Boosting all of Stanislaus County by helping underrepresented youth
Imagining a prosperous future for Stanislaus County is impossible without youth voices, including youth from underrepresented communities who so often feel unheard.
We need to hear from them and ensure their prosperity, not just for them, but for all of the county’s youth. With this in mind, Stanislaus County Youth Empowerment Program, YEP, was born.
All three of us founders, Fallon Ferris, A’Kia Walker and Hayleé White, and our consultant, Renaldo Rucker of Nate Nvil Solutions, are Stanislaus County natives.
This is the place that we call home. Having grown up here, we understand the struggles that many youth, especially kids of color like us, face.
We want things to be more just. So, we’ve come together to make a difference for the youth and our county.
YEP has one ultimate goal: To ensure the academic and professional success of our county’s Black youth.
To reach that goal, we have to close the achievement gap for Black students in Stanislaus County. We also want to ensure that Black students have vocational pathways in their areas of passion and to feel supported by school systems, their peers and community leaders.
Although our target group is Black youth ages 14 to 24, YEP welcomes youth from all racial and ethnic backgrounds. We consider cultural awareness and embracing unity, especially as part of our students’ education, as critical for the whole community to thrive.
YEP offers resources to help students gain skills and have exposure to different careers:
cultural awareness activities
career development through mentorship and workshops
communication skills development
mental health support services
historically Black college and universities tours, currently virtual
During Black History Month, YEP is hosting virtual workshops for financial literacy to help students learn to manage money, and two career webinars, including graphic design and performing arts.
Why Stanislaus YEP?
Currently, the kids in our county are not succeeding academically as they could, or should, be.
The high school graduation rate for all students is 84% and for African American youth it’s about 75%, according to the Stanislaus County Office of Education. For all of California, about 16% of African American students did not complete high school.
Reasons for low graduation rates are layered and complex, including poverty, systemic inequities and generational illiteracy. We have to address and dismantle obstacles.
High school graduation significantly impacts a teen’s economic well-being, health and future. A high school dropout’s average annual salary is $20,000, compared to more than $30,000 for a graduate. Incomes almost double for those who graduate from college.
Another sad reality: high school dropouts account for 67% of inmates in state prisons and 56% in federal prisons.
Spending money for our kids’ educational success seems a wise investment for their future and the county’s.
YEP is a grassroots organization, and we need your help in creating equity and success for our county’s underrepresented youth.
Stanislaus community members, especially students, parents, professionals and educators — please consider donating your time, resources, internship opportunities and financial assistance to support YEP’s mission.
Please join our virtual workshops during Black History month. Details are provided on our website and Instagram and Facebook pages.
With programs like YEP, Stanislaus County can be a model for how to move forward to overcome racial and economic injustices that have become so glaring recently, with the killing of George Floyd and other unarmed Black people as well as with the COVID-19 pandemic. The next generations deserve better.
We love Stanislaus County. We believe providing educational equity and nurturing success for youth in underrepresented communities is one step in ensuring more opportunities for success for everyone.