My commitment to action will help address the challenges facing inner city urban communities by recruiting and inspiring adolescents from low income neighborhoods to solve problems in their own community. The goal is to develop youth into leaders who will create successful community service projects in the short term, and who will also create a significant impact in their community in the future.

More specifically, the program works as follows. High school students with a potential solution to an important problem in their community may apply to the program, and if accepted will be provided with support, expertise, and funding to aid in implementing his/her project. For example, a student who feels gang violence is a major problem in his/her community could propose starting a violence prevention program for middle school kids, or a student who realizes diabetes is a problem in his/her community could propose a glucose screening program. In addition, students will have mentors, and leadership activities will take place throughout the year to develop their leadership skills.

Incentives to aid in motivating and recruiting high school students will be the key to creating a successful program. For instance, participants accepted to the program may receive a new computer, tickets to a Chicago Bulls game, and a small monetary stipend. During the first year of implementation, the program will begin in Chicago, with 15 students from various high schools in low income areas accepted to the program. In future years, the program will expand to other cities across the United States.

BENEFITS TO THE YOUTH

With respect to the adolescents, the primary objective is to develop young leaders in low income communities. More specifically, the following goals will aim to be met:

1) Develop Leadership Skills – this is the main thrust of the program, and will be accomplished through real world implementation of a community project, mentorship, and leadership activities.



2) Develop Social Entrepreneurship Skills - the program will teach them how to transform a vision into a successful community service project.

3) Improve Self Esteem - the program will be designed to be enjoyable for the students, and they will build new friendships with other students in the program from different high schools.



4) An Alternative Activity for Youth - new outlet and activity for adolescents in inner cities. The program will be marketed in a creative and exciting way in order to captivate the attention of the kids. 





5) Provide Resources for Youth and their Families - It provides incentives for youth, which will have the potential to improve the quality of life for them and their family (ie: stipend, computer).

BENEFITS TO THE COMMUNITY

With respect to the community, the primary objective is to address the socioeconomic problems facing low income communities. More specifically, the following goals will aim to be met:



1) Build capacity in the community – the program taps into the insight of the local community by allowing locals to solve their own problems.


2) Address a broad range of issues - projects implemented could be related to health, the environment, crime, etc



3) Promote innovation in the community – the program encourages new ideas to be brainstormed. Many of these ideas will truly be unique and innovative and be successfully implemented.

4) Creates an incentive system that promotes service – the program rewards youth for doing community service and for socially responsible thinking. While many young people in the United States are beginning to place more value on community service, many inner city communities do not yet view the term “community service” in a positive light. For instance, community service is frequently seen as a penalty, as often community service is substituted for jail time, or initially instituted as a penalty to a minor crime. This program reverses this mentality by rewarding people for community service, thereby promoting the value of community service in inner city neighborhoods.

SUMMARY:

Individuals living in a community are best situated to identify their own problems – more so than any outsider of their community can. The program takes advantage of the fact that there are many youth who have tremendous insight into the problems facing their community, and who have innovative solutions those problems. Ultimately the program empowers adolescents, steering them away from destructive groups and activities such as gangs and drugs. The program is relatively simple to start up and replicate, and thus has the potential to expand in size within a city and to new cities.

This project will require assistance in a variety of areas, so if you would like to help out in any way please contact me at vipan.nikore@aya.yale.edu. Thanks for reading!