SOCIAL JUSTICE LEADERSHIP ACADEMY 2017
July 10 - August 11, 2017
Tuesdays - Fridays, 10am - 3pm. Ages 13-19.
Teen Staff work Mondays - Fridays, 9:30am - 3:30pm
We're in the fourth year of our Social Justice Leadership Academy! The Social Justice Leadership Academy (SJLA) is a five-week summer leadership training for teenagers growing up in Hudson, based on the principles of social justice and youth-led change. SJLA is run in partnership by Kite’s Nest and the SBK Social Justice Center.
Communities thrive when young people are given real opportunities to take the lead in addressing the issues that impact their lives. This summer, 25 teenagers will come together to step up as young leaders, developing their own visions and voices for change. It’s our mission to inspire and support young people to develop the confidence, knowledge, skills, and collective leadership to build healthy and just communities. SJLA brings together local teenagers from different backgrounds, and primarily youth of color growing up in Hudson’s 2nd Ward neighborhood. Over the course of five weeks, youth collaborate to express their ideas, develop meaningful relationships of trust and mutual support, gain tools for political analysis, identify the issues impacting their communities, express themselves creatively, learn real leadership skills, and connect with inspiring people and organizations.
This summer's program partners include: Wildseed (Millerton, NY); Youth FX (Albany, NY); Left in Focus Photography (Hudson, NY); Truthworker Theater Company (Brooklyn, NY); The Watershed Center (Millerton, NY), Greater Hudson Promise Neighborhood (Hudson, NY), Soul Fire Farm (Petersburg NY), Rock Steady Farm & Flowers (Millerton, NY), and Barbershop Talks Radio Show (Hudson, NY).
If you're interested in joining the Social Justice Leadership Academy 2017, email kaya@kitesnest.org for an application or call 518-945-8445.
Participant application (ages 13+) is available here.
Staff application (ages 16+) is available here.
This project has been supported by a grant from the Fund for Columbia County, a fund of Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation.
SOCIAL JUSTICE LEADERSHIP ACADEMY: WHAT WE DO
SKILLS FOR LEADERSHIP & COMMUNITY-BUILDING
SJLA is a safe and supportive environment for young people to develop the skills and confidence to step up as leaders in their communities. Throughout the summer, we practice writing speeches and speaking publicly, leading workshops and activities, and heading out into the world together. We learn about the various roles that people play in building movements, and consider each of our own strengths, skills and passions. At the end of the summer we host a large public event for our families and neighbors, and invite our friends to join us in making positive change in our community.
GROWING OUR NETWORK
Every week we connect with inspiring organizers, activists and artists. We travel to meet other youth groups in the Hudson Valley, Albany, and New York City, sharing our songs and projects, learning about other youth organizing efforts and media projects, and building relationships for future collaborations. We've partnered with amazing organizations like Youth FX, Found Sound Nation, Left in Focus, Truthworker Theater Company, Soul Fire Farm, El Puente, Barbershop Talks Radio, and more...
ARTS, MEDIA & EXPRESSION
Throughout the summer we use art to express and explore ideas, to ask questions, to reflect, to share, and to transform ourselves and each other. We collaborate with professional music producers, photographers, media-makers and poets to write and record songs, shoot photography projects, conduct interviews with our neighbors, produce radio for broadcast, and to write and perform poetry. And we create a space for youth to talk about and reflect on their own experiences, sharing stories of privilege and oppression, of violence and struggle, and of strength and resilience.
POLITICAL EDUCATION
Through hands-on workshops and conversations, we develop our critical awareness and understanding of systems of privilege and oppression. We look at how race, class, gender and power contribute to inequities in our lives and communities. We learn about mass incarceration and the school-to-prison pipeline, food access and insecurity, gender and sexuality, and educational injustice. We learn about historic movements for liberation, youth organizing efforts, and social movements taking place today. Together, we develop our vision for making our community a more healthy, just place.
FOOD AS A TOOL FOR BUILDING COMMUNITY
Every day we prepare food for ourselves and each other, celebrating every meal. We travel to farms in our region to grow and harvest food, asking questions about how food systems impact the health of our communities. In the kitchen, we engage food as a tool for community-building, develop our culinary arts skills, and make connections between the health and well-being of our bodies and our communities. And at the end of the summer we prepare a large meal and event for the public, inviting our families and friends to share in our work and our learning.
