YTFG’s Spring meeting focused on the question: how best can we support the well-being of young people given the tumultuous climate in which we're operating. Our meeting was chock full of opportunities to strategize, learn, connect, and refuel! 

Plenary Sessions

We were excited to lift up and learn from incredible leaders in Philadelphia to support this conversation, notably:

• Visionary leaders working to redefine "community safety" including David Irizarry, a Stoneleigh Fellow working with the Philadelphia Police Department to reduce gang violence and Sarah Katz, a Stoneleigh Fellow working to reduce family separation and child welfare involvement based on "safety" findings. 

• On the heels of a recent report listing Philadelphia as one of the poorest large cities, city leaders were working on an ambitious regional growth strategy, including a focus on economic mobility for youth and young adults.  We heard from Cynthia Figueroa, the President and CEO of JEVS Human Services, Dan Rhoten from Hope Works, and Jacqueline Flynn from HopePHL.

• Folks leading power building efforts focused on leadership development, organizing, and advocacy. We were thrilled to highlight the work of YEAH Philly, Philly Voices for Change, and Care Not Control.  

• Finally, we lifted up local work in innovative narrative change strategies, particularly of organizations who are investing in and controlling the means of narrative production.

System-Specific Break Outs

In addition to our plenary conversations on cross-systems issues, we also built in time for work group conversations to go deep on system-specific challenges. The Youth Justice, Foster Care and Economic Well-Being Work Groups broke down critical issues and  connected with and learned from local leaders working on the front lines of transformation. 

Tuesday, April 14  

Opening Session

• Tonyel Edwards, YTFG Co-Chair

State of the City Report

• Maridarlyn Gonzalez, Officer and Jun Ho Phue, Senior Associate, The Pew Charitable Trusts

What Young People and the Organizations that Serve Need to Thrive

• Sean Vereen, Executive Director, Heights

Reimagining Community Safety: Centering Youth and Family Well-Being

What does true community safety look like when it is defined by young people and families themselves? This panel brought together leaders from youth- and family-serving systems who are advancing innovative approaches that move beyond traditional, punitive models toward strategies rooted in healing and opportunity.  

• Moderator:  Lyman Legters, Casey Family Programs

• David Irizarry, Stoneleigh Fellow, Director of Gang Reduction and Youth Development, Philadelphia Police Department

• Sarah Katz, Stoneleigh Fellow, Clinical Professor of Law and Head of the Family Law Litigation Clinic, Temple University

• Anne Marie Ambrose, Assistant District Attorney/Special Advisor, Youth Justice Division, Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office 

Economic Mobility:  Building a City Where Young People Grow and Thrive

A recent report ranked Philadelphia as the lowest of the 50 largest cities in economic mobility.  In response, city leaders have created a regional strategy, prioritizing workforce, economic development and housing initiatives.  This panel included insights from local leaders working to support the economic well-being and mobility of young people in the city.

• Moderator: Jeff Poirier, Annie E. Casey Foundation  

• Marion Campbell, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Eddie’s House

• Cynthia Figueroa, President and CEO of JEVS Human Services

• Dan Rhoton, Executive Director, Hope Works

Wednesday, April 15: 

Power Building: Leadership Development, Organizing and Advocacy

Lasting change doesn’t happen by accident—it’s built through intentional leadership, strategic organizing, and sustained advocacy. This panel explored how leaders in Philadelphia are cultivate powering to transform systems, influence policy, and advance equity.  

• Moderator:  Mishi Faruqee, Andrus Family Fund

• Kendra Van de Water, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Youth Empowerment For Advancement Hangout (YEAH) Philly

• April Lee, Co-Founder, Philly Voice for Change

• Autumn Talley, Coalition Director, Care, Not Control

Building Narrative Infrastructure and Owning the Means of Narrative Production

Narratives shape policy, culture, and power. But, who creates and controls the story—and the platforms that amplify it—matters just as much as the message itself. This panel explored the range of strategies for building critical narrative infrastructure and delve deeper into the strategy of owning narrative production tools, including independent media platforms for storytelling.  

