Building on FLON’s proven foundation, YouLEAD Assistance Network (YAN) was established on March 10, 2023, as a nonprofit affiliate of Future Leaders Outreach Network (FLON) to launch the YouLEAD – Leaders and Entrepreneurs Association of Dreamers EPICenter project initiative – Emerging Leaders: Empowered4Purpose.

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These programs—specifically workforce development and job readiness, career pathway occupations exploration, financial literacy, leadership development and introduction to entrepreneurship—to be offered through Tiers 1–4, have been successfully implemented since 2004.

 

Led by Dr. Diana E. Clemons, FLON Staff Associates and Independent Contractors have delivered these components for over 16 years, serving more than 297,800 students, grades 5-12 taught age-appropriate curriculums. Through this extensive work, it became clear that participants also need emotional wellness tools to sustain employment and succeed in high-demand careers.

 

Over time, many parents and caring adults of the students at target schools and community-based organizations, as well as other adults and young adults ages 19–25, have requested access to the same training offered to students.

 

The barrier is due to FLON’s youth-focused teen pregnancy prevention education that includes personal responsibility, goal-setting, and plans for the future; the funding limited adult participation, prompting the creation of YAN to address this unmet need and expand workforce and job training opportunities.

 

To meet this need, the YouLEAD EPICenter project initiative – Emerging Leaders: Empowered4Purpose age-appropriate curriculums and educational-virtual reality (E-VR) technology (Oculus Quest, Pico Neo and HTC Vive) will be taught through Tiers 1–5. EPIC is Education & Economic Programs Impacting Communities. 

 

Tier 5: Sankofa Village – Power of Community, currently under development, is a new curriculum module that integrates mental health education, emotional regulation, Rites of Passage identity development, workforce development, job readiness, career pathway exploration, and financial literacy, ensuring participants are emotionally prepared, mentally well, and workforce-ready.

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The advanced five-tier educational project initiatives designed to equip underserved populations in disadvantaged communities with the knowledge, skills, and opportunities to achieve job readiness success, set personal goals, pursue economic well-being to reduce poverty, build leadership capacity, and make healthier life choices over time.

 

Click here to learn more about YouLEAD EPICenter Tiers 1–5 programs.

 

Future Leaders Outreach Network (FLON) Pursuing MY Dreams Initiative programs was peer-reviewed and published in the 2011 American Journal of Health Studies (AJHS).

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Scroll down to view new projects and FLONs 48ft YouLEAD Mobile Classroom

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