Experience Corps® Bay Area is an innovative, inter-generational program that offers adults over the age of 55 the opportunity to develop caring relationships with children through tutoring and mentoring during the school day and in after school programs.

Description:
Experience Corps volunteers serve at middle schools and elementary schools throughout San Francisco in the Mission, Richmond, Sunset, and Bayview Hunters Point districts and North and East Oakland. Volunteers tutor one-on-one or in small groups, provide classroom assistance, and help out in after school programs. Additionally, they support youth in enrichment activities, creating art, reading books, or developing programs for children based on their own unique backgrounds and experiences. Through Experience Corps children improve academic performance and build lasting relationships with caring volunteers, older adults experience enhanced physical and mental well-being, and public schools become more caring and personal places, strengthening their ties with surrounding neighborhoods.

History:
Experience Corps started as a concept paper conceived by John Gardner in 1988. Gardner's vision laid the foundation for the National Experience Corps Network which today includes Experience Corps programs in over a dozen cities across the United States. In 1998, Sunset Neighborhood Beacon Center and it's fiscal agency Aspiranet piloted a new Experience Corps project in San Francisco with older adult volunteers serving children both during and after school in the Sunset district. Since then, Experience Corps Bay Area has expanded citywide and across the bay, reaching out to additional elementary and middle schools in the Mission, Richmond, Portola, Bernal Heights, and Bayview Hunters Point Districts, as well as North and East Oakland and San Rafael.

Contact people:

Janet Oh, Director, (phone), (email) Star Bressler, Program Manager, (phone), (email)

Main office number: (415) 759-3690
Office fax number: 415-759-0883

Address:

3925 Noriega Street San Francisco, CA 94122 (See a map)

Web Site: http://www.experiencecorps.org/sanfrancisco

Miscellaneous Information

Besides English, which languages are spoken at your agency?
	Cantonese, Mandarin, Spanish
What is the minimum age for volunteers at your agency?
	We specifically target adults 55+ (though we welcome volunteers of all ages)
Is your agency wheelchair accessible?
	Yes
Does your agency have the capacity to host groups of more than 10?
	Yes
Does your agency have the capacity to host groups of more than 20?
	No