Revolution Youth Advocates

Surviving as a teen in the Inland Empire is full of difficult challenges.  High poverty (2011 US Census lists San Bernardino as 2nd poorest large city in the U.S.) and crime levels, student transiency, gang involvement, and alcohol and drug abuse are all too common.

Sadly, because their homes have only marginal parental involvement, thousands of the city’s students must effectively raise themselves. Many thousands of teens are trapped in the mindset that life will never get any better. Few have hope for a better future.  This lack of direction and promise, combined with their growing need to be loved and accepted, often leads them down a destructive path involving pain, confusion, and emptiness.

Amidst all the chaos and seemingly insurmountable obstacles facing students living in the Inland Empire, there is hope. Revolution Youth Advocates is a growing, active community of peers and adult leaders who are passionate about helping hurting students realize their potential.  Central to the Revolution Youth Advocates’ mission is the desire to mentor and empower teens with the knowledge and understanding that will help them overcome the many pressures and struggles that make up their day-to-day lives.   

We strive to accomplish this by encouraging academic excellence, rescuing  teens facing personal crisis and leveraging personal self-esteem stratregies. We have incorporated some innovatives programs to help us succeed in significantly impacting our students lives in each of these areas.

•  Our Student Advocate program has become a vital asset to Pacific High Schools campus. 
• Our Teen Recovery Support group is steadily growing every week and we are witnessing many victories in the lives of our students as they tackle their hurts, habits and hang-ups. 
• Every year we provide school clothes and shoes to more than two dozen students through our Dress for Success program. Last year we opened Threadz (Clothing Closet) on the Pacific High School's Campus. We are excited to be able to expand the number of students we can reach with these much needed resources that so many of us take for granted. 
• Through our Broadening Horizons program, we have been able to sponsor numerous students to attend a week-long summer camp experience.

The strategies outlined above are based on over a decade of first-hand experience in working with literally hundreds of teens, collaborating with school leadership and teachers, and thousands of hours in one-on-one encounters with students.  The strategies of Revolution Youth Advocates are proven.  This is evidenced by the hundreds of teen lives that have been changed and that are becoming confident, successful, and productive youth adults who are equipped to make a lasting difference in the Inland Empire.