Beyond Limits

Youth economic advancement

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative (testing or implementing a new idea)

While House of Ruth’s Prevention Education Program has historically addressed protective factors of relational violence by supporting young people in learning healthy social-emotional skills, it is critical we also address economic risk factors including high poverty rates, high unemployment rates, and limited educational and economic opportunities (CDC). The City of Pomona, with a population of 150,000, is in the lowest (or least healthy) quartile on the California Healthy Place Index, ranking at 24%. This score is significantly less than the Los Angeles County average score of 48.2% and is the lowest out of all its surrounding cities. Even worse, just over half of the population (55.8%) is living above the federal poverty level, with an income of $21,300 per capita. The pilot program, Beyond Limits, will provide job-readiness training, social-emotional workshops, and professional mentorship opportunities to youth in Pomona to address income inequality and youth economic advancement.

House of Ruth has provided community prevention education outreach to children and youth for over 30 years and evaluated the success of this program both qualitatively and quantitively. Looking ahead, we are ready to deepen our violence prevention efforts by investing in the economic advancement of youth of color in Pomona through the pilot program, Beyond Limits. Preventionists will host workshops twice a month throughout the project period with every other meeting being in-person or virtual. A hybrid meeting schedule will facilitate opportunities to build connection face-to-face, while giving flexibility and reducing transportation barriers. Preventionists will engage participants in a mix of job-readiness and life skills/wellness workshops that will provide participants an opportunity to develop their professional skillset and goals, while providing a safe space to explore sensitive topics relating to their emotional wellbeing and personal growth. Learning social-emotional skills is not only foundational to violence prevention, but it is an invaluable skillset for youth entering the workforce and becoming successful leaders in their chosen career.
In addition, each project participant will be paired with a House of Ruth advocate staff member who they will shadow for 3 workdays throughout the program period. Through shadowing an advocate, participants will get a glimpse into a potential career avenue and gain valuable insight into the workings of the nonprofit sector.

House of Ruth sees the expansion of the Beyond Limits program as an invaluable component to our violence prevention education program. Our goal is to secure additional funding to support the pilot program for a second year so we can fully understand the impact. For 30 years we have engaged thousands of youths in Los Angeles County, fostering healthy social-emotional skills and behaviors with the goal of preventing relational violence. To complement this work, Beyond Limits addresses the socio-economic factors that contribute to domestic violence. Program participants will not only have the opportunity for personal growth, but professional growth and networking as well, ultimately setting themselves up for success in their professional and personal lives, contributing to a healthier Pomona. By the end of this program, Los Angeles County will have 15 young advocates empowered and equipped to change their community for the better, creating a lasting impact for years to come.

Our vision for Beyond Limits is to nurture strong, aware, and passionate youth advocates, benefiting program participants both personally and professionally, as well as Pomona. When young people are empowered to engage in social issues like violence prevention, the whole community is healthier as a result. The impact of this program is immeasurable in its ripple effect. Every program participant directly impacted will have an indirect impact on their closest family, friends, and neighbors. We will measure the success of the program through pre- and post-tests distributed at the start and end of the program period. The surveys will measure participants’ personal and professional growth. By the end of the program, we hope participants report: - Increased job readiness.
- Increased understanding of the nonprofit sector and opportunities to get involved in the field.
- Increased confidence in themselves as leaders and helpers in their community. Increased social-emotional skills.