29 Organizations Focused on Supporting Black Youth

100 Black Men of America Inc.
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The 100 Black Men of America, Inc. is recognized as the nation’s top African American led mentoring organization.  Through the expansion, we’ve created 100 Black Men Chapters that delivers unique programs that address specific needs in local communities. Through 57 years of testing, we’ve created the 100’s successful model. A proven blueprint for mentoring and developing young people into future leaders by surrounding themselves with a positive network and giving them the opportunity that they may not have thought was possible.  Our ongoing commitment to continuously improve and implement our programmatic initiatives is what drives us. Helping shape our mentees realize their potential by showing them how to be successful and significant, stressing the importance of obtaining and applying education, and providing them the tools that empower them for self-sufficiency, cultivated civic, and business leadership.

Barbershop Books
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Barbershop Books is the debut program of Reading Holiday Project, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit literacy organization in New York City. Developed in Harlem, Barbershop Books is a community-based program that creates child-friendly reading spaces in barbershops and provides early literacy training to barbers across America. We leverage the cultural significance of barbershops in Black communities to increase boys’ access to culturally relevant, age appropriate, and gender responsive children’s books and to increase out-of-school time reading among young black boys.

Black Girls Code
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Black Girls CODE is devoted to showing the world that black girls can code, and do so much more. By reaching out to the community through workshops and after school programs, Black Girls CODE introduces computer coding lessons to young girls from underrepresented communities in programming languages such as Scratch or Ruby on Rails. Black Girls CODE has set out to prove to the world that girls of every color have the skills to become the programmers of tomorrow. By promoting classes and programs we hope to grow the number of women of color working in technology and give underprivileged girls a chance to become the masters of their technological worlds. Black Girls CODE’s ultimate goal is to provide African-American youth with the skills to occupy some of the 1.4 million computing job openings expected to be available in the U.S. by 2020, and to train 1 million girls by 2040.

Black Youth Project
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The Black Youth Project is a platform that highlights the voices and ideas of Black millennials. Through knowledge, voice, and action, we work to empower and uplift the lived experiences of young Black Americans today. The Black Youth Project is the preeminent research body for survey and respondent data concerning Black Americans ages 18-30. We also feature high quality and engaging content which highlights the diversity of this generation. We work closely with our activist organization, BYP 100, to bring light to efforts to better our communities through direct engagement.

Brown Girls Do Ballet
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The mission of Brown Girls Do Ballet® is to help increase participation of underrepresented populations in ballet programs through organizing and arranging ballet performances, photo exhibitions, and providing resources and scholarships to assist young girls in their ballet development and training.

Brown Girls Do Ballet® believes that every Brown Ballerina with access to proper mentoring and training should have the opportunity to learn from, be inspired by, and be befriended by older, more experienced Brown Ballerinas. In this vein, we have elected to establish the Brown Ballerina Jr. and Youth Ambassador Programs. These young ladies are actively training, highly intelligent, and possess good leadership skills.  Our Brown Ballerina Jr. Ambassadors (ages 10-12) and Brown Ballerina Youth Ambassadors (ages 13-17) programs bring together Brown Ballerinas in Training (BBT’s) and mentors of diverse backgrounds to build community, be the local faces of Brown Girls Do Ballet in their communities and to assist in moving our mission forward

Common Ground
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The Common Ground Foundation was founded by Academy Award Winning Artist, Actor, and Author Lonnie Rashid Lynn Jr. known as “Common”. More than 10 years ago, Common committed his time and resources to help inner-city youth in his hometown of Chicago. We now serve over 300 students from more than 30 schools in Chicago’s south and west side neighborhoods.  Our work reaches high school students through mentoring and college preparation programs. Our focus areas are nutrition and healthy living, financial literacy, character development, and creative expression.  In our programs we encourage students to set a goal for their high school and college careers and we support the path they set for themselves. Our team of dedicated coaches and mentors work with our students in an individual and group setting.

Dream Defenders
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The Dream Defenders was founded in April 2012 after the tragic killing of 17-year old Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman in Sanford, Florida. That Spring, young Black, Latinx, and Arab youth marched from Daytona Beach Florida to Sanford Florida where Trayvon Martin was killed. With that fire in their bellies, they then went back to their communities and campuses to organize.

Today, the Dream Defenders is organizing Black and Brown youth to build power in our communities to advance a new vision we have for the state. Our agenda is called the Freedom Papers. Through it, we are advancing our vision of safety and security –  away from prisons, deportation, and war – and towards healthcare, housing, jobs and movement for all.

