Youthprise

Building Power through Learning and Leadership: We invest in learning opportunities that build knowledge, power, and agency among our youth; we support and amplify youth as leaders by building networks, developmental opportunities, and shifting policy/laws. Youthprise promotes the learning, leadership, and social-emotional development of youth. Programs and initiatives supported in this area expose youth to arts and culture, enrichment activities, technical assistance, and youth leadership opportunities. We seek to shift how programs interact with youth and support programs that engage youth in leadership and governance, a practice we model at Youthprise. We embed young people across all areas of our organization, and we have a goal of 50% representation of youth on our Board of Directors. In 2023, the Minnesota Afterschool Advance (MAA) program continued with a strong impact, providing 119 computers for distance learning and advancing $603,840.61 to low-income families across Minnesota to improve access to afterschool activities. Youthprise also made investments in youth philanthropy and youth participatory action research (YPAR), which included $65,000 invested in learning, training, and evaluation; and $9,000 in stipends to young people for their participation in YPAR activities. In 2023, Youthprise invested $601,019 in Learning and Leadership grants and strategic investments.

Promoting Healing through Health and Safety: Youthprise supports programs and initiatives that promote the health and safety of young people. We champion work that promotes the healing of our youth and their right to health and safety. In addition to meeting basic food needs through our Nutrition Program, we work with community-based organizations to link healthy lifestyles with good nutrition. We take a holistic approach to health and safety and advance intervention strategies that prevent the criminalization of youth, which can pose a threat to public safety. In 2023, Youthprise supported 44 Nutrition sites across the Twin Cities and served over 227,822 meals and snacks to school-age children and youth. Additionally, we supported initiatives that seek to increase equity in the juvenile justice system by supporting basic needs for young people who have been justice-involved and through other initiatives. In 2023, Youthprise invested $992,749 in grants and strategic investments.