Many, many thanks to our loyal supporters…you have made a real difference in the lives of homeless and disconnected youth! As we wave good-bye to 2015, let us take a moment to review some of Sasha Bruce Youthwork’s many accomplishments over the past year. We couldn’t have done it without you!
• We’ve launched a new initiative to improve our agency’s ability to measure the efficacy of our work with young people, and we established a capital operating reserve fund…many thanks to the Agnes Chapman Legacy Gift;
• We completed a 3-year Strategic Plan to ensure the viability of our mission into the future…many thanks to our governing Board of Directors and Compass;
• We secured funds for the District’s first homeless youth-specific Drop-in Center. To be officially opened in the next two weeks, our Drop-in Center will be one accessible space where young people can begin to turn their lives around. Using an evidence-based assessment tool, our staff will help young people — and service providers — gauge the severity of each youth’s circumstances, allowing intake workers to admit people to shelter, for instance, in a way which is trauma-informed and prioritized according to needs;
• We held our first-ever large-scale fundraising event to celebrate our 40th Anniversary this past April at the Howard Theatre, raising more than 3 times the amount of funds than any previous event…many thanks to Carolyn Peachey, our board of directors and event chairs.
Our work during 2015 demonstrates the enduring commitment of our many supporters. Through their friendship, and the expertise of our staff and volunteers, Sasha Bruce Youthwork continues to offer a broad spectrum of programs that meet youths’ multiple needs. During our 41-year history, SBY has reunited over 13,000 homeless youth with strengthened families. Our services result in life-changing opportunities for our youth – a sampling of recent client-level outcome metrics across our programs is below:
• Families Stabilized: 90% of nearly 300 runaway youth entering SBY shelters reunited with family.
• Youth Educated: 75% of the youth entering our transitional living program had dropped out of school; 77% of those had a diploma, GED or were enrolled in college at exit.
• Youth Employed: 85% of youth in our workforce development program were not employed at entrance; at exit 96% had jobs and stayed employed at six-month follow-up.
• Youth Safely Housed: 100% of homeless youth in our Independent Living Program (ILP) enrolled in school within 2 months of entering the program; 80% increased their income.
Peace and health,
James Beck, Vice President of Planning, Development and Evaluation