YouthBuild-Lawrence YouthBuild Lawrence is in its twentieth year of operation assisting young people complete their education and achieve economic self-sufficiency through empowerment and leadership skills, vocational training, career development, support services, post-secondary education and/or job placement in meaningful employment. Over the past year, YouthBuild-Lawrence transformed sixty-eight “high-risk” youth into “high-potential” young adults, as well as changed how YouthBuild-Lawrence delivers services to young people. Sixty-eight youth represent Cycles 18 and 19, which is the number of youth to be served under the current YouthBuild-Lawrence’s $1.1 million U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) contract. YouthBuild-Lawrence has experienced a tremendous year of growth with the development and implementation of DOL policies and procedures and a new YouthBuild-Lawrence program design. The new design embodies many elements that were incorporated into the proposed 2012 YouthBuild Academy Charter School (YBACS) application that was submitted to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education (ESE). Although, the YBACS application regretfully was not recommended for chartering, its spirit and rigor is the underlying philosophy being implemented today at YouthBuild-Lawrence. The transformation of the program design is credited to the dedicated and talented YouthBuildLawrence staff that consulted and acquired ideas from the students. Collectively and collaboratively, the staff worked many hours to develop and implement a design model that encourages a holistic and positive community and sets high expectations and accountability in a culture where students and staff can realize their potential. The model includes a well-rounded cross-discipline project-based learning curriculum that incorporates: core academic courses, leadership (Power Source & Urban Survival Laws), community service, career development, construction, entrepreneurship, social justice, financial responsibility, Restorative Practices, “Service Thursdays” and digital literacy. Simultaneously, the staff developed and implemented rubrics and assessment tools such as the Student Academic Achievement Plan, e-Portfolio and the Personal Success Blueprint. Career Series & Service Learning Thursdays This year, YouthBuild-Lawrence developed a new component of the career development curriculum which is called the “Career Series.” The series allows students to explore multiple career pathways. Career Series is a method of introducing students to various occupations within a given industry. This approach incorporates hands-on and diversified learning modalities, an introduction to industry and associated career pathways through guest speakers, industry tours, research/service projects, job shadowing, internships and post-secondary education exploration. Through this series, students are introduced to the following critical and emerging industries: Health/Human Services (Quarter 1), Information Technology (Quarter 2), Manufacturing/Construction (Quarter 3) and Hospitality, Culinary Arts and Travel & Tourism (Quarter 4). Simultaneously, YouthBuild-Lawrence integrated career curriculum while complementing YouthBuild-Lawrence’s service learning model has adopted “Service Learning Thursdays” (SLT). 10
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