Leading with Their Life Experience
The groundbreaking California Justice Leaders AmeriCorps program takes the idea of credible messengers to new heights.
California Justice Leaders AmeriCorps is the first-ever AmeriCorps program designed specifically to both enroll and serve people impacted by America’s vast criminal legal system. The Justice Leaders, most of whom are formerly incarcerated, function as coaches, mentors, and most important, as credible messengers for justice-involved youth and young adults who are facing many of the same challenges they once did. This best-practice framework guides their year or more of service at community-based organizations across the state of California, a model poised to be taken up by cities and states across the country.
Since the launch of California Justice Leaders AmeriCorps in 2020, 165 men and women have graduated from a program that not only supports young people at a crucial stage in their lives but is also a professional growth opportunity and launch pad for the Justice Leaders themselves, who transition from their AmeriCorps placements into permanent jobs, go on to pursue advanced degrees, and excel in many other ways. The following essay profiles four graduates.
Introduction
Over the last 30 years, every single time America called, AmeriCorps answered. In the wake of natural disasters and a global pandemic, in the face of generational poverty and unjust systems, AmeriCorps members and programs run head-first to face these challenges. They embrace collaboration, work across difference, and get things done for America. Partners like California Justice Leaders show us what is possible when we leverage national service to create lasting local impact.
As the largest grant-maker for service and volunteerism, AmeriCorps is committed to expanding the capacity of local organizations and creating pathways and opportunities for proximate leaders — including those who have been impacted by the justice system. AmeriCorps programs like California Justice Leaders give folks from all walks of life the opportunity to turn second chances into enduring change. And the opportunity to transform communities while investing in their own development as career-ready leaders.
At AmeriCorps, we see the abundance of love, culture, creativity, and care in our communities as an asset. That asset helps our programs grow and fosters a sense of belonging among AmeriCorps and community members alike. Programs like California Justice Leaders value proximate leadership and lived experience, and they inspire programs across the country to see the power and importance of a second chance.
As AmeriCorps looks ahead to its next 30 years, we will continue to expand opportunity — particularly for young people in our society who too often are left behind — and welcome AmeriCorps members who bring a diverse set of lived experiences and perspective to service. And we are committed to providing greater access to our programs by working to reduce the intentional, entrenched, and systemic barriers that stand in the way of those who deserve a second chance.
Sonali Nijhawan
AmeriCorps State and National Director
Sergio Coronel
Sergio Coronel was part of the first cohort of California Justice Leaders AmeriCorps and in December 2022 completed his third and final year of service. Working under the auspices of Focus Forward in Fresno, Sergio drew on his own lived experience and the professional training he received through California Justice Leaders to mentor and guide young people returning home after a period of confinement in a juvenile facility.
Today, Sergio is Executive Director of Youngsters for Change, an organization he co-founded that works to prevent youth from entering the criminal legal system. He also serves as a gang consultant, working with private attorneys, to represent youth in court. Sergio recently graduated with his Masters in Criminology from California State University, Fresno. He practices mixed martial arts and has numerous medals from grappling tournaments.
“I was only 13 when I experienced the old Fresno juvenile hall ... so I understand the challenges a youth encounters when released from a juvenile facility – the setbacks, the barriers, and how change is a process. As a California Justice Leader, I drew on this lived experience, while also building my professional skills, to become the credible mentor I wish I’d had.”
“I always approach young people from a perspective of healing and transformation without judgment or labeling. Along with techniques like motivational interviewing, which I learned as a California Justice Leader, I was able to help each individual develop a reentry plan rooted in their voice and their personal goals.”
Ashaki Scott
Ashaki Scott completed her second and final year as a California Justice Leader AmeriCorps Member in December 2023. Ashaki’s study of psychology and lived experience informed her approach to working with system-impacted young people at Bay Area Community Resources, a San Leandro organization that provides workforce development training for youth. Ashaki is particularly committed to connecting youth with mental health support as a foundation for overall wellness and overcoming the challenges they face as formerly incarcerated individuals.
Ashaki will graduate from California State University, East Bay, in spring 2024 and plans to begin her career in industrial psychology and possibly attend graduate school.
