Arts Programs
After ‘Cool: $18,000
Community Partner: 24th STreet Theatre (Jay McAdams)
University Partner: USC School of Dramatic Arts (Brent Blair)
Website: http://www.24thstreet.org/after-cool/
24th STreet Theatre’s After ‘Cool Theatre Program provides after-school, standards-based arts education programming for neighborhood children, as well as leadership development and mentorship opportunities for approximately 60 students. The after-school program provides much needed arts education for children in second through eighth grade and was recently expanded to include both a teen mentoring element for older students and a two-week summer program called Summer ‘Cool. The year-long curriculum for the After ‘Cool program is designed for maximum arts learning, with daily exercises that support student engagement and creative exploration. Students use improvisation to bring their stories to life and improve their communication, collaborative, and problem-solving skills. The students help write the script and work with professional theatre artists on the original production. The culminating performance, fully staged with cued lighting and sound, is given to family members, community members, and University Park Campus residents.
Digital Promotoras: $18,000
Community Partner: Las Fotos Project (Eric Ibarra)
University Partner: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism (Amara Aguilar)
Website: www.lasfotosproject.org/digitalpromotoras
Digital Promotoras empowers girls to become agents of change in their communities by providing photography and storytelling tools to capture and share stories. They document health disparities in their community and use social media to raise awareness and share resources to help find a solution. The program is modeled after the culturally and linguistically competent community-based health education “promotora” model with an infusion of artistic expression through participatory photography, digital media storytelling, and social media. The Digital Promotora Program aims to enhance community engagement and address the cultural stigma held in Latino communities in talking about health and diseases, specifically related to obesity and diabetes. By using photography and digital media storytelling as a tool to identify and address health disparities, 15 Digital Promotoras create photography exhibitions, multimedia screenings and social platforms that showcase stories about local residents affected by these chronic diseases.
Leadership Academy: $14,530
Community Partner: 24th Street Theatre (Jay McAdams)
University Partner: USC School of Dramatic Arts (Brent Blair)
Website: https://www.24thstreet.org/leadership-program
Leadership Academy is an after-school leadership development program that uses theatre arts to support academic achievement and prepare and encourage high school students to attend college. In this program, high school students participate in drama master classes taught by 24th Street Theatre Artistic Director Debbie Devine. Meeting on Wednesday afternoons for 30 weeks during the school year, the teens’ complete leadership development activities and theatre exercises designed to enhance their confidence and strengthen team building and creative skills. Moreover, participants volunteer one day per week for two hours as teen mentors for the 60 students participating in the theatre’s After ‘Cool extracurricular arts program. The program also provides development resources including mock interviews, financial literal assistance, etc. The ultimate goal of the program is to increase high school graduation rates and prepare as well as encouraging youth to attend college.
Our Neighborhood: Youth Artists as Civic Leaders: $12,400
Community Partner: LA Commons, a project of Community Partners (Karen Mack)
University Partner: USC Office of Local Government Relations (David Galaviz)
Website: www.lacommons.org
Leveraging the ongoing and successful partnership between USC’s Office of Local Government Relations, LA Commons, and the EXPO Center, the Our Neighborhood: Youth Artists as Civic Leaders program enhances the quality of education for youth ages 15-25 by engaging them in the development of an artistic and policy response to improving health outcomes in neighborhoods around the University Park Campus. The resulting visual narrative serves as both a reflection of the participants’ development and a tool to communicate key health concerns and solutions to policymakers and the community at large.
USC partners with nonprofit to sponsor African-American youth art project
USC Kaufman Connections: $9,540
Community Partner: 32nd Street/USC Visual & Performing Arts Magnet K-5 (Nelly Cristales)
University Partner: USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance (Tiffany Bong)
Website: https://kaufman.usc.edu/collaborations/kaufman-connections/
USC Kaufman Connections is a 24-week, hip-hop-oriented dance program that introduces students to choreographic process, prepares them for their annual arts showcase, increases teacher aptitude in integrating dance into their curriculum, and offers an ample service-learning opportunity for Kaufman students. Kaufman Connections (KC) offers local, 3rd-6th grade students the opportunity to work closely with USC Kaufman students (“Teaching Artists”) – a cohort of emerging dance professionals, scholars, and leaders. Through KC, students are exposed to the creative field of dance, develop experience in the elements of dance-making, and strengthen important social, emotional and cognitive skills. The culminating performances at the end of each semester offer hip-hop dance exposure opportunities to attendees (i.e. non-participating students, their families, and the broader school community) and performance application opportunities for participants. Additionally, Teaching Artists receive first-hand experience in community engagement and leadership while developing their own understanding of their value and role as artist-citizens.
