Homeboy Industries’ Youth Re-entry Center (YRC) is the first program of its kind in Los Angeles County, and an important resource for at-risk and/or formerly gang involved or incarcerated youth. There are currently 207 youth actively engaged in programming at the YRC. Here, we help youth participants address gang involvement, recidivism, unemployment, and complex trauma by combining evidence-based therapeutic case management services with education, career development, and comprehensive wraparound services. We work in partnerships with Learning Works Charter School, Homeboy Art Academy, as well as several local universities to ensure that we are able to provide holistic, effective support to youth in our community.

Learning Works Charter School operates onsite at the YRC and supports the education goals of the youth in our program. Learning Works provides an independent studies approach that allows students to work at their own pace in a supportive environment. We also began partnering with Loyola Marymount University and Cal State University Los Angeles to implement a tutoring program. Tutors are students who are majoring in social work, psychology, or criminal justice. Unlike other tutoring programs, YRC tutors commit to integrating into our community. Our youth have experienced trauma in their lives and do not form trusting bonds easily. Tutors are intentional about being in spaces with youth, such as participating in an art class or attending a field trip, to show youth a more vulnerable side of themselves. This means that partners must be patient and willing to establish and build relationships with our youth before learning can happen.

Youth from the YRC attend an outdoor camping excursion.

Further, our commitment to providing culturally competent services has led to the creation of the Youth Navigator position – people with lived experience who can provide leadership and peer mentorship for incoming trainees. Homeboy Industries has unparalleled experience working with our served population; we recognize that youth will trust the process more if they can see themselves in the people helping them.

One of the most unique aspects of the YRC is our close work with the Homeboy Art Academy, which centers art as the vehicle for healing and transformation for formerly incarcerated youth. The Art Academy also provides opportunities for participants to learn business skills to encourage the pursuit of jobs in the creative economy and sets youth up for success as they pursue their career or education. Participants in the YRC engage in activities at the Art Academy Monday through Thursday for two hours per day. Because of this, YRC staff and Art Academy staff work closely so that they can best serve every youth in the program; both staffs meet weekly to discuss and implement policies and strategies, review programming, and discuss cases where youth may need extra support or who appear to be struggling.

In addition to school year programming, youth in the YRC can participate in a six-week summer program in conjunction with the YRC and the Art Academy; here, they learn from teaching artists who have experience working with our served population. The summer program provides exposure to various artistic mediums everyday including theater, graffiti, poster making, pottery, photography, silk screening, and more. While engaging with the arts is providing a therapeutic space for youth to express themselves, it shows them how they can translate their passions into careers in the creative economy and through entrepreneurship. Students who learn a new skill during the summer program can continue honing their skills once the school year begins again; as youth work through Art Academy programming, they will also learn the business management side which is essential to a future career in the creative economy.

In addition to learning about the arts during the summer program, youth also participate in gardening, writing classes, entrepreneurship classes, and field trips led by the YRC team.

Youth at the YRC posing in front of a mural painted by the youth in the summer program.

Homeboy Industries tracks progress made in the YRC on an annual basis. During the LA2050 reporting period, we accomplished the following:

• 131 youth participants in the 12-month Re-entry program accessed our wraparound services, education, and job training.
• 207 youth, ages 14-21, were served at the YRC.
• 37 youth graduated from high school; 19 of them were participants in our 12-month Re-entry program
• 80% of graduates were placed into jobs at our social enterprises or enrolled in post-secondary education.

One of our challenges is helping youth to believe in themselves and develop an understanding that they deserve to succeed. Many youths at the YRC are unable to visualize their future because they never thought they would have one. The idea of life beyond the supportive environment of the YRC is daunting, but Homeboy will continue to support youth until they believe in their future.