ABOUT FAMILY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT (About F.A.C.E.)

About Family and Community Engagement (About F.A.C.E.) is a small, but growing 501c3 that has been uplifting New Orleans' young people and their families since 2021. The mission of About F.A.C.E. is to create pathways for individuals and families that enrich and strengthen their communities.

Currently, our most impactful program is Social Set, our workshop series for teens. Social Set uses IMPROV, ROLE PLAY, and THOUGHTFUL DISCUSSION to create pathways for positive mindset changes. Our approach to social and emotional change for young people is rooted in research that reveals that practicing improv, even at the novice level, has profound positive psychological effects.

Social Set uses trauma-informed techniques to help young people 'plug back in' and create resilience.

Unpredictable traumatic events in the lives of our young people, often related to poverty, can cause them to become wary and distrustful of the world. In many cases, these Adverse Childhood Events lead young people to develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The children of our city experience PTSD at 4x the national average, and most cases are undiagnosed. The disproportionate percentage of our young people struggling with PTSD, whether diagnosed or not, creates social and emotional problems for themselves and our communities. PTSD can create negative cycles of thinking or worse, cause a young mind to go "offline" as they struggle to deal with uncertain futures.

Social Set provides a safe, supportive and playful environment in which teens become comfortable with the discomfort of uncertainty. Tolerance for uncertainty builds resilient minds. With a resilience mindset, we can counteract many symptoms of PTSD, diminishing them or sometimes eliminating them.

Social Set creates an atmosphere of acceptance and validation that gives participants the permission to be vulnerable in ways that they may never have before. Participants explore self expression through improv and role play. Empathy develops naturally, both for themselves and others. Positive effects are reported by participants, teachers, and parents immediately.

About F.A.C.E has partnered with New Orleans School of Comedy Arts to bring Social Set to New Orleans middle and high schools. We invite you to learn more about us by visiting our website.

Testimonials

"We were like the worst 8th grade class […..], but ever since ya'll been comin,it was like we've been chilling out, getting in less trouble, people ain't been getting into fights, arguments…none of that.
-Alex, 15, student at C.F. Rowley Alternative School

"The first [Social Set] workshop is huge. It takes a while for the students to let their guards down. But about 30 minutes into that first workshop, they start to get it and the real fun and learning begins. After that shift happens, they are hooked and they beg their teachers for us to come back […..] Teenagers are reaching out telling us that they have less anxiety, that they feel happier. It feels great to bring this program to kids."
-Lyndon Jones, Founder and Executive Director