MEET OUR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMS, CORRINE CIVIL (she/her)

We are excited to highlight the incredible talent and dedication of our team at Sadie Nash Leadership Project. Our investment in staff is at the core of what makes us the organization we aspire to be. For the next installment of our staff interview series, we were lucky enough to sit and chat with Assistant Director of Programs, Corrine Civil (she/her).

Corrine Civil (she/her) is a youth worker and facilitator from East Harlem. She is incredibly honored and proud to work with and support young women and gender expansive youth of color in NYC and Newark. Corrine holds a bachelor's degree in English from Columbia University, and her interests include Black diaspora studies and literature.

“I feel like I’m really grounded in where I’m from, and really do feel like Harlem raised me.”

Tell us about yourself.

I’m Corrine, I am an East Harlem Native and very very proud of where I come from. I love New York. I love being a New Yorker. I love working with New Yorkers and New Jerseyians. I feel like I’m really grounded in where I’m from, and really do feel like Harlem raised me. I’m a youth worker, and I love being a youth worker. I get to work with some of the most amazing people around the city. You can also catch me trying different food spots, laying around in the park with my friends, and watching netflix on my couch.

“The community that I saw being provided to young people, specifically young women and gender-expansive youth who are in high school, just felt really important to keep coming back to and keep cultivating for others. Especially, because of what it had done for me.”

What brought you to Sadie Nash Leadership Project, and what kept you returning to Sadie Nash?

I was in college when I first found Sadie Nash through the Dean internship program in 2018 for Summer Institute. I didn’t know what to expect, but I was super happy that I had gotten it. I had heard great things about Sadie Nash, and was (and still am!) really passionate about liberation. It was a transformational summer for me. To this day, I am best friends with the folks who were Deans with me. It was a big turning point for me in my journey. 

I was just talking to Tené about this earlier and she said “Yeah, Corrine has had every role here!” I kind of have! I came back to Sadie Nash right before the pandemic. I was here when everything went virtual, and we had to pivot like we’ve never pivoted before. 

While it was a difficult time, I’m really proud and happy that the stars aligned to keep me here. The people who were here at the time, some of whom are still here, were really supportive of me and my growth and became role models that I really look up to today. They helped me grow from Dean, to Site Leader, to Faculty, to Manager, and now Assistant Director of Programs. 

I think community is the reason I kept returning to Sadie Nash. I think community is hard to find, and it’s special when you do find that one place where everyone is cool and supportive. Even if you’re not best friends with everyone here, you can rely on them and count on them. And so, the community that I saw being provided to young people, specifically young women and gender-expansive youth who are in high school, just felt really important to keep coming back to and keep cultivating for others. Especially, because of what it had done for me. 

Starting this month, as Assistant Director of Programs, I will be supporting our programs including, college access and also our partnership programs, where we go to schools and community based organizations. I’m really excited to do that work and bring Sadie Nash out of these lovely walls and into schools. As someone who taught for the partnership program before, I’m excited to support that way and also help get Nashers into college!

“It’s amazing to see how [Summer Institute] still carries that essence of love, support, and learning that I want Nashers to walk away with every time.”

What has been the most memorable part of your experience so far?

We had an Alumni homecoming in January of 2023, and some of the Nashers who I taught in 2019 came to the homecoming and I didn’t know they were coming. I was honestly emotional because seeing their growth from graduating high school in the middle of a pandemic to being in college and being college grads, to finally seeing them in person for the first time since then, was emotional!  

It really struck me. That was probably my full class of Nashers who graduated high school and college. Every year, what is most memorable for me is seeing Nashers and Alumni grow up and be so fortified and loved at Sadie Nash. That’s what keeps them coming back, but it's also what takes them on their journey out there to be these amazing leaders that they always were.

What Sadie Nash Programs are you excited about right now? Why?

Just coming off of Summer Institute I feel really excited about it! I think being a part of this program for what was my 6th time as a staff member, and seeing it take on so many different lives and journeys. It’s amazing to see how it still carries that essence of love, support, and learning that I want Nashers to walk away with every time. I’m really excited about Summer Institute being in its 23rd year and continuing to improve and grow and that makes me excited about what can happen next year.

“This young person needs to be heard right now, and that is central to the work more than any email or Google Doc is.”

What do young people need to thrive?

Beyond having their basic needs met— which is huge, for young people to thrive, they need someone to listen. I will sit here when a Nasher is coming to pick up a stipend and they will just talk and talk and talk, and I will just be here with a full, long to-do list in front of me, and I realized that that just needs to be dropped in that moment, because this young person needs to be heard right now. And that is central to the work more than any email or Google Doc is. I think someone who will really listen and hear them out, but also show them love and grace wherever they’re at. 

Particularly for young women and gender-expansive youth of color, they’re often written off whether that’s “Oh they’re just being problematic,” or “They’re always complaining,” or “They have an attitude.” They are constantly misheard by adults, specifically. 

Lots of adults think that it’s just because they’re a teenager or a young person, and not that they’re just complaining because that’s where they’re at right now. It’s not that they don’t have real problems. Because those are real problems, and the real problems often come from the adults who don’t want to listen to them. So I love working with teenagers because they just need that extra love and that listening ear that they don’t often get at home and at schools.

“Sadie Nash wants to help you. So don’t be afraid to advocate for yourself and let people know when you need them.”

When you think of the Sadie Nash community, what comes to mind?

I think of love and accountability. If I’m sitting here and it’s 3 o’clock and I haven’t eaten, there are people coming to me like “Hey, What did you eat? Did you get to leave this desk today?” I just think of being cared for, in every single way, not just in how I show up in the work but also making sure I’m nourished. And, I like to think that creates the same space for Nashers. It’s not just, “Oh are you paying attention to the lesson? Did you finish your project?” but also, “What did you eat today? How are your regents exams going? How is this? How is that? Tell me about the trip you’re going on.” Just a real authentic approach to the work.

Do you have a message for Nashers?

Ask for help when you need it. People want to help you. Sadie Nash wants to help you. So don’t be afraid to advocate for yourself and let people know when you need them.