USC Thornton JazzReach: $33,660
Community Partner: Foshay Learning Center (Lisa Beebe)
University Partner: USC Thornton School of Music (Susan Helfter)
JazzReach is a stimulating jazz enrichment program that provides weekly group/individual instruction and in-school concerts for students in the USC community, while also creating opportunities for USC Thornton students to gain teaching and administrative skills. JazzReach provides high-quality, low-cost jazz programming to more than 2,200 students and families from USC neighborhood schools, a cohort of 50 USC Thornton students who serve as teaching artists throughout our 9+ established JazzReach partner schools. More than 260 neighborhood students participate in weekly classes and an additional 2,000 students and/or families experience concerts performed by USC Thornton jazz ensembles and JazzReach ensembles.
USC Thornton Outreach Program: $27,360
Community Partner: Vermont Avenue Elementary School (Patricia Ferguson)
University Partner: USC Thornton School of Music (Susan Helfter)
The USC Thornton Outreach Program (TOP) is a diverse and far-reaching music education-oriented program that supports local in-school music programs with supplemental learning opportunities for students in the community and significant service-learning opportunities for Thornton students. The mission of the USC Thornton Outreach Program (TOP) is to provide low or no-cost, high-quality music-learning opportunities to underserved students in the USC community while developing, concurrently, the teaching, mentoring, and community engagement skills of USC Thornton students. USC Thornton students in TOP are called “mentors,” given the role they play for the younger students in the community. Student learning is enhanced through TOP mentors assisting our local teachers, current in-school music programs and providing supplemental programming in schools where possible. One of the main goals of the TOP program is to facilitate student learning of core musical skills and knowledge through vocal and instrumental music-making.
RAD in the Neighborhood: $16,020
Community Partner: California African American Museum (Consuelo Velasco Montoya)
University Partner: USC Roski School of Art and Design (Suzanne Lacy)
RAD in the Neighborhood is an ongoing partnership between the California African American Museum and USC Roski. It provides a weekly after-school visual arts and design program for students from nearby Ánimo Jackie Robinson High School. Taught by Roski volunteer faculty and graduate students with the assistance of volunteer undergraduate mentors, the program includes instruction in a variety of artistic 2 and 3-dimensional media such as creating sculptures, ceramics, and graphic novels. By offering high-quality, year-round, weekly after-school visual arts and design programming and mentorship, RAD in the Neighborhood aims to strengthen the high school-to-college pipeline through art and design education and instill an understanding of the professional pathways.
Education Programs
Adventures Ahead After-School Program: $19,260
Community Partner: Redeemer Community Partnership (Lauren Tigrett)
University Partner: USC Sol Price Center for Social Innovation (Richard Parks)
Since 1996, Adventures Ahead has partnered with USC students, alumni, and staff to transform local elementary school students who are reading several grade levels behind into lifelong readers who are prepared to reach their full academic potential. Adventures Ahead offers an individualized reading curriculum to 30 students for nine hours per week during the academic year. An all-day, academically rigorous summer program also incorporates math, science, and health education. The program provides a 6:1 student to teacher ratio and supplements instruction with one-on-one reading buddies, many of whom are USC undergraduate volunteers.
BOTS Building Opportunities with Teachers in Schools: $19,480
Community Partner: Los Angeles Unified School District, Local District East (Craig Sipes)
University Partner: USC Viterbi School of Engineering (Katie Mills)
Website: https://viterbipk12.usc.edu/bots
Building Opportunities with Teachers in Schools (BOTS) fosters digital equity in East LA elementary schools serving low-income neighborhoods. BOTS addresses the documented problem of unequal access to 21st century Computer Science (CS) education in east Los Angeles. BOTS helps Boyle Heights students in grades 1-6, their teachers and families build digital proficiency through coding and robotics. Participants co-create a teacher-centric, sustainable, and scalable program to enhance computational skills for urban schools. The program hopes to create affordable in-school robotics, develop student computational thinking, and support LAUSD Tech goals.
