YPI Tulsa:
YPI engages teens to participate in the civic and philanthropic life of their community.
In 2004, based on programs she had seen in other communities, Lynn Schusterman decided that she wanted to begin a youth philanthropy program in Tulsa. Lynn envisioned a program where local teens would become philanthropists in their own right, engaged and excited about participating in the civic and philanthropic life of their community.
Charged with the task of creating a new program, CLSFF staff asked Adam Seaman, a corporate coach and strategic consultant who had researched best practices in youth philanthropy, to work with them to create and implement YPI.
Together, the vision they created for the program was unlike any other youth philanthropy project in the nation to date. Not satisfied with teaching kids how to make grants to existing nonprofit organizations, Adam wanted the students to become social entrepreneurs and change agents. In YPI, the participating students are asked to identify an issue facing teenagers that is not being adequately addressed in Tulsa. They are then charged with gathering research, creating an intervention strategy, and implementing a program to address their identified issue. In addition, whereas most youth philanthropy programs are one year in length, YPI asks students to commit to a three year program. The skills the students gain from this experience run both deep and wide.
YPI Benefits Tulsa
Developing groups of teens from across the community to be strong leaders.
Providing the community with a positive image of teens.
Modeling for other teens and adults the importance of giving.
Raising awareness of teen issues that may not get the attention they deserve.