Youth Communication is a

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

youth media organization that promotes youth literacy and civic engagement through

youth-led media Youth-led media is any effort created, planned, implemented, and reflected upon by young people in the form of Mass media, media, including websites, newspapers, television shows and publications. Originating in the 20th century alongside youth act ...

. It is a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

History

The organization was founded in 1980 by

youth rights The youth rights movement (also known as youth liberation) seeks to grant the rights to Youth, young people that are traditionally reserved for adults. This is closely akin to the notion of evolving capacities within the children's rights mov ...

pioneer Keith Hefner, who won a

MacArthur Fellowship The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and colloquially called the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the MacArthur Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to typically between 20 and ...

for his work with Youth Communication in 1989.

Program

Youth Communication helps marginalized youth develop their potential through reading, writing, and social/emotional skills so that they succeed in school and at work and contribute to their communities. It publishes anthologies of stories by teens, many of which include lesson guides to help teachers and other adults use the stories. Youth Communication publishes two print magazines and associated websites: ''YCteen'' (formerly called ''New Youth Connections''), a general interest magazine for urban teens; and ''Represent'' (formerly ''Foster Care Youth United''), a magazine written by and for young people in

foster care Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home ( residential child care community or treatment centre), or private home of a state- certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent", or with a family mem ...

. Hundreds of stories and lessons by teens in the program are available on the organization's websites. Youth Communication counts many notable alumni, including authors

Edwidge Danticat Edwidge Danticat (; born January 19, 1969) is a Haitian American novelist and short story writer. Her first novel, '' Breath, Eyes, Memory'', was published in 1994 and went on to become an Oprah's Book Club selection. Danticat has since written ...

(''Breath Eyes Memory''), Veronica Chambers (''Mama's Girl''), and

Gina Trapani Gina Marie Trapani (born September 19, 1975) is an American tech blogger, web developer, writer, and technology executive. Early life and education Trapani was born and raised in an Italian Catholic family in Brooklyn, New York. Trapani graduat ...

(''LifeHacker''),

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

writer and actor

Bönz Malone Bönz Malone is an American writer and actor. Personal life Career Writing Malone began his writing career at Youth Communication in 1986, where he was a teen writer and reporter for New Youth Connections (later renamed YCteen), a magazine wr ...

, and reporters Rachel Swarns (''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''), and

Mohamad Bazzi Mohamad Bazzi (; born ) is a Lebanese-American journalist. He is the former Middle East bureau chief at ''Newsday'' and a current faculty member of New York University. He is currently director of the Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Stud ...

(''

Newsday ''Newsday'' is a daily newspaper in the United States primarily serving Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, although it is also sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. The slogan of the newspaper is "Newsday, Your Eye on LI" ...

''). In 2006, the organization began producing video stories for its YouTube site. They include news videos, personal stories, and "story behind the story" videos in which the teen authors talk about the writing process and why they wrote their stories. Youth Communication worked with outside directors.

Ric Burns Ric Burns (Eric Burns, born 1955) is an American documentary filmmaker and writer. He has written, directed and produced historical documentaries since the 1990s, beginning with his collaboration on the celebrated PBS series '' The Civil War'' (1 ...

directed a video about the organization called ''Changing Lives, One Story at a Time'', and Michael "Boogie" Pinckney directed ''Alternative High'', a story about one Youth Communication writer's journey from high school dropout to high school principal.

Recognition

Youth Communication has won numerous awards for its educational publications. * Coming Up Taller Award (2001) National Endowments for the Arts and

Humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture, including Philosophy, certain fundamental questions asked by humans. During the Renaissance, the term "humanities" referred to the study of classical literature a ...

. * Part of a $20 million grant from the

Carnegie Corporation The Carnegie Corporation of New York is a philanthropic fund established by Andrew Carnegie in 1911 to support education programs across the United States, and later the world. Since its founding, the Carnegie Corporation has endowed or othe ...

(2007) * >12 Distinguished Achievement Awards

Association of Educational Publishers The Association of Educational Publishers (AEP) was a U.S. non-profit organization for educational publishers. It was active in public awareness campaigns on effective educational resources, as well as aiding communication between educational o ...

. It won a 2011 award for best high school curriculum in the Health and Character Education category for ''Real Men'', its program on masculinity for urban teens.

References

{{reflist

External links

Youth Communication
website.
YCteen
website
Represent
website Organizations based in New York City Youth organizations based in New York City Education in New York City Youth-led media Non-profit organizations based in New York City