LA Youth Poet Ambassadors

City of Los Angeles

LAUSD

Engage residents and stakeholders

Expand a pilot or a program

Town Hall Meetings, Volunteerism, Voter Drives, and Performances

Rates of volunteerism

Voting rates by race

Attendance at cultural events

Participation in neighborhood councils

Percentage of Angelenos that volunteer informally (Dream Metric)

Attendance at public/open streets gatherings (Dream Metric)

Mission: The Los Angeles Youth Poet Laureate & Ambassadors program aims to identify youth writers and leaders who are committed to civic and community engagement, poetry and performance, and diversity and human dignity across Los Angeles.

Launched in 2014, with only in-kind support from our various partners, the Los Angeles Youth Poet Laureate program brought forth and celebrated the top teen poets in Los Angeles, and provided various platforms for their voice and leadership. Program materials were promoted across the LA Unified School District, and students were encouraged to submit five poems and a CV. These materials were created to not only identify the best poets and writers, but also young leaders. A group of esteemed judges, including CA Poet Laureate, and numerous other writers from across Los Angeles, selected 12 finalists, as well as the first ever LA Youth Poet Laureate. Along with receiving a proclamation from the City of Los Angeles at a live poetry event held at the Downtown Public Library (where all the finalists performed), the winner received a book deal from Penmanship Books.

This year we hope to expand the program by offering curricula resources that promote the values of our program through poetry. To this end your support will help us expand the program and work of the Youth Poet Ambassasdors to:

 Hold (4) Town Hall Meetings during the year, open to the public, that engage issues of voter participation, job opportunities, and college access.

 Engage Ambassadors for (4-6) voter drives during the year, and 4 additional volunteer engagements.

 Plan and produce (4) Word/Works trips where young writers access professional spaces where writers are valued, like PR/marketing firms, recording studios, and city government.

 Provide free creative writing workshops and curricula that promotes civic engagement, youth leadership and voter participation.

 Create a series of [4] events leading up to the final event where the LA Youth Poet Laureate will be chosen and a Proclamation issued.

 Create a public library tour for the youth poets involved.

In summary, this program aims to expand the role of poetry for young people to include writing that inspires a sense of civic and community participation, as well as speak to the issues that affect them most.

Because this program is based in presenting/producing events and Town Halls aimed at shifting the culture, as well as Word/Works trips, workshops and college access activities - we evaluate our work by not only reaching our benchmarks, but also by serving as many youth as possible with these opportunities.

Also, as we shift the culture and bring attention to these issues, we are allowed great access to spaces of power and governance. Evaluating our success enlists a multi-faceted approach to document all of this work.

Money (financial capital)

Volunteers/staff (human capital)

Publicity/awareness (social capital)

Education/training

Community outreach

Network/relationship support