D.R.E.A.M.
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D.R.E.A.M. (Developing Responsible Economically Advanced Model-Citizens) is a cutting edge, financial education and advocacy 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization committed to empowering underrepresented, urban youth by equipping them with the essential knowledge for life’s challenging financial decisions.

D.R.E.A.M. delivers comprehensive programming focused on developing personal finance skills and investment expertise. Targeting low-income, urban youth, participants have the opportunity to learn the essential skills for leading successful, financially responsible lives. At this time, D.R.E.A.M.’s initiatives cater solely to high school students. However, the organization is developing programs for participants ranging from elementary school to adulthood.

Facing History and Ourselves
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Facing History’s resources address racism, antisemitism, and prejudice at pivotal moments in history; we help students connect choices made in the past to those they will confront in their own lives. Through our partnership with educators around the world, Facing History and Ourselves reaches millions of students in thousands of classrooms every year.  Independent research studies show that experience in a Facing History classroom motivates students to become upstanders in their communities, whether by challenging negative stereotypes at the dinner table, standing up to a bully in their neighborhood, or registering to vote when they are eligible.

Together we are creating the next generation of leaders who will build a world based on knowledge and compassion, the foundation for more democratic, equitable, and just societies.

Fierce NYC
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FIERCE is an LGBTQ youth of color-led organization. We build the leadership, political consciousness, and organizing skills of LGBTQ youth. In New York City, we organize local grassroots campaigns to fight police harassment and violence and increased access to safe public space for LGBTQ youth.

GirlTrek
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GirlTrek, the largest public health nonprofit for African-American women and girls in the United States. With nearly 100,000 neighborhood walkers, GirlTrek encourages women to use walking as a practical first step to inspire healthy living, families, and communities. As women organize walking teams, they mobilize community members to support monthly advocacy efforts and lead a civil rights-inspired health movement.

Beyond walking, GirlTrek’s active members support local and national policy to increase physical activity through walking, improve access to safe places to walk, protect and reclaim green spaces, and improve the walkability and built environments of 50 high-need communities across the United States.

With Partnership for a Healthier America, The Centers for Disease Control, Stanford Prevention Research Center, The American Council on Exercise, Safe Routes to School National Partnership, and The Sierra Club, GirlTrek has developed a world-class training for African-American women to serve as health professionals in the areas of fitness, mental health, nutrition, and environmental stewardship. GirlTrek’s mission is to inspire one million African-American women and girls to develop a daily habit of walking.

Girls For Gender Equity
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GGE believes that widespread violence against women and girls of color points to deeply rooted racial and gender discrimination that must be tackled as a peace-building and human rights priority. A Brooklyn, New York-based coalition-building and youth development organization, GGE acts as a catalyst for change to improve gender and race relations and socio-economic conditions for our most vulnerable youth and communities of color.

In order to put an end to the barriers of segregation and discrimination based on gender, race, and class oppression, GGE takes a dual approach of community organizing and service provision. GGE mobilizes 600 NYC boys and girls ages 8-19, women and men under Title IX of the Education Amendment and its ten points, to work as a collective toward systemic change in all of the support networks that shape the development and achievement of girls and women.

Gyrl Wonder
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Gyrl Wonder is a professional pipeline 501c3 initiative giving rise to ambitious young women of color between the ages of 17 – 22. Our mission is to empower our gyrls through social impact, career exploration and objective alignment. We provide access and resources necessary for them to successfully enter a competitive workforce while teaching them how to leverage these tools to reach their personal and professional goals. Through our programming, community service, mentorship, and flagship initiative, the Gyrl Wonder Leadership Academy, we introduce our young gyrls to purpose exploration that is aligned with their passions and skillsets. We offer internship placement for our college girls, career development for our recent college graduates and resume and interview preparedness workshops to all!

Integrate NYC
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Did you know that New York City’s 1.1 million students attend one of the country’s most segregated school systems? IntegrateNYC was born to change that.  IntegrateNYC is a youth-led organization that stands for real integration and equity. The student leaders of the movement have been at the forefront of dismantling segregation in NYC’s public school system for the last 5 years. 5 whole years! With the recent adoption of 62 of our policies behind us, we find ourselves gearing up for the next 5 years of advocacy, action, and transformation.  We have launched a campaign to raise 1.1 million dollars for the 1.1 million students in NYC over the next five years to support our vision for youth-led equity.