“I believe that people do grow, people do change, and people do deserve second chances. So I encourage anyone who has these stereotypes about people who are formerly incarcerated to see them as a person and get to know them, not just their rap sheet.”
“I’m just trying to be the best person I possibly can be, and I’m trying to grow each and every day to be better than the person I was yesterday.”
Danny Muñoz
Danny Muñoz grew up a youth at-risk. Without a positive male influence in his life, he spent decades in and out of the carceral system. After he was shot five times and survived, he made a commitment to change his life, using education as his pathway. As a California Justice Leader AmeriCorps Member, Danny worked at The Mentoring Center in Oakland which helps organizations develop and operate their own mentoring programs for youth and young adults. Danny also served as a mentor, tutor, and teaching assistant for a program operated by Restoring Our Promise that brings college courses inside the Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center.
Danny recently graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with his Bachelors and has begun a Masters program there in the Goldman School of Public Policy. He knows firsthand the barriers formerly incarcerated individuals face in academic and professional spheres and in a recent opinion piece for the Prison Journalism Project called for enlisting formerly incarcerated people as school teachers and counselors.
“I believe we can vastly improve educational and life trajectories for children in marginalized communities of color. … That means looking at someone like me and seeing a potential school teacher or guidance counselor.”
“It’s not easy to connect with a young person in crisis and earn their trust, but it can be done. Because of my life experience and the training I received and as a California Justice Leader, I could meet these young people where they are … and that made me effective.”
Devontae Springer
Devontae Springer spent three years as a California Justice Leader AmeriCorps Member in Sacramento, working at the Anti Recidivism Coalition (ARC), which provides life coaching and reentry support for currently and formerly incarcerated individuals. Devontae benefited from ARC’s services himself and also credits a mentor with motivating him to change his life while he was incarcerated. After he was released, Devontae began sharing his story and being that mentor for others, making him a natural fit for AmeriCorps-California Justice Leaders.
After completing his third year as a Justice Leader, Devontae received an Annie E. Casey Foundation fellowship that supports his current work as a research analyst at Impact Justice. Devontae is also the founder of Community House Activism (CHA), a nonprofit that uplifts black & brown voices in the community through storytelling and advocacy.
“Looking back just a few years, to 2018 compared to the person I’m today, I’d say I’m less afraid to speak up, less afraid to tell my story. Over the years, I learned how to be more open. My experience with California Justice Leaders AmeriCorps was a big part of that personal transformation.”
“Talent, execution and grit are all important if you want to be successful.”
Sonali Nijhawan is AmeriCorps State and National Director. She has committed her career to developing leaders and growing national service. Prior to assuming her current position, she developed and served as executive director of Stockton Service Corps, a six-year, $12 million initiative to address local needs through AmeriCorps. Her professional background also includes extensive experience in education, beginning as an AmeriCorps member with City Year Chicago. Inspired by the students, families, and AmeriCorps community she met, she then went on to help found City Year Sacramento and launch the organization's 22nd site with 50 new AmeriCorps members. Sonali Nijhawan also served as the California Director of Education Pioneers where she recruited, placed, and supported managers in urban school systems and education nonprofits, empowering people to challenge the status quo of our public education system. She holds a bachelor’s in education and psychology from Marquette University and a master’s in social work from the University of Maryland, Baltimore.
Barbara Kinney is an award-winning photojournalist whose work has appeared on the covers of TIME, Newsweek and People magazines. She was a White House Photographer during the Clinton Administration and later Hillary Clinton’s campaign photographer in the lead up to the 2016 presidential election, work captured in her book StillWithHer: Hillary Rodham Clinton and the Moments that Sparked a Movement. Kinney has traveled internationally photographing projects for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Nike Foundation, CARE, and the Eastern Congo Initiative. During her career, she also worked as a staff photo editor at USA Today, Reuters News Pictures, and the Seattle Times and on contract as a photo editor at the Gates Foundation and MSNBC.com. She joined the Emerson Collective in January 2017 as Senior Photo Editor and Photographer.
California Justice Leaders AmeriCorps is a partnership between the national nonprofit Impact Justice and AmeriCorps.
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