About Us
Learn about Experience Corps
The big picture
Who, what and where
A vision for our future
Answers to your questions
John Gardner's idea
Collaborators in education, research, aging and community service
Meet the Experience Corps board
Meet the Experience Corps staff
MEMBER PROFILE
Still Forming
Bonds
Raul Castaneda, classroom aide turned Experience Corps member (and award winner), San Francisco

I joined Experience Corps because: When I retired years ago, I was looking for something to do. I saw an Experience Corps flyer at the library, and I called the organization. It's been a great experience working in the schools because I'm a bilingual tutor.

The best part of being an Experience Corps member is : The immediate result I see every day when I work with the children one-on-one.

I like to tell the story about: I have a student this year from Mexico. This last year I've been working with her one-on-one for 45 minutes every day, and she's more open and has friends. Also, last year, I worked with a third-grade boy. He had to go back to Mexico, and I visited him, bringing him letters from his old classmates. I want to visit him every year.

I'm sticking with Experience Corps because: I've learned the last three years that a strong base in elementary school is important for moving from elementary to middle school -- you have to have a strong curriculum.

Read about Raul's recent award!

"It's like a job. You have goals. You see results" -Yuriy, Experience Corps Member

Here’s the big idea: society meets its greatest challenges by making full use of experience.

Experience Corps is a big idea come to life. In 1988, civic leader John Gardner wrote a concept paper envisioning an "operation give back" to mobilize the time, talent, and experience of older adults to revitalize their communities. Ten years later, he met Civic Ventures founder Marc Freedman, and Experience Corps was born. Now, in 2008, we are an award-winning network of partners, schools and community service organizations in 22 cities across America. Today, 2,000 Experience Corps members work to improve the lives of 20,000 students.

What does this tell us? That we're tapping into the desire for older adults to be engaged in community, leveraging their capacity to create lasting change, and making sure we conduct the research necessary to deliver the best results.

These results are essential to Experience Corps. Our members tutor children who need basic literacy skills; they mentor students who count on them for guidance; they partner with classroom teachers to make schools better places to learn; they help create healthier communities. We want their investment to count as much as possible – and we expect them to succeed.

The site is packed with pictures of Experience Corps members across the country. Their stories reflect the dedication, skills and training they bring to their work in public schools every day. Testimonies from educational leaders, policy makers, media and families give a glimpse into the way Experience Corps members touch lives every day. Take a look around. It's not very often you get to see a big idea come to life.

If you'd like to learn more, please contact us at info@experiencecorps.org.

Thanks for visiting!
Experience Corps staff
Experience Corps Staff: (front row, left to right) Tema Fishbein, Xuan Thanh Le, Christina New-Watling, Susanna Rosenbaum; (back row, left to right) Lindsay Moore, Eric Boven, Elizabeth Fox, Amy Zandarski-Pica, Lester Strong, Patrice Gerideau
Award winning
Social Capitalist Award winner, 2007 and 2008  >  
Our impact
Learn about the impact Experience Corps is having.  >  
Make it local
Start Experience Corps in your city  >  

Celebrating People in Action!
"In the 21st century, the best anti-poverty program around is a world-class education. And in this country, the success of our children cannot depend more on where they live than on their potential."

-President Obama, "State of the Union," January 27, 2010
"Together, we can continue our commitment to education innovation by investing in Experience Corps, a program that helps elementary students by increasing the number of older adult tutors and mentors in the classroom. Independent research shows that Experience Corps works: Third-grade reading and math scores are rising and students feel safer at school."

-Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, State of the City Speech, February 22, 2010