Boyle Heights Beat/Ramona Gardens: $29,160
Community Partner: Boyle Heights Youth Source Center (Scott Lee)
University Partner: USC Annenberg School of Journalism (Michelle Levander)
Website: http://www.boyleheightsbeat.com/
Boyle Heights Beat builds capacity and leadership among young storytellers, strengthening their research, writing, and analytical skills, as well as motivating and preparing them to pursue higher education. Launched by La Opinión, The California Endowment, and USC Annenberg in 2010, Boyle Heights Beat has been hailed by the Associated Press as a new model that could “close the widening inner-city information divide.” La Opinión distributes the newspaper to 28,000 households in Boyle Heights and to community centers, churches, schools, and cafes. Another 8,500 copies are delivered in the 90033 ZIP code and to each apartment in the Ramona Gardens public housing complex. Youth reporters produce the print edition, while adult contributors report for its sister websites in English and Spanish: boyleheightsbeat.com and pulsodeboyleheights.com. As part of the program’s commitment to serving as a voice for neighbors in the community, residents are also encouraged to share photos, illustrations, memories, poems, and other contributions to the print and online editions.
Coding Academy: $27,510
Community Partner: William Jefferson Clinton Middle School (Jose Rivera)
University Partner: USC Viterbi School of Engineering, STEM Educational Outreach Programs (Darin Gray)
Website: https://wjcms-lausd-ca.schoolloop.com/
During the program, 6th Grade students will concentrate in learning basic language of coding and will be introduced to the 21st Century Skills of: Critical Thinking, Collaboration, Creativity, and Communication. The program’s mission is to increase student achievement by providing learning pathways for students based on their strengths and/or curiosity. The partnered schools currently have AVID Academy that focuses on building students’ self-efficacy and to be college and career ready. The goal of AVID is to provide students study skills and WICOR strategies (Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, Organization, Reading). The program aspires to create a STEM Academy pathway to provide experiences for students who are math and science inclined, or to inspire the love of these subjects.
Community Applying Systematics STEM Education to Schools (Community ASSETS or C-ASSETS): $49,500
Community Partner: Norwood Elementary School (Irene Worrell)
University Partner: USC Viterbi School of Engineering, STEM Educational Outreach Programs (Darin Gray)
Website: https://sites.google.com/usc.edu/usc-community-assets
Combining the successes of the Young Scientists Program and Mission Science, the C-ASSETS program provides opportunities for students in their USC neighborhood elementary schools to engage in authentic, hands-on, standards-aligned science and engineering experiences. The program supports events including field trips to local STEM institutions and a special after-school workshop about biotech and cancer science. The goal of the program is to cultivate and nurture students’ interest in STEM in order to contribute to a K-12 pipeline of underrepresented and disadvantaged students who wants to pursue STEM as a major in college and embark upon careers in STEM.
IAM/SummerTIME: $27,000
Community Partner: Manual Arts High School (Nadia Jones)
University Partner: USC Rossier School of Education / Pullias Center for Higher Education (Gwendelyn Rivera)
Website: https://pullias.usc.edu/iam/
I AM and SummerTIME are sequential programs targeting first generation, low-income, college-bound seniors from low-performing schools. I AM provides mentorship during the college and financial aid applications. SummerTIME provides writing and college knowledge development and financial aid guidance. The mission of the Pullias Center for Higher Education is to bring a multidisciplinary perspective to complex social, political, and economic issues in higher education. Their work is devoted to the key issues of college access, retention, and success for underserved students — and the effectiveness of the colleges and universities that serve them.
Med-COR (Medical Counseling, Organizing, and Recruiting): $46,170
Community Partner: Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School (Millicent Dypiangco)
University Partner: Keck School of Medicine of USC, Med-COR Program (Joyce Richey)
Website:http://medcor.usc.edu/
Med-COR supports, motivates, and prepares students to be competitively eligible for college admission. Students are empowered to develop their goals, continue their education, and ultimately pursue careers in the healthcare profession. Med-COR provides students with tutoring in science, math, English, and SAT test preparation, in addition to intensive career counseling. Admitted students begin the program in the ninth grade and commit to meet two Saturdays per month annually during each school year until graduation. Currently, Med-COR is integrated into two high schools in LAUSD: Bravo Medical Magnet High School and Orthopedic Hospital Medical Magnet High School. Select students also participate in a six-week work/study experience at Keck Hospital of USC and at LA County + USC Medical Center.
Reading Makes A Difference: $20,340
Community Partner: The Jester & Pharley Phund (Barbara Saltzman)
University Partner: USC Dornsife / Joint Educational Project (Tina Koneazny)
Website: http://www.thejester.org
The Reading Makes A Difference program ignites an interest in reading, bolsters community engagement, and boosts standardized test scores among elementary school students in the USC Family of Schools. A primary goal is to provide low-income children with the motivation to read. A method used to acheive this goal is a three-week, school-wide Read-A-Thon, students’ reading logs are tallied. The more that a participating student reads, the more donations of “The Jester” book and doll are made to local hospitals in the name of the student’s school and sponsor. During a Recognition Assembly, top readers are recognized with special Jester Jingle certificates, bookmarks, and buttons. The teacher of the top-reading classroom at each grade level is similarly recognized. The program aims to result in better reading performance, more interest in independent reading, expanded reading skills and comprehension, growing character development, reduced bullying and community engagement.
