JK photo

Jessica Keaton, our Social Impact Employee Programs and Engagement leader is kicking off a series about the [Auth0.org](http://auth0.org/) team and how we got here. I hope it’s both interesting and motivational for individuals looking to apply their skills from other professional backgrounds into roles and programs focused on contributing positively to society and the world.

Head of Employee Programs, Auth0.org

Jessica Keaton

Peter-Wheeler-author

Peter leads marketing, community, and customer engagements at Auth0.org. 
With a visceral passion for effective and sustainable Corporate Social Responsibility, Peter develops non-performative programs and engagements for social impact organizations globally. He believes all organizations deserve the opportunity to use technology as a force for good and provide solutions and support to help heroes save the world. Peter prides himself on being a polymath, entrepreneur, innovator, founder, proud failpreneur, strategic marketer, process improver, and sales enabler driving positive impact. Say hi on <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jpeterwheeler/">LinkedIn</a>.



Senior Marketing Manager, Social Impact

Peter Wheeler

Expansion Year(s): 10 years post AmeriCorps

> Jessica Keaton, our Social Impact Employee Programs and Engagement leader is kicking off a series about the Auth0.org team and how we got here. I hope it’s both interesting and motivational for individuals looking to apply their skills from other professional backgrounds into roles and programs focused on contributing positively to society and the world.
_- Peter Wheeler_

“You’ll never get back on track if you take a gap year.” I rolled my eyes, hearing this sentiment after sharing news that I would be joining AmeriCorps National Service after college. I was determined to give back through national service. My year turned into two and yielded a wide swath of learnings, and spoiler alert: I was better off for it! 

## Getting Things Done

As a member of the AmeriCorps St. Louis Emergency Response Team, I learned how to chainsaw and cut down trees to preserve national parks. I fought wildland fires and worked to save structures from destruction. I responded to natural disasters as they hit across the country. All of these experiences were things I never believed I would do in my lifetime. By virtue of stepping outside my comfort zone, I was able to expand my knowledge base, my worldview, and my skill set in one fell swoop. I fiercely collaborated and worked with my teammates to keep everyone safe to work on “getting things done”- my favorite AmeriCorps saying. 

## Relearning Education / A New Approach

My second year allowed me to get things done in a different but equally impactful setting; I taught literacy to kindergarten students on the Education Team. I quickly learned that students carry much more to a school than just their backpacks, and this ultimately inspired my decision to pursue a graduate degree in social work. A small group of AmeriCorps members worked together in a converted room at the school and helped as many students as our days would allow. My colleague had a student that was experiencing separation anxiety when her mother would drop her off at school. She tried a slew of things, but nothing seemed to stop her crying each morning and much into the day, which was taking a devastating toll on her learning time. One day, my colleague walked in with a small figurine. We all asked her what it was and why she brought it to work. She explained, “I thought if I made a doll that looked like my student’s mom, she would have something to remind her of home during the school day.” This incredibly thoughtful gesture worked for the student, and she slowly was able to transition from home to school quicker and engage with learning better. 

## Applying What I Learned

The experiences I had with AmeriCorps still translate into my day-to-day interactions in the workforce. I take these learnings with me as I navigate life and work:

* _You can achieve more than you think you can._ From being someone who had never gone on a hike to hiking 14+ miles a day starts with just one step. Cultivate your growth mindset, and you’ll flourish in the face of adversity.
* _When you think you’ve exhausted all of your options, try one more thing._ Tenacity will help you continue on even when others have given up. One more thing could be opening 15 cans of vegetables and beans and putting them into a pot for a low-cost team dinner. (I’ve done that, and it turned out surprisingly delicious)
* _Your team is your extra lifeline through the good and the bad._ You stand together eating smoke on the fire line, but you also stand together enjoying the hot springs on your off day. 
* _Meet people where they are._ The doll worked because it was tangible for the kindergarten student to understand and enjoy. I imagine she also felt seen and cared for. Imagine if that translated into our work lives? We would all be unstoppable! 

My experiences are not unique-there are millions of changemakers giving their all to support the communities they serve. I’ve shifted the term from gap year to expansion year. My mind and life was expanded exponentially through the work I completed, the people I met, and the lessons I learned. AmeriCorps will always hold a special place in my heart and my story. 

## How You Can Get Things Done

If you are considering an expansion year, this is your sign to join the thousands of[ AmeriCorps](https://americorps.gov/) volunteers. If you’ve served or are serving with AmeriCorps, share your #expansionyear story, so we can celebrate you! 

