YOUR COMMUNITY YOUR VOICE INITIATIVE 2023
The Your Community Your Voice: Promoting Youth Civic Engagement initiative is managed by the Alameda County Library in partnership with local and state organizations such as Raising Leaders – Workshops and Internships, and CalMatters. This project aims to equip Alameda County youth with the tools they need to become informed agents of change in their own communities. Paid youth interns will be trained in community facilitation, election and media literacy, as well as civic engagement strategies. They will then collaborate with local public librarians to educate, inform, and empower their respective communities, with a primary focus on the Eden Area of Alameda County. The youth will offer programs and services to increase election literacy and voter turnout, and also work to identify and then help meet important community needs. This project is about more than just skills and knowledge, it’s about empowerment. It’s about giving youth the ability to shape their future and the future of their communities. As the initiative continues through 2024 to 2025, the goals are to see the interns become engaged advocates actively addressing the issues that matter the most to their community, and inspiring their peers to do the same.
“I look forward to this internship because I’m a member of this community myself who wants to see some type of change. I know that in order for things to progress, people need to be informed of how voting works and ways to make their vote count. I know a lot of people believe their voice isn’t heard, but by educating my peers and community on voting laws and regulations, change and reform will soon follow. “
Student, Your Community Your Voice
SERVICE PROVIDERS HELPING YOUTH AND FAMILIES (SHYFT) PROJECT 2023
The Service Providers Helping Youth and Families Thrive (SHYFT) project is a partnership between the Alameda County Public Defender’s Clean Slate Program and Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice (CURYJ) that was designed to increase opportunities for low-income, under-resourced and underserved young people in Alameda County who have been impacted by the criminal legal system. The SHYFT project does this by increasing young people’s access, and that of their families, to criminal record remedy assistance services and related collateral consequence information. The SHYFT project also expands the number of Clean Slate service providers in Alameda County by training CURYJ legal staff in this impactful work. Additionally, the SHYFT project increases the number of non-legal CURYJ staff members who are able to support transition-aged youth (ages 18-24) through the Clean Slate process in an informed way that educates youth about their rights regarding clean slate relief, criminal background checks, and occupational licensing, so they are better positioned to advocate for themselves in these areas.
YOUTH PARENTING FINANCIAL TOOLS & $OLUTIONS (YPFR$) PROGRAM 2023
The Youth Parenting Financial Tools & $olutions Program (YPFT$), under the Alameda County Public Health Department’s “Starting Out Strong Family Support Programs,” applies a public health approach to addressing the financial wellness of youth parents using innovative strategies and non-traditional partnerships to improve family financial stability in the first years of their child’s life. YPFT$ is a two-phase program. During the first phase, parents attend a three part workshop series where they learn about credit and debt management, emergency savings, and money management. Upon successful completion of attending the entire financial workshop series, participants are eligible to access asset building grants which consist of an emergency fund and information on finance developmental pathways focused on savings matching, career and workforce development, family enrichment, higher education and entrepreneurship. This program aims to support 50 African American and Latino teen parents from the ages of 16-24 annually.
YOUTH TRANSITIONS PARTNERSHIP (YTP) 2023
Youth Transitions Partnership (YTP) is a collaboration with the Alameda County Social Services Agency’s Children Family Services, the Oakland-based non-profit First Place for Youth, and the Chapin Hall evaluation team from the University of Chicago. First Place for Youth staffs the program with therapists and trainees to work directly with youth. Chapin Hall serves as the evaluators of the program’s impact. Other partners include experienced therapists for clinical consultation. The goal of the YTP partnership is to identify the most effective, evidence-based housing and supportive services to assist foster youth identified as being at high risk of housing insecurity. The partnership focuses on four critical outcome areas: Stable Housing, Permanent Connections, Education and Employment, and Social/Emotional Well-Being. The partnership will serve primarily foster youth before they age to 21 years to ensure that they secure stable, safe and long-term housing; obtain a high school degree or participate in further education aligned with career goals; develop strong social and emotional relationships while reducing risk factors; and develop a permanent connection with at least one caring adult.
