A federal judge this week sided with groups fighting to keep AmeriCorps intact, but the order arrived after an April action by the Trump administration that ended the terms of more than 5,000 service members in California, officials said. California oversees the nation’s largest AmeriCorps force, and Josh Friday, chief service officer for the California Volunteer Program, leads the state’s efforts to maintain service capacity.

The court ruling favors organizations that sought to preserve the federal service program, but it came too late to prevent immediate terminations, according to the record of impacts discussed in the transcript. Nearly 70 AmeriCorps members in Monterey County were among those whose service was cut short, the transcript states. The state plans to continue its service programs.

“It caught me out of nowhere, you know, and just wake up 1 day and read a email basically saying that, like, hey. You can't return back to work because of this. And it and it was it was really heartbreaking,” said Cristela Hernandez, a preschool tutor from Soledad and one of the service members affected. Hernandez said she is now enrolled in her first semester of college.

The transcript does not specify whether the court order will restore terminated service terms, provide back pay, or what timeline, if any, exists for reinstatement. It also does not identify the court by name or provide a citation for the order. Officials and advocates involved in the litigation were not named in the transcript beyond references to "groups" that brought the challenge.

The immediate practical effect described in the record was that service members faced sudden choices about employment and education after their terms were ended in April. State officials and program leaders, represented in the transcript by a reference to Josh Friday, said they are continuing state-level service programs while the legal and administrative situation is addressed.