• Moderator: Molly de Aguiar, ED of the People's Media Fund

• Michaela Pommells, Executive Director, Youth First Justice Collaborative

• Brit Christopher, Youth First Justice Collaborative Curatorial Apprentices, Stoneleigh Youth Advocacy Fellow

• Janine Spruill, Founder and Executive Director, Lil Filmmakers

• Taylor Wells, Teaching Artist, Lil Filmmakers

Immersive Learning Session: Case Studies of Investing in Narrative Change Strategies 

Stoneleigh Foundation: Investing in Leaders Advancing Narrative Change

• Anne Marie McGrory, Director of Communications, Stoneleigh Foundation

• Steve Volk, Stoneleigh Fellow and Investigative Reporter, Resolve Philly

• Dr. Jay Breneman, Stoneleigh Fellow and Director of Firearm Suicide Prevention Policy, CeaseFirePA Education Fund

People’s Media Fund: Investing in Community-Centered Narrative Infrastructure

• Molly de Aquiar, President, People’s Media Fund

Hotel Information

Our meeting was held at the Palomar Hotel located at 117 South 17th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103.

YTFG’s Spring meeting was designed and led by our Fellows and delved into an array of strategies philanthropy can consider to engage young people as professionals in their investments.  We were excited to lift up examples of amazing work underway in New Orleans through the following conversations: 

• Perspectives on Youth Engagement with two incredible local leaders – Antonio Travis and Ernest Johnson 

• Building City-Wide Infrastructure for Youth Engagement through the Children and Youth Planning Board

• Youth-Centered Justice Movements:  Advocacy in Times of Rollbacks

• Community-Based Prevention and Family Support to prevent child welfare involvement

• The Connection of Arts and Culture to Mental Health and Wellness

• Investments to support the economic well-being of Opportunity Youth

We were also excited to offer dedicated, deep dive sessions for our Policy Action Table, our Direct Cash Transfers Action Table, and to launch a new learning series on Narrative Change (scroll down for details). Thanks for attending!

Plenary Sessions

Day 1

Welcome

• Tonyel Edwards, YTFG Co-Chair, Roy Williams, Greater New Orleans Foundation and State Senator Royce Duplessis  

Centering Our Theme

• Fellow Introductions

Youth Engagement and Equity

• Opening Keynote: Dr. Kimberley Richards, Executive Director, People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond  

Perspectives on Youth Engagement and Leadership

• This conversation with Antonio Travis, creator of the "Let Kids Be Kids" initiative, and Ernest Johnson, longtime advocate for community empowerment, highlighted the shared responsibility between young people and adults in creating equitable spaces for well-being and work.

Reflections

• Denise Graves, Congo Square Preservation Society

Wednesday, April 2

Youth-Centered Justice Movements: Advocacy in Times of Rollbacks

New Orleans has a robust set of justice organizations working to support and advance well-being and equity. Given the unique context of recent rollbacks of key justice reforms, this session will focus on how young professionals can sustain and adapt reforms in challenging times.

• Gina Womack, Executive Director and Rio Valdez, Youth Leader, Family and Friends of Louisiana Incarcerated Children
  Dominque Jones-Johnson, Founder and Executive Director, and Kash’shae Cooks, Youth Leader, Daughters Beyond Incarceration

Building City-Wide Infrastructure for Youth Engagement

The session focused on the innovative structure of the Children and Youth Planning Board and highlighted lessons learned from creating dedicated city-wide infrastructure to center youth voice 

• Morgan Shannon, Executive Director, New Orleans Children and Youth Planning Board (CYPB)
  Serria Gaines, Senior Opportunity Youth Ambassador, CYPB
  Lex Granger, Member, Community Youth Planning Board

Community-Based Prevention and Family Support 

My Community Cares (MCC) emphasizes how empowering families prevents system involvement and promotes equity.  Over the past two years, MCC has partnered with thousands of families to assess opportunities and challenges and co-design solutions with them to prevent children from entering or remaining in foster care. 

• Dr. Lauren Broussard, Associate Director, My Community Cares
  Thomas McRae, Program Director for MCC at Boys Town 
  Mischa Martin, Casey Family Programs, Senior Director Strategic Consulting

The Role of Creative Expression in Advancing Equity, Building Community, and Navigating Difficult Times Together

YTFG Fellows worked alongside meeting participants in a container encouraging creative expression to explore how arts can be an integral part of our equity work and help us stay aligned with our values, even in times of crisis and chaos. 

Reconnecting New Orleans' Opportunity Youth: A Storied Past, Present Challenges, and Pathways to Success 

This session examined why young people in New Orleans become disconnected from education and employment pathways. Leaders from New Orleans' dynamic Opportunity Youth ecosystem will share innovative approaches to reengaging youth in learning and work in a city defined by challenge and resilience.

