What brought you to YPP?

I have had much experience working for nonprofit Youth organizations in various capacities. I decided to take a leadership role in order to guide our young adults in assuming roles as leaders in our community. I was working at another non-profit when I wanted growth in an administrative capacity when this opportunity presented itself. I wanted to be able to shape our young people into the Leaders, entrepreneurs, Engineers, physicist, managers of tomorrow. Working with children of color was a priority. Working in an organization that reflected that commitment toward serving urban youth expanding their intellectual capacity is fundamental to my interest in this field. YPP was an organization that I believed to reflect these commitments.

What have you learned from YPP?

I have learned Management and group facilitation skills. I have learned that working with different groups of youth. Variables will present themselves, as it is important to stay on your feet and attend to problems that will arise. I have learned to be attentive to the needs of my staff, work on the fly and be ready to deal with any problem that might arise.

What can you do now that you couldn’t do before?

I work more as a guide to the Young adults helping them to develop their skills. My challenge is keeping them on coarse so they can in turn develop the adolescents that they work with. I am learning to organize myself to be accountable for their actions. I’m not sure that I have expanded my ability to be effective in this role as of yet but I am looking forward to learning more and developing into a stronger leader. I am not sure I have gained new skills at this point; rather I have had to use my organizational skills, facilitation skills and leadership skills to a new capacity. Using each skill I have learned in an integral way to complete task given in my role.

What are some marketable skills you have been taught and how have you applied to them in school and at work?

I feel my ability to Facilitate our MLW’s in their leadership roles, making sure we stay on task and accomplish our goals, Daily. I am new to this Administrative role but up to the task. The skills that YPP can be transferred to other capacities. I am looking forward to challenging myself to figure out those capacities. Organization is the key to meeting this goal. If I can take anything, away from this experience that’s what I would want to take away.

What do you enjoy most about YPP?Working with the Leaders of tomorrow; young adults that will very well shape the future.  Developing their Ideas, my Job is to shape the shapers. AS they develop activities for the elementary students, I guide them along. Make sure they stay on task. I also keep them accountable for their actions and the work that they do. This is not always an easy task for I have to reiterate ideas and reinforce the standard we work by.