UTEC

UTEC’s mission is to ignite and nurture the ambition of our most disconnected young people to trade violence and poverty for social and economic success. UTEC was founded in 1999 by young people driven to develop their own teen center in response to gang violence. Today, UTEC’s nationally recognized model begins with intensive street outreach and gang peacemaking, reaching out to our most disconnected youth by meeting them “where they are.” Youth in our target population (16-24, out of school and gang or criminally involved, or parenting) receive 2-3 years of intensive support services while enrolled. UTEC provides real-world employment experience through our social enterprises in Food Services, mattress recycling, and woodworking. Project-based educational programming is provided through onsite HiSET (high school credential) preparation classes. Social justice and civic engagement are embedded throughout and drive our youth-led organizing and policymaking campaigns, both local and statewide. Ultimately, UTEC’s unique model can provide a pathway from the street to the state house for older youth most often overlooked. UTEC’s primary outcomes are: reduced criminal involvement, increased employability, and increased educational attainment. Driven by evidence-based data, the long-term recidivism rate of UTEC-enrolled youth is less than 15%, compared with a statewide average above 50%.