2023-AR-Final - Flipbook - Page 2
DEAR FRIENDS,
As we re昀氀ect on the past year, we found a common theme within
the work we do: Building Bridges. Y.O.U.’s mission is to bridge the
opportunity gap for youth in our communities.
Building bridges shows up in our day-to-day work, whether
Y.O.U.’s clinical team was in the 昀椀eld, working with local
it’s through providing out of school learning experiences
agencies to ensure our youth have resources to meet their
and support to 453 youth, transition programming for our
basic needs. With creative therapeutic options such as art
elementary youth who are moving into middle school and
therapy, movement/dance therapy, and cognitive behavior
middle school to high school, or a bridge between our
therapy, our skilled team meets our youth where they are
clinical and out-of-school time services. Our days are spent
at, which instills trust while building skills that will help
creating connections to help build a world where our youth
them navigate life’s challenges with grace and dignity.
design their own path to success.
In 2023, Y.O.U. experienced a 76% increase in youth
Bridging the opportunity gap at a time when youth are still
served in our Out-of-School Time Program over 2022.
struggling with the effects of Covid is critical. The learning
As more and more youth are turning to Y.O.U. for
loss experienced by our youth during hybrid and remote
academic support and engagement, we found our staff
learning time heightened our resolve to resume in-person
more engaged and committed than ever.
engagement with our youth and bolster our academic
support. This year brought opportunities for Y.O.U. to
integrate our core values of: Relationships, Creativity,
Belonging and Joy. Through increased experiences with
enrichment providers, our youth had access to the Y.O.U.
Mobile MakerSpace, which brings STEAM programming
developed in Y.O.U.’s MakerSpace to our elementary
and middle school sites, cooking, gardening, dance
experiences, plus so much more. We were thrilled to
expand services into Dr. Bessie Rhodes School of Global
Studies in April of this year and build strong relationships
with the youth and school community. Our summer
programs were bursting with energy and served as a
continuum of care, bridging our after-school program with
summer activities and partnerships.
Henry Wilkins
President, Board of Directors
As we closed out our 昀椀scal year, we extended our
gratitude for Letitia Mann’s leadership as Board Chair
and welcomed Henry Wilkins to the role. A committed
community advocate, we are grateful to have Henry and
the board of directors as strategic partners to carry out our
mission of serving youth in Evanston and Skokie.
Looking to what’s ahead, our hope is that through the hard
work and dedication of our staff and the community,
we are the stronghold—the bridge—that allows our youth
to succeed and thrive. Thank you for being part of the
Y.O.U. family. We could not achieve our mission without
you. Together, we are building the bridge to equity and
empowerment where our youth know that their voices are
valued and they can change the world.
Craig Lynch
Chief Executive Of昀椀cer