![AmeriCorps](https://images.ctfassets.net/23aumh6u8s0i/3DDQJWyUSYDWq2XOgq4cNp/48408a39d0c9caeb03c5089ab2cbafd5/04.png)

![AmeriCorps](https://images.ctfassets.net/23aumh6u8s0i/imzTM9980KjN7JOlfnurs/b775ce09dcbd477e287a5e5c3683aaca/05.jpg)

![AmeriCorps](https://images.ctfassets.net/23aumh6u8s0i/1vPtygIFcG59QmocyOwOpd/dcc721b8712222f116ed9be1e32cabc0/06.jpg)

Celebrating AmeriCorps Week - What It’s Meant to Me

Continuing our Pledge to create SAFEr Social Impact Organizations

As a former business owner, nonprofit board member, developer, and volunteer; I know of one consistent, daunting, universal expenditure all modern organizations face - their tech stack. While some items, such as hardware, have a front-loaded cost that can be justified and managed through a lifetime; taking an uncertain “digital leap” for philanthropic entities can be challenging. Even when it's known and agreed that improvements to legacy systems and tools are needed, or that building something completely custom from the ground up to meet the demands of a digital-first economy is in order, there is always trepidation when it comes to modernization and understandably so.

All these issues are even more challenging for charitable, nonprofit organizations and social enterprises, collectively “SIOs,” or Social Impact Organizations. These organizations are critical to our society but sufficient unrestricted funds, tech expertise and time to upgrade their systems and processes are especially precious commodities.

## Digital Is Primal

As evidenced by the existence of social sector industry associations like [nten](http://nten.org) and [tagtech](http://tagtech.org) that seek to enhance technology capacity building, Social Impact Organizations (SIOs) have recognized the need to modernize their operations. A message we frequently hear from many sources is that younger generations are contributing to a better world as part of their core lifestyle, and SIOs need to “meet their audience where they are at.” What we have learned from these groups and analysts is that 80% of SIOs are smaller organizations that need sustainable, scalable growth - but that growth is dependent on utilizing and creating affordable digital solutions. Knowing this, we feel expanding our product offer to SIOs for all of our products, not just Enterprise plans but now including Self Service plans for small to medium-sized organizations we can support SIOs regardless of organizational size, internal tech expertise or IT budget levels.

Stakeholders expect a secure, quality digital experience from SIOs just as they would from commercial enterprises. We’re committed to creating an offer which helps SIOs satisfy that expectation with minimal cost, installation effort, and ongoing maintenance. We help SIOs secure their stakeholder identities and access so they can focus on what matters: delivering innovative, high-impact services to people most in need in our communities. There is no higher calling for them or for us.

## Understanding Your Need as an SIO

Nonprofits and for-profit social enterprises looking to upgrade the experience of their donors, staff, volunteers, and mission-beneficiaries without compromising on security and compliance, should look at the modern, platform-agnostic Customer Identity & Access Management solutions that Auth0 has to offer.

In fact, our products and services were built with the unique needs of nonprofit and social enterprise organizations in mind. Much like our Healthcare and Public Sector clients, we know yours is an industry with stringent trust requirements, and like these other verticals, we know that the ability to rapidly iterate, respond, and evolve has been a constant challenge plaguing everyone in a digital-first economy.

By reducing the hours and specialty skills required to create “a great login experience” (which we better know as identity, access, authentication, and security), application development becomes attainable and affordable for any size organization.

## We Want Everyone to Be SAFEr

SAFEr, where do we derive that from? Secure Access For Everyone, _but not just anyone_.

Auth0 has always offered a free plan to help everyone easily deploy modern identity and security in their websites and applications.

You do not need to have a sophisticated developer on staff to rapidly and simply begin utilizing Auth0.

We provide resources, documentation, SDKs, and plugins that support developers and non-developers alike deploy better security no matter if it’s a small website or an enterprise application. **Everyone**. **SAFEr**. This applies to SIOs, too.

## Enterprise Cost Savings

In addition to our free plan, unique cost savings are available on all Enterprise and Self Service plans for Social Impact customers. We established a resilient organization and funding structure, [Auth0.org](http://auth0.org), to make sure this discount is sustainable and attainable for the long-term.

For [Auth0 Enterprise Plans](https://auth0.com/pricing) eligible[^1] nonprofits receive a:

- 25% [discount](https://auth0.com/social-impact/pricing) on 1 year contract plans
- 30% [discount](https://auth0.com/social-impact/pricing) on 2 year contract plans
- 35% [discount](https://auth0.com/social-impact/pricing) on 3 year contract plans

Complimentary Design & Discovery sessions for Enterprise Plans are available.

## The Big Announcement - Our Newest Offer - Self Service!

Social Impact Organizations can rapidly become SAFEr Social Impact Organizations with a whopping 50% [cost-savings](https://auth0.com/social-impact/pricing) on our new [Essentials and Professional Self-Service Plans](http://auth0.com/pricing).

And with our free trial, no payment is required to start building today.

Not sure which plan may be right for you? Check out our compare plans feature on our [pricing page](https://auth0.com/pricing) or, [contact us](https://auth0.com/contact-us?place=subscription%20column&type=button&text=contact%20us&target=contact-us).

[^1]: Final approval for an organization to receive either cost-savings discount will be made at Auth0’s sole discretion. To see if your organization is eligible, please review our [eligibility guide](https://auth0.com/resources/whitepapers/social-impact-discount-eligibility-guide) and validate through our third party validation partner.

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