• Claire Jecklin, Founding Executive Director, New Orleans Career Center
  Michele Seymour, Director, Reengagement Center at the New Orleans Youth Alliance
  Danielle Barringer-Payton, Opportunity Youth Coalition Director, Louisiana Opportunity Youth Alliance
  
  

Thursday, April 3

9:00 am - 12:00 pm

Launch of the Narrative Change Learning Series (scroll down for details)

Hotel Information

The meeting took place at the Eliza Jane Hotel located at 315 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70130.  Once a printing house and bitters factory, The Eliza Jane is ideally located between the French Quarter, Central Business District, and Arts District.  YTFG members can reserve a room for a group rate of $249 for arrivals starting March 31 and departures as last of April 4. Book your room with this link by February 28.

Narrative Change Learning Series

Based on widespread interest by our members, YTFG is excited to offer a new cohort learning experience that will explore narrative change strategies.  YTFG is partnering with expert narrative change practitioners from the Pop Culture Collab to offer this deep dive into narrative change strategy, tailored for our members' unique role working in philanthropy.

YTFG and Pop Culture Collab are designing this learning experience using a cohort model that will take place over the course of six months, in order to offer a more intensive and impactful learning journey. Members who join the cohort will participate in three components, utilizing a mix of facilitated and self-directed learning:

April 3

initial in-person session  

An introduction to narrative oceans, narrative systems, and systemic narrative harm 

The opening session of the Learning Series introduced the cohort to components of narrative change strategy by focusing on systemic or coordinated narrative harm, examining how narrative systems can be used to dehumanize groups and justify harmful policies.

DATES TBD*

4-part series

Asynchronous learning modules and cohort discussion 

Over the next four months, cohort members will engage with a serious of 4 asynchronous learning modules, covering the following topics: 1) narrative oceans and narrative systems, 2) case study on transforming public perception, 3) narrative infrastructure and how funders can invest in it, and 4) narrative impact evaluation. 

Learning modules will include short videos, curated reading materials of varying depths, and study questions. A 10-part podcast will also be made available. 

YTFG will host monthly virtual meet ups for the cohort to collectively discuss each module’s study questions, and the Pop Culture Collab will host office hours to help cohort members delve deeper into questions arising from the modules.

Date TBD*

Final in-person session at YTFG Fall Convening

We will discuss practical applications and next steps for YTFG as a network.

Day 1 - Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Arthur Longworth, Policy Specialist, Dual-System-Involved Youth; Treehouse; and members of the Lived-Expert Council shared their efforts to derail the pipeline from child welfare to youth justice systems, including the evolving understanding, growth and role of the Lived-Expert Council.

Washington State reduced the rate of homelessness among unaccompanied youth and youth adults by 40% between 2016 and 2022. Key public and private sector leaders of this multifaceted and cross systems effort shared the strategies and investments that propelled this significant result.

• Moderator: Casey Trupin, Director, Youth Homelessness Strategy, Raikes Foundation 

• Kim Justice, Executive Director, Washington State Office of Homeless Youth Prevention and Protection 

• Kiki Serantes, Training and Engagement Director, A Way Home Washington

• Paula Carvalho, Program Officer, Youth Homelessness Strategy, Raikes Foundation

Care & Closure, King County’s strategic planning project to expand community-based alternatives to secure detention and close the youth detention center, has brought together community and public system stakeholders to co-create a plan for “youth healing, accountability, and community safety.” Local leaders discussed the reality of the work on the ground & the constellation of strategies necessary to support decarceration, system transformation and community reinvestment.

• Moderator: Aazia-Marie Ross, YTFG Fellow

• Dr. Ben Danielson, Center Director, AHSHAY 

• Katie Hurley, Special Counsel Criminal Policy and Practice, King County Public Defense Department

Day 2 - Thursday, April 11, 2024

Arnold shared strategies proven to enhance mobility outcomes for young people of color and, in specific situations, to diminish racial disparities in outcomes through “meaning-based interventions.”

Speakers shared the key components of this dedicated structure to developing recommendations (and the related implementation strategies) to eliminate disparities in educational outcomes for young people who have experienced systems

• Moderator: Farid Rasuli, YTFG Fellow

• Eileen Davidson, Chief of Staff, Treehouse 

• Daniel Narváez Zavala, Executive Director, Building Changes 

Local leaders of organizations shard their work to provide critical community infrastructure to support well-being and equity.  

• Moderator: Jennifer Miller, YTFG Consultant

• Annie Chung, Supervising Attorney, Legal Counsel for Youth and Children  

• Shaun Frazier, Senior Director of Community Programming, Housing & Homeless Services, Seattle YMCA

• Matthew Kama’aina, Restorative Dialogue Director, Collective Justice

• Devon Adams, Fundraising Director, Collective Justice