Youth Mentoring Connection

Program Overview and Background

Since 2001, YMC has served at-risk youth ages 14-24 residing in some of the toughest neighborhoods of Los Angeles County. The YMC strength-based (YMC refers to as gifts) and trauma-informed (YMC refers to as wounds) mentoring program model is grounded in YMC’s trademarked “Gift Centered Approach.” YMC builds a community of youth, staff, mentors, and other community providers through healing circles featuring indigenous Native Southern and Northern American, African, and other cultural practices to help youth connect and build a safe and supportive community in which youth thrive. This healingcentered engagement builds youth’s resiliency through the discovery that they have already succeeded in coping with a host of adverse childhood experiences (ACE) by developing strengths and unique gifts that helped them survive. The self-esteem felt by youth whose gifts have been “seen” motivates them to want to become the best version of themselves.

Program Services

YMC provides a variety of supports and programs that help youth uncover their wounds and discover their gifts. We create opportunities for mentors and mentees to explore together within and outside of our core mentoring program structure. In addition to our core mentoring, YMC offers Youth Support (case management); ECHO monthly healing practices; Stoked City Surf Camp; Urban Oasis Film Academy; Alumni Mentee gatherings; monthly ECHO meetings (healing circles); Annual Rites of Passage Retreat. Our programs use indigenous practices to help connect youth to the YMC community and YMC assures that youth have the opportunity to participate in all programs and activities by providing transportation with our three company vans and staff vehicles.

Target Population

We aim to provide mentoring under this grant to young people with any one or more of the following:

• Single Parent Household
• Academic Challenges
• Juvenile Justice Involvement
• Substance Impact and Misuse
• Facing Discrimination based on Race, Ethnicity or Gender Identity

Mentor Recruitment and Training

• 100 matches and youth served under this grant
• 50 mentors recruited under this grant
• For mentor recruitment, we target Adult Volunteers
• Duration of program services: 1 year
• Expected intensity of match contact: 48 hours
• Expected length of a match: 1 year
• Expected frequency of match contact: 4 hours per month
• Number of training hours required before a mentor is matched with a youth: 10 hours