Sacramento (Feb. 15, 2024) Leilani Koroiveti, 27, spent years working odd jobs without finding a clear direction until she heard about a new job training program administered by the City of Sacramento. Today she has discovered a passion for hands-on work and is learning supervisory skills.

Koroiveti is one of more than 100 Sacramento young people aged 16-30 who have participated in the #CaliforniansForAll program to address climate change, food security, and COVID-19 recovery. The state has so far allocated $6.9 million to the City for the program, which places young people in paid training opportunities with the City of Sacramento and local non-profits.

“This program allows young people in Sacramento to gain real-world experience, build connections to public service, and learn job readiness skills to help them succeed in fields that are critical to our future,” said Mayor Darrell Steinberg.

Koiroveti is employed through the Sacramento Sustainability Academy, a program affiliated with the Sierra Service Project that focuses on energy efficiency and urban agriculture. Sierra Service Project is one of 13 non-profits hosting young people in Sacramento through the #CaliforniansforAll program.

Participants, called fellows, are building tiny homes and managing a community garden. They're gaining experience in carpentry, transitioning crops, maintaining native plant habitats, and managing irrigation systems. “This is a great way for me to continue to learn” while getting paid, Koiroveti said.

Max Rosa, a Program Manager with Sierra Service Project, is spearheading the program. Under his leadership, the Sustainability Academy is committed to creating leadership opportunities for fellows. “Having them in a supervisor role….allows them to be involved in the planning and implementation,” he said.

Community Shop Class is a primary partner for the Sacramento Sustainability Academy. Designed to serve as a neighborhood learning center in Oak Park at 3818 Stockton Blvd, Community Shop Class is a maker space dedicated to helping underserved and neurodivergent learners learn life-long skills in a sustainable, hands-on, and community-oriented environment. Academy fellows attend Shop Class to work on projects, get training, and celebrate graduations.

This spring, Community Shop Class will be hosting the construction design cohort, where fellows will learn about framing, flooring roofing, solar charging, and irrigation as they build tiny homes.

Shop Class’s founder, Chad Orcutt, said that the Sustainability Academy is one of the most impactful programs that Shop Class has hosted. He said he appreciates “what we’ve seen it do for people’s lives — the confidence building, self-sufficiency skills they learn, safe tool usage, teamwork, and leadership, and all the things that come along with building.”

Isaac Ordonaz, 22, is working as a program supervisor in the Sustainability Academy. “When I was 16 years old, I pretty much had to take whatever was available, which was pretty much like part-time jobs doing super low-skill things. And even at that age, I was like I could be doing something that's like, actually worth my time. You know, I can be learning a skill,” Ordonaz said. “That's what the Sacramento Sustainability Academy is doing. They’re providing opportunities for actual growth where it's real life skills.”

The Sustainability Academy partners with organizations to provide work opportunities for their fellows. One of these project sites is Safe Harbor, which offers transitional housing for women and families experiencing crises. Fellows are maintaining the community garden on site and installing improvements to the tiny home community.

“Through my experience being homeless, I got to really see, like, what works and what doesn't in the community,” shared fellow Raven Lyulph, 24. After her time as a fellow, she said she has “an even greater love and admiration for community gardens (and how) they can help people other than myself.”

The Sacramento Sustainability Academy will open three new cohorts this spring, including urban agriculture, energy efficiency, and construction designs. To apply, visit www.sierraserviceproject.org/sac-academy.

Californians for All has multiple fellowships available, both with Sierra Service Project, other nonprofits, and the City of Sacramento. If you are between the ages of 16 - 30 and are interested in participating in this program, apply for the next round using this short interest form .