Improve Your Tomorrow

$11,274 raised by 54 donors

100% complete

$0 Goal

Improve Your Tomorrow (IYT) was founded in 2013 with the mission to increase the number of young men of color (YMOC) to attend and graduate from colleges and universities.  We envision a world in which young men of color are overrepresented in higher education, underrepresented in the criminal justice system, and are leaders in their communities.

We are committed to the educational success of young men of color.  We know the systemic barriers that young men of color face do not end once they get to college, that's why IYT provides up to twelve years of wrap-around academic services and programming, so our members not only achieve their college-bound goals but are able to pursue their life-long dreams.


Mission

The mission of Improve Your Tomorrow is to increase the number of young men of color that attend and graduate from colleges and universities.

Needs

MENTORSHIP / COLLEGE TRIPS / WELLNESS / CRISIS GRANTS

To achieve our mission, IYT provides: mentorship, member development, parent engagement, internships, college tours, and tutoring at partner school sites or virtually. Students enter an IYT program through direct partnerships with school sites, or through a target nonprofit partner. IYT currently serves nearly 3,000 YMOC across 50 school-based sites in Northern and Central California. IYT Seeks to break the generational cycles of low educational attainment by providing services to YMOC across four program areas.

Improve our Mentor Programming

Mentorship is a critical piece of how we achieve our mission. As a young man of color, having someone in your corner you can trust, relate to, and feel empowered by can make a world of difference in terms of how you see yourself and what you’re capable of. Our mentors are not only embedded in their communities but are often alumni of the schools they’re serving in. This translates into experienced mentors that have been successful in navigating the challenges and realities many of their members face. Your support of our mentorship directly impacts and enhances the educational outcomes for all of our members.

Improve College Exposure Opportunities

At IYT, dreams of going to college are often formed for this first during our college exposure trips. We work with colleges and universities to facilitate in-depth experiences that engage our members with college students and faculty that share a similar background to them. Our college trips help them see the importance of college as a vital step in their journey toward a fulfilling life and career. Your support of IYT’s college exposure programs can help make each trip richer and more meaningful to our members.

Improve our Wellness Programming

As the need for counseling and wellness in our communities and schools becomes increasingly clear, IYT is rapidly growing its wellness program to meet the needs of members. IYT’s integration of wellness practices and support services are geared at promoting the mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being of young men of color. Wellness services include trauma-informed counseling, hands-on workshops focused on resilience, financial well-being, and cultural identity, as well as two annual youth retreats.

Improve Emergency Grants

For many of our Community College and University members, unexpected financial hardships can mean the difference between paying a debt or being able to enroll in the next semester. These moments have only increased since the start of the pandemic. To keep our college members in school and address their hardships, we started our Emergency Grants program which provides mini grants up to $500. Since the start of this program, we’ve responded to financial crises of our members in excess of over $20,000.

Equity Statement

"Improve Your Tomorrow is deeply committed to diversity, equity and inclusion - in fact, our mission to increase the number of young men of color to attend colleges and universities is rooted in these very principles. They’re more than just words for us. They're the hard-and-fast principles guiding how we serve our brothers, build our teams, and cultivate leaders. We believe that our organization should reflect the vast diversity of the communities we serve, and that diverse perspectives and voices should be elevated and intentionally integrated into our work. We embrace and celebrate difference and diversity of identity, thought, experience, and backgrounds and promote inclusion at all levels of the organization. Our greatest strengths and resources at Improve Your Tomorrow are our people."

Organization Data

Summary

Organization name

Improve Your Tomorrow

other names

IYT

Year Established

2013

Tax id (EIN)

46-2981774

Mission Category

Education

Operating Budget

$10,000,001-$100 million

Organization Need

Funding: Program, Funding: Unrestricted, Technology, Volunteers

Local Counties Served

Sacramento, Yolo

Equity Statement

Equity Statement

Address

1901 Royal Oaks Dr STE 200
Sacramento, CA 95815

Service areas

Sacramento, CA, US

Humboldt, CA, US

Yolo, CA, US

San Joaquin, CA, US

Stanislaus, CA, US

Phone

9162993432

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