Robotics and Coding Academy: $16,200
Community Partner: 32nd Street/USC Visual and Performing Arts Magnet (Nelly Cristales)
University Partner: VAST (USC Viterbi Adopt-a-School, Adopt-a-Teacher) (Gisele Ragusa)
Website: http://viterbi.usc.edu/k-12/coding/robotics-coding-academy/
The Robotics and Coding Academy is a collaboration between the USC Viterbi School of Engineering K-12 VAST (Viterbi Adopt-a-School, Adopt-a-Teacher) program and four elementary schools in USC’s Family of Schools program: 32nd Street/USC Visual and Performing Arts Magnet, Dr. Theodore T. Alexander Jr. Science Center School, James A. Foshay Learning Center, and Lenicia B. Weemes School. The Academy is intended to foster an inter-school cohort of coders and a “culture of coding” among the USC Family of Schools community. Each week, fourth and fifth grade students work with USC undergraduate mentors to gain technology skills and learn to program and build robots. Activities improve participants’ skills in math, science, coding, computational thinking, and teamwork.
STEM After School: $3,530
Community Partner: Legacy LA (Maria Lou Calanche)
University Partner: STEM Community Outreach for Graduate Students (Lauren Bobzin)
Website: www.stemusc.wordpress.com
STEM After-School is a major project of the USC STEM Community Outreach for Graduate Students (SCOGS) which focuses on utilizing the experience and knowledge of the USC graduate school students to provide tutoring, homework help, and hands-on experience to middle school- aged children. USC graduate students volunteer as members of SCOGS to provide homework help, lead hands-on experiments and activities, and to act as professional role-models to middle school students participating in the Legacy LA after-school program. Students in this program are from schools with large minority populations and are often first-generation U.S. citizens. One of STEM’s main goals for this year is to help maintain or increase the grades of 80% of their participants in STEM topics.
USC Community-Based Social Work Interns: $47,700
Community Partner: Foshay Learning Center (Lisa Beebe)
University Partner: USC Educational Partnerships (Kim Thomas-Barrios)
Website: https://communities.usc.edu/family-of-schools/
In this partnership between the USC School of Social Work, USC Civic Engagement, and the USC Family of Schools, Master of Social Work interns become integral members of the counseling teams serving students and families in the community. Once the interns are chosen from the USC Master of Social Work program, they work part-time during the 2019-20 school year with one of the ten schools that make up the University Park Campus Family of Schools, as well as with USC’s Neighborhood Academic Initiative and Kinder2College Program. The program has mutual benefits, giving USC graduate students the opportunity to gain experience in their field while providing a much-needed resource to the local community.
USC Family of Schools Facilitators 2019: $64,600
Community Partners: Foshay Learning Center (Lisa Beebe)
University Partner: USC Educational Partnerships (Kim Thomas-Barrios)
Website: https://communities.usc.edu/family-of-schools/
USC Family of Schools Facilitators streamline the delivery of grant-funded program activities at USC Family of Schools. The program supports 12 part-time facilitators for schools located near the Health Sciences and University Park campuses who ensure that programs reach the maximum number of students, teachers, and families. Facilitators play a key role in meeting program goals by ensuring: collection and distribution of accurate and timely information; availability of suitable facilities; efficient management of USC student partners; and communication between stakeholders of all programs.
The USC Neighborhood Academic Initiative (NAI) Saturday Academy: $60,700
Community Partner: Foshay Learning Center (Lisa Beebe)
University Partner: USC Educational Partnerships (Kim Thomas-Barrios)
Website: http://communities.usc.edu/college-access/nai/
USC NAI aims to strengthen the college pathway via our Saturday Academy program in the 2019-20 academic year. NAI will complete the expansion into East Los Angeles in Fall ’19, serving students in grades 6-12 across the HSC and UPC campus communities. The program aims to continue preparing neighborhood youth for success in college and beyond. Data has demonstrated that NAI students score higher on state tests,100 percent have access to a rigorous, college-going curriculum, higher GPA’s, SAT and ACT scores than their classmates and 98% of them have gone on to attend college because of this program’s intervention.
