Creating Opportunities for Low-Income Immigrant and Minority Youth in the Nation’s Capital Region
Originally published February 2007

Four years ago, Cynthia was in trouble–she faced abuse at home, had become involved with a gang and was a high–school dropout. To escape the violence, she ran away. Months later, she returned to the Washington, DC area and found her way to the Latin American Youth Center. There, Cynthia found support, a safe place to grow, and a caring mentor. Today, she’s back in school, preparing for college and helping other girls in her community overcome challenges in their lives.

Every day, the Latin American Youth Center (LAYC) works with youth like Cynthia throughout Washington DC and Maryland. “Our aim,” states executive director Lori Kaplan, is to “support youth and their families in their determination to live, work, and study with dignity, hope, and joy. Many of the young people we work with face significant challenges and we help them overcome those challenges and build new skills and self-confidence.”

From its humble beginnings in 1974 as a small neighborhood volunteer effort serving young Latinos, LAYC has become one of the region’s largest and most-respected youth-serving agencies. Today, LAYC serves 4,000 young people each year of all racial and ethnic backgrounds. While a majority of its participants are Latino, nearly 40% of youth served are African American, and another 10% are African and Arab, multi-racial, Asian or Caucasian.

In and around the nation’s capital, LAYC is now one of the “go to” organizations for troubled young people from any culture. Its success with gang prevention work in DC, for example, caught the notice of Maryland officials who asked the organization to replicate its program model in their state.

Why so successful? The answer, says Kaplan, is that LAYC takes its programming to the youth who need it, and follows their clients with a tightly managed continuum of services that helps them achieve their goals and become productive young adults.

The organization provides comprehensive, multilingual, and culturally sensitive programs that enhance academic achievement and assist clients with finding and keeping employment. It also helps youth people adopt healthy habits and avoid risky or criminal behavior. Its programs and services fall into five core program areas:

Educational Enhancement : LAYC’s academic programming is primarily offered through its youth centers in D.C. and Maryland for young people between the ages of 5 and 24. Services include tutoring assistance, computer training, after-school programming, and college preparation.

In addition, LAYC has founded three charter schools, two that seek to re-engage youth who have already dropped out of school and a third that provides a dual language (Spanish/English) immersion Montessori education for elementary school children.

Social Services : To complement its educational offerings, LAYC provides counseling, emergency shelter, residential housing, and foster care placement. “Our philosophy,” says Kaplan, “is that the most effective way to encourage youth development is by strengthening and supporting the family unit.” LAYC also offers substance abuse prevention and treatment, street outreach, case management, and collaborations with other providers for medical and legal assistance.

Job Readiness : LAYC’s Workforce Investment & Social Enterprise unit provides job preparation classes, GED preparation, career exploration workshops, and job placement services. “LAYC is able to give young people work exposure and opportunities, with the real-world expectations, pressures, and rewards of employment,” says Kaplan.

Advocacy & Public Policy: LAYC teaches skills ranging from public speaking to researching contemporary issues to instill in youth the importance of taking interest in current events and empower youth to become advocates for themselves and their communities.

Art & Media : Since its earliest days, LAYC has used art to encourage young people to express themselves and to explore issues facing their communities. Its Art & Media House is a youth-driven, state-of-the-art facility (near LAYC’s anchor site) that offers hands-on training and opportunities in media (photography, radio, beat–making, and video) and fine arts (drawing, painting, mixed media, and murals).

Today, LAYC is continuing to expand its services in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Its Maryland Multicultural Youth Centers, created in 2005, served more than 1,000 young people this past year. The organization will also continue to strengthen its operations in the Washington, DC area. A recent grant of $750,000 from the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation will enable the organization to not only develop a long-term business plan, but solidify and improve its programming and services, strengthen its staffing and recruitment, and further develop its evaluation systems.

With these ambitious plans in hand, Kaplan concludes, LAYC will soon be better able to “help more youth become successful adults who are helping to improve their community.”