N e w s l e t t e r NavigatorNavigator Jan 2024Happy New Year! What a year 2023 was forEYP as we kicked off Year 4 with newpartnerships, new cohorts, and a whole lottapositive energy that we are taking with usinto the rest of the year. In December, EYP hosted a virtual careerpanel featuring a diverse group ofprofessionals that answered questions andprovided insights about their sectors andcareer choices. One thing all the panelistsshared is that they have all had nonlinearcareer journeys and spent time finding theirikigai. During the session, EYP youth, all from theSan José Public Library’s Resilience Corpsprogram, had the opportunity to rotatethrough each panel, which included entrepre-neurship, tech, cybersecurity, and education.Panelists encouraged youth to cultivaterelationships to build a professional network,to pursue career interests in ways that gobeyond the classroom, and to remain resilientwhen pathways take you in differentdirections. Youth specifically highlighted the followingnuggets of wisdom as particularly impactful:“To not be afraid to look around. Life is notlinear and things change, and weshouldn't be scared of that. Maybechange could end up being something welove doing.”“Don’t be afraid of failure.”“Make connections and try to branch outas much as possible to gain differentopportunities.”On behalf of EYP, thank you to a phenomenalgroup of volunteers for joining our panel!
Your Envision Your Pathway Youth Designed. Youth Led. Civic EngagementCivic EngagementWe are excited to share the success of EYP’srecent civic engagement project, led by ourEYP cohort from Opportunity Youth Academy. Recognizing the importance of knowledge incrucial areas, such as housing, resumes,interviewing, and financial aid, our passionateyouth selected these topics based on theirrelevance.To ensure accuracy, depth, and to furtherbuild their self-effiacy, subject matter expertsgenerously shared their insights and resourceswith the eager participants. The youth thencollaborated in small groups, transformingthis valuable information into easy-to-digestbrochures filled with practical tips foreveryone in the community.The culmination of their hard work was aresource information fair held at OYA, wherethese insightful brochures were shared withthe community. This event served as a bridge,connecting experts’ knowledge with thecommunity’s needs.Thank you to everyone involved in making thisproject a success. Together, we are building amore informed and empowered community.As is tradition in the program, youth createdoriginal logos designed to symbolize thecohort’s initiative. We received the highestamount of logos in EYP history. The youth-chosen design, as seen above, is similar to atree of knowledge. A special shoutout toGenesis, youth that designed this logo, whorecently joined EYP as a socialmedia/graphic design intern! E N V I S I O NY o u r P a t h w a yNavigator Newsletter | Jan 2024
Youth Designed. Youth Led. Civic EngagementCivic EngagementE N V I S I O NY o u r P a t h w a yNavigator Newsletter | Jan 2024EYP Visionaries Resource and Information Fair
W H A T P A T H W A Y S A R EY O U T H I N T E R E S T E D I N ?H e a l t h a n d H u m a nS e r v i c e sF i n a n c eL a n dE x c a v a t i o n ,W i l d l i f eM a n a g e m e n t ,C o n s t r u c t i o nS a l e s /C u s t o m e rS e r v i c eHelping Visionaries navigate the pathways ahead...Visionary PathwaysVisionary PathwaysE N V I S I O NY o u r P a t h w a yNavigator Newsletter | Jan 2024EYP has benefited me by having the opportunity tocommunicate with new people and having thedesire to help my community in any way I can witha group of people. Also they helped me be a bitmore outspoken when having ideas for this project.It deepened my sense ofcommunity, skill set, andsafety. EYP helped meunderstand why work andeducation are important.D A T A F R O M O U R F A L L 2 0 2 3 C O H O R T
2023-2024 YearNonprofits, especially those that are small and scrappy like ours, relyheavily on the support and resources of partnerships to provide criticalsupport such as funding, materials, goods, services, and volunteers. We areso proud to shout out our phenomenal partners like the San José RotaryClub, eBay, Franklin and Catherine Johnson Foundation, and our incrediblecorps of volunteers for providing invaluable support to youth. It’s theircommitment to the community that makes our program that much moreimpactful. Together, WE envision an empowered generation of youngpeople who all have the knowledge and self-efficacy to pursue pathwaysthat are true to their goals, values, and brands. The We in EYPThe We in EYPE N V I S I O NY o u r P a t h w a yNavigator Newsletter | Jan 2024T H A N K Y O U T O O U R V O L U N T E E R S !A D A M M O N T E ZD E V I N W H I T N E YE R A S L A V I NE D D I E T R U O N GJ A C O B E L Z I QJ O S H R U S S E L LD R . O L I V I A H E R R I F O R DS E A N C H A T M O N