Lessons
fall into one or more of the following categories:
Leadership & Citizenship, College & Academics, Work & Career
Opportunities, and Life Skills.
Leadership & Citizenship:
Some 2006 activities included leadership instruction, team
building, goal development and community service.
College
& Academics:
Lessons ranged from high school academics (study skills,
writing and grammar, Proficiency testing) to college
preparation (application techniques, financial aid
awareness, how to apply for scholarships, and how to select
a school).
Work &
Career Opportunities:
Whether students enroll in college or enter the work force
after high school, instructors provide students with useful
information on resume writing and interview skills, letter
writing, how to dress for success, computer research and how
to complete a job application. These lessons allow students
to become comfortable with the experiences that will greet
them in the work world.
Life
Skills:
Many factors can lead members of the young Hispanic
community astray, but quality life-skill lessons provide
students with real-world scenarios that raise their
awareness of social dangers. Lessons include health and
nutrition, planned parenthood, how to avoid loan scams, and
even money management in which Esperanza helps students open
and manage their own bank accounts.
Esperanza’s mission has been to enhance academic and
economic opportunities for Hispanic Americans since its
inception in 1983.
Esperanza is battling a near 70% Hispanic drop-out rate in
the City of Cleveland (based on 2000 census data). The
adults who make the YLP and all of
Esperanza’s programs a
reality are examples of success, many of whom were once
struggling students like those being helped today. We
believe the Youth Leadership Program is providing
Hispanic and minority teens with unique opportunities to be leaders in
their own way: in school, at home, and in their community.