Jackie Robinson Foundation
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Founded in 1973 by Rachel Robinson, the Foundation has advanced higher education by providing generous, multi-year scholarship awards coupled with a comprehensive set of support services to highly motivated JRF Scholars and Extra Innings Fellows attending colleges and universities throughout the country.

Since 1973, the Jackie Robinson Foundation had provided over $85 million in program assistance, including $26 million in direct financial aid, to 1,500 Scholars from across the nation. We develop our Scholar’s potential and mold them into leaders who will carry forth Jackie Robinson’s legacy in every facet of their lives. JRF and our volunteers provide hands–on services to our Scholars, elevating their talents and making sure that each Scholar realizes his or her fullest potential.

The foundation offers premium services to its Scholars:
-Up to $30,000/four years to each of our Scholars
-Mentoring services
-Internship placement and career guidance services
-The Annual Scholars’ Mentoring and Leadership Conference, comprised of career panels, networking opportunities, workshops, cultural experiences and more.
-The Rachel Robinson International Fellowship

Know Your Rights Camp
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Know Your Rights Camp is a free campaign founded by Colin Kaepernick to raise awareness on higher education, self-empowerment, and instructions on how to properly interact with law enforcement in various scenarios. Our mission is to advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass-mobilization and the creation of new systems that elevate the next generation of change leaders.

OUR 10-POINT SYSTEM
1. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE FREE.
2. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE HEALTHY.
3. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE BRILLIANT.
4. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE SAFE.
5. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE LOVED.
6. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE COURAGEOUS.
7. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE ALIVE.
8. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE TRUSTED.
9. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE EDUCATED.
10. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO KNOW YOUR RIGHTS.

Life Pieces to Masterpieces
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Life Pieces To Masterpieces uses artistic expression to develop character and leadership, unlock potential, and prepare African American boys and young men to transform their lives and communities.  We provide our apprentices with opportunities to discover and activate their innate creative abilities and change life challenges into possibilities.

At LPTM, our Purpose is to provide opportunities to African American males ages 3 to 25 to discover and activate their innate creative abilities to change challenges into possibilities. Our after-school program and summer program for 3-14 year olds provide critical out-of-school time for apprentices to engage in the arts, develop resiliency, as well as to practice key academic components. Our Saturday Academy provides college and career readiness training, as well as black male development, to high school apprentices ages 14-18 who are preparing for post-secondary success. Finally, our Color Me Community(TM) workshops provide a nurturing and nonjudgmental environment for people of all races to safely grapple with issues that deeply divide and separate us from one another.

My Brother’s Keeper Alliance
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President Obama launched My Brother’s Keeper in February 2014 to address persistent opportunity gaps facing boys and young men of color and to ensure all youth can reach their full potential. In 2015 the My Brother’s Keeper Alliance (MBK Alliance) was launched, inspired by My Brother’s Keeper, to scale and sustain this mission. In late 2017, MBK Alliance became an initiative of the Obama Foundation. Within the Obama Foundation, MBK Alliance focuses on building safe and supportive communities for boys and young men of color where they feel valued and have clear pathways to opportunity.

Pretty Brown Girl
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Sheri Crawley and her husband Corey created a product line for young ladies that carried the message “Pretty Brown Girl” which includes “Laila”, an African-American doll modeled after their daughters, clothing and accessories. Soon after, a Pretty Brown Girl Movement was sparked and now the Pretty Brown Girl Movement has expanded to offer engaging programs, clubs and events for girls and young women.
The Pretty Brown Girl Movement is ranked by NBC News as one of the top seven organizations dedicated to empowering girls, whose mission is to encourage self-acceptance by cultivating social, emotional and intellectual well-being. Pretty Brown Girl ensures it stays responsive to community needs in the same way it began, by listening to the voice of the girls and young women in which it serves. We are working in communities daily, encouraging girls to reach for the stars and focus on their gifts, talents and education that can be used to elevate humanity. Our vision is to create a Pretty Brown Girl Movement designed to instill self confidence, pride and leadership skills in young girls and young women of color to help propel them into their positions of power and community activism, thereby creating contributing women in society.

Rainier Scholars
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Rainier Scholars is a 12-year program in Seattle, WA that offers a pathway to college graduation for hard-working, low-income students of color. We provide intensive academic preparation, leadership development and personalized support so our scholars can earn their four-year degrees and become career professionals and leaders in our community.

