Our Sponsoring Organizations are national non-profit organizations that have built superb education, job-training, and service programs across the country for Opportunity Youth and serve as trusted partners of OYUnited.
Each organization listed below sponsors at least one member of the National Council of Young Leaders, the steering committee of Opportunity Youth United, and works closely with them to implement actions.
The Aspen Institute
The Aspen Institute is an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, DC. Its mission is to foster leadership based on enduring values and provide a nonpartisan venue for dealing with critical issues. The Aspen Forum for Community Solutions is focused on addressing all the issues undermining the success of Opportunity Youth.
Sponsored Council Members: Kyle Knox, Hikma Sherka
City Year
City Year works to bridge the gap in high-poverty communities between the support that students actually need, and what their schools are designed and resourced to provide. In doing so, they’re helping to increase graduation rates
across the country, and changing the lives of the students they serve.
Sponsored Council Member: Melvin “Dom” Vasquez, Julian Wicks
The Corps Network
The Corps Network provides critical leadership to the Corps movement and to our nation’s Service and Conservation Corps as they harness the power of youth and young adults to tackle some of America’s greatest challenges and transform their own lives. They have had a particular focus on conservation, providing full-time training placements for young people in environmental protection around the country. There are 135 service corps in America engaging 25,000 young people/year.
Sponsored Council Members: Pending…
Foster Youth in Action
Foster Youth in Action (FYA) believes in the power of the foster youth voice. They organize a grassroots network of foster youth-led groups through training, leadership opportunities, shared learning and advocacy. With 16 foster youth-driven partners in 17 states, FYA is the only national organization raising up and connecting independent, grassroots groups fighting to secure rights and opportunities that current and former foster youth deserve.
Sponsored Council Member: Pending
Jobs for the Future (JFF)
Jobs for the Future (JFF) is a national nonprofit partnership that works to ensure educational and economic opportunity for all. JFF develops innovative career pathways, educational resources and public policies that increase college readiness and career success, and build a more highly skilled workforce.
Sponsored Council Member: Ashley Flot
Mikva Challenge
Mikva Challenge develops youth to be informed, empowered, and active citizens and community leaders. We do this by engaging youth in action civics, an authentic and transformative learning process built on youth voice and youth
expertise.
Sponsored Council Member: James Fields
The National Guard Youth Foundation
The National Guard Youth Foundation addresses the growing dropout crisis and its impact on our nation’s youth, economy and national security. They assist adolescents who drop out of school with the opportunity to improve their
life skills, education and employability, creating the next generation skilled workforce in America. The National Guard ChalleNGe program provides a five month residential program for 15 to 18 year olds who have left high school without a diploma, plus many months of follow-up engagement. There are 40 ChalleNGe programs in America engaging 20,000 students/year.
Sponsored Council Member: Pending
Partners for Education at Berea College
Partners for Education at Berea College utilizes a place based, student focused approach to improve educational outcomes in Appalachian Kentucky.
Sponsored Council Member(s): Conner Thomas, Rhea Carter
Public Allies
Public Allies is a national network of community-based organizations grounded in the conviction that everyone can lead. Their mission is to create a just and equitable society and the diverse leadership to sustain it. They place low income young leaders in non-profit year-long internships, coupled with in depth leadership training, and support them after completion in alumni activities. There are 25 Public Allies sites in America.
Sponsored Council Members: Yante Turner, Amanda Rene Buchanan
Think of Us
Think of Us operates as a Research and Development Lab for child welfare, transforming the system so that people with Lived Experience are at the center of designing, imagining, and building.
Sponsored Council Member: Bobbi Taylor
The Philadelphia Youth Network
The Philadelphia Youth Network (PYN) is an intermediary organization dedicated to connecting systems and leveraging resources to increase the number of opportunities for youth. PYN has been working for nearly two decades with communities to create coordinated systems which promote the attainment of academic achievement, economic opportunity and personal success. We manage and support large-scale cross-sector initiatives while developing targeted programs to expand access to services for underserved young people. We work with Jobs for the Future to sponsor our Council members.
Sponsored Council Member: Pending