective. During the game, many people approached me with a desire to get involved with my project—an opportunity I would not have been afforded otherwise. — Chloe Duckworth, Pioneer High School
Chloe Duckworth, Pioneer High School, San Jose CA
Intuit partnered with the Jefferson Awards to engage their employees in creating Art Kits. Approximately 50 employees joined us to pack kits and write encouraging notes to benefit Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford.
LEAD360 makes service easy-to-do, fun, and accessible by seeking outstanding youth ideas and replicating the best nationwide. We then celebrate those who activate the most. Last year’s winning project was Emma’s Art Kits, created by a 7-year-old who wanted to provide comfort to children in need. Last year in the Bay Area teams from Intuit, Actelion, SIA member high schools, KPIX|KCBS Reception attendees and more activated Emma’s Art Kits. Approximately 600 Art Kits were created and distributed across the Bay Area to benefit patients at Benioff Children’s Hospital & the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital and to the youngest victims of last year’s North Bay fires.
Tiffany Charvet, Notre Dame High School and Wooyoung Chang, The Convent & Stuart Hall High School, guide our VIP Reception guests through the Lead360 Emma’s Art Kit’s activation.
Diane Grey and Jack Russi
Unsung Heroes Award For more than a decade, our partners KPIX television and KCBS radio, have taken the brand of the Jefferson Awards and awarded over 650 grassroots unsung heroes, providing these heroes with a platform to multiply impact. When to watch: The Jefferson Awards on KPIX: Wednesdays on KPIX 5 News at 6pm Thursdays on KPIX 5 News at Noon On all news radio 106.9FM & AM740 KCBS: Wednesdays at 6:50pm, 9:40pm, 11:50pm Sundays at 11:50am, 3:50pm Click here to find out more and to nominate an unsung hero.
We think that shining our light on the unsung heroes in the Bay Area inspires others to jump in and help out. When you are a regular listener to KCBS, and you hear these stories every week, it should remind you that volunteerism is alive and well in the Bay Area. — Greg Nemitz, Senior Vice President & Market Manager Entercom Radio, San Francisco
The 2017 KPIX/KCBS Jefferson Award recipients at the Herbst Theater, January 2018
2017 Bay Area Gold Medal recipient & JAF National Ceremony honoree: While volunteering at a community center in her Bayview neighborhood, Diane Gray noticed many AfrcanAmerican students were struggling with school – leading to limited post- secondary opportunities. Diane sprang into action, founding “100% College Prep” to motivate students to always give their all. She recruited college students to serve as academic coaches, arranged monthly academic workshops, and engaged community volunteers. The program quickly grew into its own space and added computers, a library, classrooms and a kitchen with a cook to feed students while they focused on their studies. In addition, the program arranged college visits so students could see the potential for their own success. To date, more than 120 students have earned undergraduate and graduate degrees and hundreds more are taking part in the program, striving for college success.
Champions are organizations that partner with the Jefferson Awards Foundation (JAF) to engage in meaningful community service and celebrate employees in their communities with Jefferson Awards.
Profile of a Champion: • Empower programs through direct funding and in-kind support • Volunteer through one-on-one coaching at schools • Facilitate Students In Action leadership trainings • Activate Lead360 projects • Bring the Jefferson Awards to employee and community recognition
Gail O’Brien with her daughter and Annie Lathram, Reed Smith at the 2018 National Ceremony in Washington DC.
Gail O’Brien, Reed Smith Jefferson Award winner and JAF National Ceremony honoree: For 15 years, Gail has led a gift-giving drive in Reed Smith’s San Francisco office to benefit the Judith Baker Child Care Center, which serves low-income, recent immigrant, and homeless populations in SF’s SOMA neighborhood. Initially reaching 30 preschoolers, the program has since become a major early childhood education institution serving 130+ infants and young children, and hundreds of families each year. In Gail’s words "receiving this award from the firm made me feel appreciated for what I do and that I have the support of both the SF and SVO offices of Reed Smith”.
Mr. Tom Steyer & Ms. Kat Taylor
Contact Artavia Berry to find out how your organization can become a Champion.
The Jefferson Awards does not charge any fees to the high schools that participate in the SIA program, but it costs approximately $7k per school to underwrite (this includes a dedicated regional director, program manager, leadership trainings and supplies) and create approximately $350k impact or more in the community. We only require that schools in the program become seriously committed to public service. We invite you to join us in our mission by adopting a school and helping your Students In Action student leaders increase their leadership skills, as well as school volunteerism and community impact. 100% of your donation goes to underwriting our costs to maintain SIA in the Bay Area. Get involved. Make a difference. Be a hero!
Josh Becker, Founder Full Circle Fund and 2015 Unsung Hero Award recipient presenting Jefferson Awards at a ceremony held by Menlo-Atherton High School’s Students In Action team.
High School Heroes We are grateful to the following organizations and individuals who help support the Students In Action program in the Bay Area, either by adopting a specific school, or general program support. Jolie Bales
Michael Fong & Darien Louie
Josh Becker
Andy MacMillan
Jessica Bier
Mark Mahaney
Nancy Rutter Clark
Melody Phipps
Lorraine & Noah Cohen
Star Plaxton-Moore & Andrew Moore
Maureen Coslett William & Barbara Duhamel Jr.
John Power Amy Lesnick & Mark Roach
Each Foundation
Jack & Jodie Russi
Dena & Marlon Evans Founders Equity Partners
Antonio & Teresa Silva
Fremont Bank
Lisa Spinali
Hellman Foundation
June Sugiyama
Mary Hentges
David & Diane Thompson
Jackson Ladder Co.
Brian & Elizabeth Wilhelm
Laurence Jurdem & Jorie Waterman
Marie Wolbach
The Harry Singer Foundation
James Khoe, DDS Contact Artavia Berry for more information on how you can support SIA in schools like Oakland Charter High School (pictured left).
JOIN US IN MULTIPLYING GOOD Our 3-year goal is to expand our programming to 100 Bay Area high schools and train an incremental 700 students per year, with a focus on low to moderate income youth, but we can’t do it without you. By supporting the Jefferson Awards Foundation in the Bay Area, you can help us meet that goal. And 100% of your donation goes to impact!
Here’s how you can get involved: Donate and become a Champion or High School Hero Partner with us and we’ll multiply good together Volunteer as a Students In Action coach, or ask us about other opportunities Start a Students In Action Club at your high school Activate a Lead360 Project Nominate an Unsung Hero for a Jefferson Award Follow us onTwitter and Instagram @bayareajaf to stay up to date on our latest news For more information on any of our programs contact: Artavia Berry, Bay Area Regional Executive Director a.berry@jeffersonawards.org | 312.498.2483 180 Grand Avenue, Suite 310 Oakland, CA 94612 jeffersonawards.org My favorite part of volunteering as an SIA coach is watching the growth of the new SIA club leaders each year. It is amazing how they blossom into young men and women realizing their potential and the difference they can make when they put their minds and learnings together! If you would like to have an impact on young people providing service to their community – be a Jefferson Awards Students in Action coach!
Produced in partnership with the San Francisco Giants
— Joy Jacobs, Deloitte
