InnerCity Struggle
Founded in 1994, InnerCity Struggle has worked to improve the quality of education in East Los Angeles by engaging hundreds of public high school students in developing the leadership skills they need to voice concerns, raise community awareness, promote solutions, and successfully graduate from high school and attend a four-year university or college. They are an agency that promotes healthy, safe and non-violent communities, while empowering youth and families to address issues of educational access and equity. They conduct clubs on sites at schools, but the core of the program is their after-school academic and leadership program which enables students to receive individualized counseling and academic supports, intensive guidance through the college application process, and exposure to colleges and universities locally and throughout the state. Because the program ends in the evening and due to transportation barriers, many youth in the area cannot attend this free program. 120 students already attend ICS on a weekly basis and they want to increase the number of students served by providing safe passage for children, thereby avoiding risks associated with local streets and gang violence. By utilizing our grant for $27,640.00 to purchase a 15-passenger van, ICS will increase the number of youth served by 80 each year. The van will allow more kids to participate in the after-school program at their headquarters where programming provides critical support to Eastside youth to improve their quality of life and