OUR MISSION

At SLP, we believe children and teens have powerful solutions to the complex problems facing our country.

We help schools and community organizations create opportunities for youth to become active citizens in their schools and communities.

Through our school day and after-school programs, young people become agents of change, learning through the process that civic engagement is essential to an effective and equitable democracy.

We support education that provides opportunities for young people of all ages to think critically about the world, engage in service learning, and help make public policy.

The result is a culture in which youth believe civic participation is not only a right but a critical responsibility.

Through our school and after-school programs, children and teens learn how to make change, both locally and nationally. Students living and attending school in more affluent neighborhoods are encouraged to challenge the status quo and advocate for a more equitable society. Students in historically under-served neighborhoods, who too often feel invisible and unrepresented, make their voices heard and demand that our leaders grapple with the complex challenges faced by their peers and neighbors.

Since 2011, using our proven effective model of service learning, we have helped hundreds of elementary, middle, and high school students become leaders in their schools and agents of change in their communities. Participants identify a school or community concern, become experts through intensive research, develop an alternative solution, and implement their plan to raise public awareness and advocate for change.

Every project is completely student-driven. Every solution has a real and meaningful impact.

Inspired by the results of our programs, the New York City Department of Education (DOE) and the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) have used SLP as a consultant to train teachers and staff on how to implement our model of civic engagement.

service learning (n.):

  1. a teaching and learning strategy that integrates community service with instruction, and
  2. youth-driven advocacy projects that transform schools and communities by giving young people an opportunity to make their voices heard, and
  3. a critical component of an education model that takes seriously its responsibility to prepare students for their role in a democracy.