Youth Agency is Key to Reduce Rising Numbers of Disconnected Youth
Young Entrepreneurs: An Extraordinary, Under-tapped Resource
was the first topic in a series that brings insights and resources to members’ fingertips at a time when young adults face compounding barriers as they prepare for postsecondary opportunities.
Approximately 30% of 16-24 year olds are neither earning living wages nor are enrolled in postsecondary education. Moreover, the black and brown young people supported by our network are at greatest risk of identifying with this reality.
Through conversations with Network members and local partners like JobsFirstNYC, we found that practitioners were interested in elevating ideas and ways to foster culturally competent advising practices and career pathways. Supporting Nontraditional Postsecondary Pathways Working Group is our Network’s collaborative space to:
Hold monthly conversations to help members troubleshoot common challenges together and access new information;
Document and share practitioner- and youth-vetted culturally responsive and nontraditional postsecondary pathways advising tools.
Back in March, CBO practitioners and young adults from WeThrive, The Knowledge House, and Brownsville Community Justice Center shared their experiences with entrepreneurship as an ideal pathway for fostering youth agency through authentic and identity affirming career exploration. A common theme shared by all speakers was the importance of adults following the interests of youth to truly honor their ideas and let them lead in making key decisions along their journey.
They also discussed how and why youth see themselves entrepreneurial in the context of societal conditions and both the benefits and potential barriers of entrepreneurship.
Key session takeaways
Entrepreneurship creates space for exploration, creativity and non-traditional change-making.
Entrepreneurship cultivates self-determination, independent thinking, and endless pathways to success.
Each of our featured organizations follow the interests of youth, offer real-world practice exposure, and guide young people in connecting their entrepreneurial ideas to social impact opportunities in their community.
When we move away from the mentality that “students are too young...” we begin to honor their ideas and opinions and co-create spaces that foster mutual trust and support their goals and plans.
Our Network can be a vehicle for fostering life-long social connections that help advance young people’s upward mobility.
Speaker spotlights
Merging business with technology: Cris Mercado, Head of Career Success, The Knowledge House (TKH)
Building entrepreneurship skills in teachers and youth: Danielle Espiritu, Learning Success Director, WeThrive
Prioritizing partnerships with local community businesses: Ionna Jimenez, Program Manager, Placemaking & Workforce, Brownsville Community Justice Center
Check out our new working groups page for more insights shared during this conversation or to stay connected.
