Youth Leadership Program (YLP)
We are a group of teens that work together to nurture interfaith understanding, while reducing prejudice and misunderstanding. Adults say a lot of things — they tell us we have the power to change our communities, shape our nation, and transform our world. They convince us that they will stand behind us, and they do. In Sharon, MA, adults have joined forces with more than 60 students over the course of eight years to do just that. Together, we have started a movement!
Our Youth Leadership Program brings together Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Jain, Unitarian, and secular high school students. All programs are planned and run by teens. Area high school teens can check out a meeting anytime.
To Join the Youth Leadership Program:
Interfaith Action’s YLP is open to all high school students who live, worship or attend school in Sharon, MA.
- Contact Jason Smith
- Come to a Sunday evening YLP meeting in Sharon, Massachusetts - held roughly twice a month on Sunday evenings starting in September through May - to check it out.
- Complete the on-line registration form. NOTE: On-line registration will open for all participants (new and returning) in the 2010-2011 program year on August 15, 2010.
- Download, complete and mail the consent form along with the program fee* to: IFA, PO Box 200, Sharon, MA 02067.
*Note: No teen will be denied access to the YLP based on ability to pay. Contact Jason Smith for fee waiver details.
2010-2011 Annual fee of $200 includes:
all YLP meetings (approximately 2 Sunday evenings per month);
up to 25 hours of leadership training (in 5 modules typically on Sunday afternoons);
opportunity to not only participate in but also develop community service projects;
facilitate special events;
participate on a T.I.D.E. team.
Family rates apply as follows: first teen $200; second teen $150; family maximum $450.
Additional transportation, conference, trip and special event fees are not included.
IFA gratefully acknowledges the generosity of IFA’s Board of Advisors and Friends of IFA whose support accounts for the remaining 84% of the actual YLP costs.
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Interfaith Action Teens to Work with Local CSA on Food Insecurity Issues
Over eight percent of Massachusetts households experience some form of food insecurity -- the degree to which an individual or family cannot obtain adequate nutritious food for a healthy life. Teens from Interfaith Action's Youth Leadership Program want to change that equation on a local level, through taking leadership and educating themselves and the community-at-large about the issue.
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IFA Teens Continue to Volunteer at Cradles to Crayons
On Sunday, December 13 ten YLP teens traveled to Quincy to volunteer at the local Cradles to Crayons warehouse. Cradles to Crayons is a Quincy-based non-profit organization founded in 2002 that provides clothing, toys, books, and other supplies to low-income children in the Boston area. The project was entirely planned by two IFA teens, Kevin and Divya, both of whom coordinated all of the logistics with Cradles to Crayons staff members and organized a team of ten IFA teens to visit the warehouse. -
Interfaith Action’s Teen Marketing Committee Produces Video for International Conference
Though Interfaith Action's Executive Director Janet Penn will be flying across the Pacific solo, that doesn't mean the Youth Leadership Program gets left behind! In preparation for her upcoming presentation at the Parliament of the World's Religions in Melbourne, Australia, two IFA teens were asked to prepare a video describing the interfaith work they have done and continue to do. The video contains images of some of IFA's most exciting events from past years, as well as video footage from recent YLP meetings. The video can be found on youtube. Just one more way in which the local work of our teens is influencing the international interfaith realm!
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Interfaith Action’s Teens to Pilot New Online Dialogue Forum
Interfaith Action, in collaboration with Idealogue, Inc., will pilot an exciting new online dialogue forum for youth. The mission behind Idealogue, Inc. is to combine technological innovation with idealism to help create a better world. Idealogue founder Noam Shore brings together extensive business experience and a passion for utilizing technology to address social challenges. IFA will be using one of Shore's latest developments, beyondtolerance.org, in an effort to engage teens in an online medium that fosters and encourages positive, constructive dialogue.
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Interfaith Action Teens Serve Up Food for Thought at Interfaith Thanksgiving Celebration
On Sunday, November 22, teens from Interfaith Action's Youth Leadership Program facilitated table discussions at an interfaith potluck dinner. The interfaith table discussions were part of an annual interfaith Thanksgiving event, beginning with a worship service and followed by a potluck dinner and table discussions. The interfaith worship service, sponsored by the Sharon Interfaith Religious Leaders Association, was held at the Unitarian Church, while the potluck dinner and discussions, sponsored by Interfaith Action's Youth Leadership Program, were held across the street at the First Congregational Church. The overall event included more than 100 participants from a number of religious traditions, and everyone enjoyed the opportunity to share worship, food, and good conversation with those in attendance.