Encouraging Leaders

Our mission is to inspire underserved youth and young adults to recognize their inner talents and gain confidence in their ability to shape a positive future for themselves and their community.

Entrepreneur / Workforce Development

Encouraging Leader

Our entrepreneurship training/workforce development programs build a more promising future by training youth and adults in the skills essential to the 21st-century workplace, encouraging them to respond constructively to community needs and opportunities, and ultimately helping them find or create decent work. Our approach to this is through engaging them in experiential learning, Leadership development training, training in hard and soft skills, the inclusion of people from all backgrounds, assisting them in developing creative and innovative ideas and solutions, civic engagement and social enterprise, etc.

The Great Social Gathering, a weekly forum where accomplished entrepreneurs come and share information to our up and coming entrepreneurs to assist them with reaching their goals. There will also be a roundtable discussion and a Q & A session. The goal of The Great Social Gathering is for entrepreneurs to give back to the community and for participants to interact with professionals that they admire.

Entrepreneur / Workforce Development

Cognitive Skill Building: Our cognitive and Life Skills Development services provide a place for youths to engage in meaningful activities that promote self-awareness, confidence and increase the skills needed to lead a rewarding and positive life. The activities and curriculum are designed and tailored to everyone’s strengths, goals, and aspirations. We focus on the six domains of functioning: cognitive, emotional, physical, social, spiritual, and vocational. These six domains of functioning allow us to adequately prepare our youths for a positive lifestyle they can achieve.

Our program is aimed at helping youths to lead positive lives and achieve the greatest heights possible. With this in mind, our programs provide for a variety of interests, including entrepreneurial workshops/ seminars, employment readiness, sports, drama/music, arts & crafts, personal grooming and hygiene, exercise and gardening, exposure to technology, community outings, social interactions etc.

100% Pledge Program

This gang intervention curriculum provides elementary, middle, and high schools with classroom and counseling-based curricula, designed for the higher risk students. It provides multiple school-based anti-gang strategies, with 100-150 hours of materials at each level. It addresses areas such as gang activity, bullying, peer pressure, substance abuse, anger, aggression, and violence. Gender-specific anti-gang strategies for gang intervention, gang prevention, and gang resistance. Under the guidance and mentoring of the 100% Pledge Program over 342 participants last year pledged not to become involved in gangs, gang-activity or hang around current gang members. To schools, community centers, courts, parents and concerned family members if you have clients that could benefit from this program please contact Encouraging Leaders to refer your clients.

Strengthening Families

The Strengthening Families Program is a 14-session, evidence-based parenting skills, children’s social skills, and family life skills training program specifically designed for high-risk families. Parents and children participate in a group setting, both separately and together. Group Leader Manuals contain a complete lesson for every session. Parents’ and children’s Handouts are also provided for every session. The family sessions allow the parents and children to practice what they learned in their individual sessions in experiential exercises. This is also a time for the group leaders to coach and encourage family members for improvements in parent/child interactions. The major skills to learn are: Child’s Game or, for Teens, Our Time, similar to therapeutic child play where the parent allows the child to determine the play activity, complimenting the good, effective communication, Family Meetings, making family rules, and Positive Discipline. Each session includes group practice in problem solving and anger management. Home practice assignments of these skills improve generalization of new behaviors at home.

Arts for Therapy

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S.W.A.G. (Spoken Word Affecting Generations) Program

This Spoken Word curriculum developed to promote the power of youth as change agents who are committed to social justice and equity in today’s society.

Hip-Hop Shop

This 8-week workshop will be a discussion of Hip-Hop material presented in a large group presentation tailored to the program participants. This supplementary workshop will give participants elements to present in the larger workshop in their classroom.

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Creative Movement

This workshop offers a creative dance curriculum that incorporates the movement education concepts of facilitators, who will put emphasis on the educational benefits of dance as an aesthetic, social, and communicative form.

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Creative Dance Benefits

Gain confidence and a positive self-esteem
Learn problem solving skills
Make discoveries about themselves, their friends, and the world around them
Learn cooperation by working together as a group
Learn to respect each other’s unique style
Learn spontaneity, leadership, and self-control
Develop creativity
Gain physical strength, flexibility, and stamina
Develop good posture, balance, and coordination through dance exercises and yoga postures