• A one-stop shop for volunteers and service initiatives in a school or community agency.
• A group of committed youth leaders, mentored by a teacher advisor or community professionals, who promote service among youth in their school or community.
• A link to the community for young people through volunteer initiatives.

What does a Youth Action Center do?

• Serves as a central resource to the school and community for student volunteer projects and service initiatives…not replacing service activities of other clubs, but enhancing their efforts with ideas, promotion, volunteers, and, occasionally, dollars.
• Facilitates student community involvement as youth leaders learn about their community, seek out service initiatives, recruit students to participate, and raise funds for projects.
• Promotes student participation in civic projects and a greater service ethic among the school community.

What is 21st Century Leaders' role?

• Ongoing training and support for each school or agency and its youth leaders.
• Training students who manage the Youth Action Centers through the 21st Century Leaders program.
• Project management, funding, and staff support.
• Building capacity and sustainability, evaluation.
• Supporting diverse schools, rural and urban, creating tremendous networking and learning opportunities for ALL participating students.

What is the result?

• Stronger community-school-student linkages.
• Effective and efficient opportunity for community professionals to mentor young community leaders.
• Increased number of students engaged in meaningful leadership development and service opportunities (several hundred per school).
• Increased student service ethic and leadership motivation.