ITERI - Continuous Improvement for People and Organizations
Youth Empowerment Programs
The ITERI Youth Empowerment Program (YEP) is a four-year youth development program for students of various backgrounds, and includes workshops, field trips, seminars, community service, business mentoring, and an opportunity to run a small business. By the end of the four years, students will gain more self-confidence and learn methods and attitudes needed for success in college and life. The program also affords students leadership and life skills including organizational skills, people skills, and problem solving. Potential leaders are identified in the sixth grade and formal training begins in the seventh grade. For the first year, the program will be open to 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th graders.
The program runs in two-year cycles. Odd-numbered program years focus on personal development with an emphasis on character building. Even-numbered years focus on job readiness skills such as active listening, presentation skills, resume writing, interviewing skills and mock interviewing.
There are several ways in which student will work in teams. Community service and small business projects are the major emphases of this program. 7th and 8th grade students will create a business using a Junior Achievement-like model, and form an executive management team, develop a business plan, create a product, sell stock and sell their goods. 9th and 10th graders will work together to create one or more community service projects such as a food drive or creating a not-for-profit organization for a good cause. As a team, they will plan the events, determine participants’ roles, develop communication systems and execute a plan with their fellow teammates while giving back to the community.