City Year transforms the lives of two distinct sets of constituents — but it doesn’t stop there. Relying on powerful stories to engage them, it also transforms the lives of donors.

By Margaret Battistelli Gardner

Staying connected, Gordon says, makes it easier to transition alums into donors when they’re in the financial position to give.

Growing pains
With 18 sites under the auspices of its national headquarters, City Year is learning that with growth come new challenges — branding, for example. According to Gordon, the organization already is fairly aggressive in policing the imagery and messaging used by the individual sites, but is about to get even stricter. The goal, he says, is to ensure that the City Year experience in one city is consistent with that in any city — and that they’re all good, of course.