CHANGE

Addictive, destructive and violent behavior is an unfortunate reality among much of the country’s high-risk urban youth population.  A Better World created CHANGE, a youth training program designed to build character and strength in the face of harmful societal situations to break this dangerous cycle.

CHANGE provides behavioral health and character development training, entrepreneurial training, and community service opportunities. We successfully change unhealthy behavior and shape values and beliefs toward positive achievement.

Through our programs in violence prevention and breaking destructive habits, positive behavior is reinforced and the emotional and mental well-being of inner-city youth is rebuilt. As a result, school performance has improved and youth involvement in crimes has been significantly reduced.  

Current Projects:  Youth empowerment in action.

Urban Youth: CHANGE: Current Projects

All of our CHANGE initiatives involve the transference of positive, moral values and the teaching of information needed to keep kids safe and healthy.  In conjunction with our Youth In Media production program, kids use the important lessons they’ve learned to create multimedia presentations that teach their peers, as well as further ingrain the messages in their own minds.

Teens Against Tobacco Use (TATU)

In collaboration with the American Lung Association, area elementary and middle schools, and area community recreation centers, A Better World’s TATU program provides youth in grades five through eight with the skills and desire needed to remain smoke free.  This powerful tobacco-use prevention program is implemented as part of our Youth In Media production camp, where teens are educated on the health hazards of smoking, then create their own multimedia to encourage their peers to remain smoke free.  Presentations are delivered at schools and community recreation centers. 
The program also includes TATU Teen Training Workshops, as well as Tobacco Literacy Workshops.

Break the Cycle Now

Break the Cycle Now teaches teens about HIV/AIDS prevention and the reduction of risky sexual behavior.  The knowledge gained through the program, integrated with the skills learned in the Youth In Media production camp, empowers students to develop and lead presentations on the subjects for their peers.  A Better World also offers a special HIV/Aids Prevention Workshop for teenage girls, as well as on-site testing.

StreetSmart Rallies

A Better World organizes four-hour youth-led prevention rallies that utilize positive rap/spoken word artists and youth-developed radio, television and print materials. 
The focus of the rallies, held at local community centers, includes the knowledge gained through other Youth In Media programs, such as HIV/AIDS prevention, abstinence, non-violence, no-smoking, and other positive values and behavior.

READY (Renewing the Environment through the Actions of Dedicated Youth)

A Better World is very proud to help ‘green’ America’s urban youth and set them on a path of environmental awareness.  READY is a weekly ecology club for kids that examines the negative impact that society is having on the environment.  Club members learn about the major causes of environmental problems, as well as solutions to these problems.  

Students form teams that target different environmental issues, then participants collectively research, compose and orally present information on their topics.  They develop models that represent the cause of a particular problem – for example air pollution or waste, then create presentations that focus on solutions such as recycling or renewable energy.  Other activities include performing skits, role-playing, and the creation of a community newsletter that informs the public about environmental issues.