"You can't LEAD the people, if you don't LOVE the people. You can't SAVE the people, if you don't SERVE the people"   Princeton University Professor, Dr. Cornell West


Youth Action invites high school and college aged youth, who have leadership potential and are willing to get involved with community service to become members of Youth Action.


Member Benefits

Leadership Skills and Service:
Those who become members of Youth Action will become leaders in their community. Youth Action believes that when young people take ownership in their community, they will begin to value the well being of their neighborhood and those in it. In addition, members of Youth Action give presentations, form partnerships, facilitate meetings and meet with civic and business leaders. This provides excellent leadership training in the areas of public speaking, professionalism and non-profit work.

Leadership Development Conferences:
Because we are affiliated with the Tavis Smiley Foundation, many of our students receive financial assistance to attend Tavis Smiley Leadership Institutes in the summer. The purpose of the Institute is to train youth to meet the challenges in their communities. It enables young people who aspire to learn skills common to effective leaders. Leadership participants will learn to assess their strengths and weaknesses, review models of leadership, develop strategic plans, collect and analyze data, set goals, communicate effectively to build networks, examine legislation and public policy, and then apply these skills to create successful lives for themselves and/or impact community change. Please visit www.youthtoleaders.org for more information.

Scholarships:
Youth Action offers scholarships for students who plan to attend a college or university. Students are also eligible for a $5,000 scholarship from the Tavis Smiley Foundation. Please visit www.youthtoleaders.org and search Smiley Scholars for more information.

College Admissions:
Many colleges favor students who participate in community service work. Youth Action being a youth led organization affiliated with the Tavis Smiley Foundation is a bonus to anyone's college application. Youth Action also encourages all of its members to go to college. Many of our members have attended or are attending colleges and universities in America, such as Ursinus College, Bates College, Morehouse College, Spelman College, Albright College, Drexel University, Johns Hopkins University, The George Washington University, Lincoln University of PA, Cheney University, Tuskegee University, Florida A&M University, Millersville University, Penn State University and many more.

Community Network:
In the past, Youth Action members have formed partnerships and met with many local civic leaders, such as Philadelphia Mayor John Street, PA State Representatives Dwight Evans, Cherelle Parker and Tony Payton Jr., State Senator LeAnna Washington, Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, Blondell Reynolds Brown and Marian Tasco, Congressman Chakka Fattah, Activist C. Dolores Tucker and more. These networks have proved to be resources for internships, and personal contacts for many of the young people involved.

Youth Action holds a general meeting every third Saturday of the month (10:30am – 12:00noon) at Peirce College, 1420 Pine Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102. Meetings are held to organize service events, to work on organizational development, and to discuss and act on pertinent issues affecting young people.