IN THE NEWS
San Francisco Chronicle: The $1,000-a-month worker targeted by DOGE
By Joe Garofoli, Senior Political Writer – May 6, 2025
Alfanzo Rodriguez assists students during a seventh-grade science class at Coliseum College Prep Academy in East Oakland on Monday. Rodriguez says he was headed for a gang life at 15 before the death of his grandmother made him realize he “had to step up” for his young brother.
The scattershot, shortsighted and poorly conceived cuts by the President Trump and the Elon Musk-directed Department of Government Efficiency aren’t just hitting the unelected government bureaucrats hated by MAGA world. They are also affecting people like Alfanzo Rodriguez, a $1,000-a-month worker who helps kids struggling to get by in East Oakland.
Last week DOGE cut $400 million from AmeriCorps, the national volunteer program that connects young adults to volunteer opportunities in poor neighborhoods. That reduction will include $60 million in federal funds for California’s nationally emulated volunteer programs, California Service Corps. They are people who are helping out in classrooms and food banks, planting trees, and distributing relief supplies to state wildfire victims — the largely unseen work that is integral to communities across the state.
Recent In the News posts
After the Election, California (Yes, That Hellscape) Will Keep Moving the World Forward No Matter What
IN THE NEWS The state has been written off as a woke wasteland. But it’s still inventing the future on a bunch of frontiers nobody’s talking about. Even if Trump wins, it will remain a golden, global example.Thursday, October 31, 2024 - By James...
$10,000 for community service? How College Corps is helping Californians pay for school
IN THE NEWS SacBee.com: $10,000 for community service? How College Corps is helping Californians pay for school By Hannah Poukish, September 09, 2024 Three years ago, Drew Dailey felt stuck. Working as a full-time carpenter, he had only completed a few...
The climate movement greening California’s streets
IN THE NEWS BBC.com: The climate movement greening California's streets By Carl Nasman, Washington DC, August 6, 2024 Bored of the usual nine to five? How about a job as a city greener? Julia Gallaway is part of a growing army of professional tree planters...