The Conscious Kid
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We are an education, research, and policy organization dedicated to equity and promoting positive racial identity development in youth. We support organizations, families, and educators in taking action to disrupt racism in young children.  All donations made here go to a dedicated fund for us to get children’s books from our list of “41 Children’s Books to Support Conversations on Race, Racism, and Resistance” into classrooms across the country.

The Loveland Foundation
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The Loveland Foundation was established in 2018 by Rachel Cargle in response to her widely successful birthday wish fundraiser, Therapy for Black Women and Girls. Her enthusiastic social media community raised over $250,000, which made it possible for Black women and girls nationally to receive therapy support. Black women and girls deserve access to healing, and that healing will impact generations. We are aiming to raise $600,000 in order to offer over 5,000 hours of FREE therapy sessions for black women and girls to go to therapy.  With therapy sessions in the U.S. typically costing anywhere from $60 – $250– even with insurance, the prevalent and ingrained stigma surrounding mental health in many communities, and the fact that the vast majority of therapists in this country are white, it is often difficult for Black women and girls to access therapy when they need it. We wanted to change that.

In our pilot program, we raised over $250,000 with the support of our generous community and provided financial assistance to hundreds of Black women and girls to go to therapy. We did this through collaborative partnerships with  Therapy for Black Girls, Open Path Collective, National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color Network, and Talkspace, networks and service providers that are all committed to making therapy more affordable and accessible.

The National Black Child Development Institute
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With a specific and relentless focus on the strengths and needs of our communities, and a lens of cultural competence, we serve as a national resource agency providing programs, publications, advocacy and trainings related to early childhood care and education; health and wellness; literacy and family engagement.  NBCDI supports and works primarily with Black children birth through age eight and their families, through coalition building with community-based organizations, foundations, corporations, school systems, elected officials, government, child care, Head Start and many other public and private partnerships.

Our current programs and activities range from our exciting Annual Conference; to T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood DC©; to programs across the country focused on health and wellness, literacy, family engagement, and preparation for college.

Thurgood Marshall College Fund
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Established in 1987, the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) is the nation’s largest organization exclusively representing the Black College Community. TMCF member-schools include the publicly-supported Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Predominantly Black Institutions (PBIs). Publicly-supported HBCUs enroll over 80% of all students attending HBCUs. Through scholarships, capacity building and research initiatives, innovative programs, and strategic partnerships, TMCF is a vital resource in the K-12 and higher education space. The organization is also a source for top employers seeking top talent for competitive internships and good jobs.

To date the organization has awarded more than $300 million in such assistance to its students and member-schools. TMCF distributes 98% of its awards exclusively to HBCUs and PBIs, which is more than any other organization that supports the Black College Community. TMCF has achieved the highest level of accreditation from two major non-profit review groups: Charity Navigator opens in a new window(4-Stars) and Guide Star opens in a new window(Platinum Level Participant) . TMCF is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, charitable organization and the place WHERE EDUCATION PAYS OFF.

United Negro College Fund
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For more than seven decades UNCF has raised more than $5 billion and help more than 500,000 students and counting not just attend college, but thrive, graduate and become leaders.  We do this in three ways: By awarding more than 10,000 students scholarships, worth more than $100 million, each year. By providing financial support to 37 historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). And by serving as the nation’s leading advocate for the importance of minority education and community engagement.

This three-pronged approach is powerful: Since our founding in 1944, we’ve helped to more than double the number of minorities attending college. The six-year graduation rate for UNCF African American scholarship recipient is 70 percent. This is 11 percentage points higher than the national average and 31 percentage points higher than the national average for all African Americans.

Youth BreakOUT!
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BreakOUT! envisions a city where transgender, gender non-conforming, and queer youth of color can live without fear of harassment and discrimination.  BreakOUT! seeks to end the criminalization of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth to build a safer and more just New Orleans.  We build on the rich cultural tradition of resistance in the South to build the power of LGBTQ youth ages 13-25 and directly impacted by the criminal justice system through youth organizing, healing justice, and leadership development programs.

Youth Over Guns
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Youth Over Guns, is a youth-led advocacy group, formed by students of color shortly after the mass shooting in Parkland, Florida. Our founding members include high school and college students from across New York City.

Our mission is to build youth power in marginalized communities throughout the nation and encourage legislative advocacy to prevent gun violence, while shifting public discourse towards an evidentiary approach to keeping schools and communities safe. In concentrating our efforts on historically oppressed communities and leading with Black and Brown Youth most impacted by the public health crisis — we strive to holistically foster safety and justice.