“... when you’re emotional you just want to figure out . . . what could you do to go back to being normal. And that’s wise mind. The skills that you learn during the weekly groups they just giving you another way to deal with things. And it’s helpful.” – Youth in YTP
Youth, Youth Transitions Partnership
REACH ASHLAND YOUTH CENTER OPPORTUNITY ACADEMY 2022
The REACH Ashland Youth Center Opportunity Academy, under the Alameda County Health Care Services Agency, was created and launched in partnership with the Alameda County Office of Education as a new program for youth residents of San Lorenzo, San Leandro, Hayward, Castro Valley and the urban, unincorporated areas of Alameda County, providing a non-traditional path to acquiring a high school diploma for 60 youth annually. The Opportunity Academy serves students between the ages of 16-24 who were formally categorized as “disengaged” from traditional school and work. Access to on-site REACH support services and program partners, including clinical case managers and career service provider staff, was a unique element of the Opportunity Academy, catapulting participants towards successful completion of academic credits and eventual graduation from high school. These components advanced participants on pathways for careers and post-secondary education. Aligned with REACH values around youth power sharing, Opportunity Academy participants provided program assessments and recommendations for continuous quality improvements and program relevance.
“Throughout high school and middle school, being in large classrooms was difficult for me. It was hard for me to follow everything at the same pace as everyone else. Since I’ve switched to the Opportunity Academy, I’ve actually been making progress towards graduation. It’s less “cattle” and more individual interaction rather than just seeing slides on a board and taking notes. It’s actual learning, and especially for someone who has ADHD like me, the personal interaction and support really help.”
REACH Ashland Youth Center Opportunity Academy Student
DISRUPTING DISPARITIES PROGRAM 2022
The Disrupting Disparities Program (DDP), under the Alameda County Social Service Agency’s Workforce Development Board, provided individualized career pathways for 30 young adults, between the ages of 16-24, through a partnership with La Familia Counseling Services. DDP provided individualized counseling, skills training, career pathway education and paid work internships. The program established and strengthened relationships with local adult schools/community colleges and community-based organizations that assisted with client outreach, as well as local businesses that participated in developing paid internship opportunities, and in some cases, sustained employment. Upon completion of the program, participants entered post-secondary education, apprenticeship/training programs and/or direct employment. Special attention was focused on serving residents of the unincorporated communities of Ashland and Cherryland in Alameda County.
“This program opens doors for youth. It goes above and beyond to help these participants find long-term careers, or develop a workforce trade. I was so impressed with the support from the Disrupting Disparities Program, that I hired my intern.”
Alex Martinez, Business Owner, Shorty’s Automotive and Paint, Oakland
YOUNG WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT PROGRAM 2022
Young Women’s Empowerment Program (YWEP), under the Alameda County Office of the District Attorney, was designed to decrease the number of victims affected by commercial sexual exploitation by providing 60 young women with resources, exposure to life alternatives and self-sufficiency tools. Enhancements to this program included detailed information on environmental and social circumstances that contribute to human trafficking vulnerability, introductions to self-sufficiency skills that lead to empowerment, exposure to academic opportunities, presentations by guest speakers specializing in empowerment aspects, and processes to build self-esteem, self-awareness and a self-assuredness leading to a successful and confident future. Use of artistic expression was utilized as part of the program, as well as the development of peer mentors and parental interest.
“I'm glad we could include California State University, East Bay as part of the curriculum for the young women of YWEP. Most of the participants said they were unaware of this university and how to qualify and register as a student. The on-site field excursion introduced the university’s academic offerings to the participants, as well as their registration process and access to financial and counseling supports. We were thrilled to learn that several of the participants were seriously considering enrollment at the university to further their career opportunities. The young women in YWEP shared with hopeful enthusiasm that they could see themselves on the campus of the university.”
Nancy O'Malley, Former District Attorney of Alameda County and YWEP Founder
ADVOCATES FOR HOLISTIC EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT 2022
The Advocates for Holistic Education and Development (AHEAD) program, under the Alameda County Public Defender’s Office, created new personnel resources in the Public Defender’s Office who managed individualized client case plans with a focus on educational support, systemic advocacy with school districts, access to support services, and general caseload management through formal working relationships with school administrators and staff in Alameda County school districts. Community-based mental health, legal services and mentoring providers are now integrated as regular external partners of AHEAD. Five school districts in Alameda County have had their students served through this program, resulting in increased family support, remediation of school disciplinary issues, and re-entry and increased academic participation. Services are available in English and Spanish.
“One of the important things AHEAD staff does is build relationships with the students. It really stood out with a student we worked with because the student mentioned that he initially felt like the school didn’t really want him there. AHEAD is a strong advocate for students, not just for them in school, but for them as a whole. AHEAD looks at what‘s going on in the student’s life outside of school, and uses that to advocate for what’s best for the student as a whole.”
Claudia Henriquez, Community School Specialist, Tennyson High School, Hayward