Positive Youth Development
Youth Development
We work to build youth assets and strengths that result in improved academic performance and lower-risk behaviors. We develop and implement prevention-focused programs and services that are targeted to at-risk communities and at-risk populations of youth. These programs and services are intended to promote the positive development of youth and to reduce and/or avoid the risky behaviors of youth.
Programs and services are designed:
to promote healthy family interactions
to promote health & healthy lifestyle choices
to prevent teen pregnancy
to prevent substance use
to prevent delinquent behaviors
to increase positive adult role models for youth
to support and encourage academic achievement
to develop/increase the life skills in youth necessary to achieve self-sufficiency
to develop conflict resolution skills
to increase career development & youth employment
to increase protective factors in youth, and
to decrease risk factors
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The Mayor’s Youth Employment and Education Program (MYEEP) is a citywide collaborative youth employment program that supports the positive development of 9th and 10th graders who have no previous work experience. The MYEEP program provides initial exposure to the workplace, entry-level job readiness training, educational support, youth leadership development activities and meaningful work-based learning opportunities in the non-profit, government and private sectors.
STRATEGY GOALS INCLUDE:
To provide quality initial work based learning experiences for San Francisco youth with a focus on those with concentrated need or characteristics of increased need.
To enhance youth’s ability to access and retain work-based learning experiences and prepare them to contribute to the local economy
To help participants understand the importance of academic success and the role that high school and post-secondary education play within the context of career development.
To create a pipeline of job ready local youth that are prepared to access the current jobs and careers in San Francisco.
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This consists of workshops on job skills training, early career introduction, and exploration of options and competencies between education and employment. As part of the program, participants take field trips to colleges and different work environments such as hospitals, restaurants, hospitality, recreation and sports arenas, law offices, tech companies, museums, art galleries, and City Hall. Participants attend webinars and virtual meet-and-greets to learn from students at different colleges and professionals in different work sectors even prior to the pandemic.
We provides service learning and youth leadership opportunities in environmental health education and civic engagement in bettering the health of the community. The youths work on a different project each year which involves linking environmental health to personal wellness and development.
We expose youth to the awareness, skills and importance of financial literacy through workshops on how investing in their education and financial literacy skills is an investment in their future.
YELA is offered year-round. Our target number is 10-14 youths per year. Since 2009, 250+ youths have gone through this program.
Since its launch in 2011, 90% of the participants went on to college; 90% of the participants pursued careers in Public Health or Social Services sectors; and 75% of the participants reached out during their senior year of college to do their service-learning internship hours at our agency to give back to the community and program that helped them.
