City Year’s slogan, "Give a year. Change the World," is exactly what the organization hopes to inspire young volunteers to do. Asking for a year of their lives, the organization teaches young people civic-leadership skills that may enable them to change the world.

Now that City Year has nearly 1,400 volunteers between the ages of 14 and 24, those young people are working to transform neighborhoods and schools in 18 areas in the United States and as far away as Johannesburg, South Africa.

The organization would like one year of service to become a common expectation of every young adult. Its leaders say the year would also provide tremendous opportunities for workers in many fields.

City Year supports its vision in four ways: by running a full-time youth-service corps, by inspiring citizen service through high-impact community events, by leading the discussion and development of service initiatives, and by expanding service opportunities around the world.