Promising young scholars honored as USC high school initiative celebrates it’s latest graduates
USC Kinger2College Program: $29,750
Community Partner: Foshay Learning Center (Lisa Beebe)
University Partner: USC Educational Partnerships (Kim Thomas-Barrios)
Website: https://communities.usc.edu/kinder-2-college/
The Kinder2College program seeks to tutor Kindergarten through 5th grade scholars in the USC Family of Schools at risk for reading failure as designated by their classroom teacher. This program involves teacher practice and parent education workshops on the campus of USC during Saturday Academy. This year the program is aiming to engage up to 150 elementary school boys in relevant activities during Saturday Academy programming designed to increase their reading proficiency. Scholars are selected from seven of our USC Family of Schools at the end of Kindergarten and fostered through the USC implemented program, Readers Plus, mentored and applied by trained USC students, all of whom will be trained in the ways that males and females learn best.
USC ReadersPLUS: $76,950
Community Partner: Theodore Alexander Science Center (Norma Spencer)
University Partner: USC Joint Educational Project (Tina Koneazny)
Since 1997, ReadersPLUS has provided tutorial assistance in reading — and math since 1999 — to hundreds of children in the original five of our USC Family of Schools. Literacy tutors engage elementary students one-on-one to help them develop their reading, writing, and language skills. Math mentors help elementary students develop fundamental problem-solving skills, mastery of basic math, and a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts. From its inception, the program has placed approximately 60-90 trained work-study students each semester in partner schools, having provided a total of over 30,000 hours of individualized tutoring to approximately 500-800 students in our neighborhood schools each year. The after-school curriculum includes homework help, enrichment activities in STEM subjects through the WonderKids program, and lessons in focus and self-control through Little Yoginis. ReadersPLUS also organizes an annual writing contest and an interactive booth for the LA Times Festival of Books.
USC Science Outreach: $5,130
Community Partner: 32nd Street/USC Visual & Performing Arts Magnet (Nelly Cristales)
University Partner: USC Science Outreach (Susumu Takahashi)
Website: http://www-scf.usc.edu/~scout/
Science Outreach (SCout) is a student-run organization at USC that gives undergraduate and graduate volunteers the opportunity to present fun, safe, and hands-on science lessons to elementary school students. SCout’s primary goal is sparking interest about science in second- and third-grade students. The students are organized into groups of five to seven per classroom. Sessions usually begin with a pop quiz on the concepts covered the previous week, followed by students conducting guided experiments such as making slime, launching bottle rockets, freezing objects with liquid nitrogen, extracting DNA from strawberries, and creating and testing circuits. SCout partners with five local elementary schools: 32nd Street USC Visual & Performing Arts Magnet K-5, Lenicia B. Weemes Elementary School, John W. Mack Elementary School, Vermont Avenue Elementary School, and Accelerated Charter Elementary School. SCout’s extra-curricular events help connect students to the larger USC community, other elementary school communities, and science organizations across Los Angeles.
Writing 150 and the Writers’ Room at Manual Arts High School: $17,100
Community Partner: 826LA (Joel Arquillos)
University Partner: The Writing Program at USC (Emily Artiano)
Website: www.826LA.org
826LA partners with Writing 150 Community Engagement Courses to bring USC undergrads into the Writers’ Room at Manual Arts High School. USC students provide crucial one-on-one mentorship and tutoring, while also developing a Writers’ Room Fellowship program to be launched in FY21. 826LA’s mission is to support students with their creative and expository writing skills and to help teachers inspire their students to write. Our services are structured around the understanding that great leaps in learning can happen with one-on-one attention, and strong writing skills are fundamental to future success. Since opening its doors in 2005, 826LA has served more than 75,000 students in Los Angeles with its free programs.
Young Researchers Program: $8,370
Community Partner: Manual Arts High School (Bari Applebaum)
University Partner: Young Researchers Program at USC (Emily Burt)
Website: http://youngresearchers.usc.edu
YRP is a summer program where local high school students are paired with USC PhD students to conduct a research project together in a STEM field. YRP students build confidence through hands-on exposure to STEM research, increasing their likelihood of attending college and pursuing a STEM career. The Young Researchers Program (YRP) is a 6-week summer program that provides high school students from the neighborhoods surrounding USC, and from demographics underrepresented in STEM, early exposure to active research at a university level. High school students are mentored individually by USC PhD students who provide the support and skills needed to conduct a successful research project, starting with experimental design and data collection and culminating in a poster presentation.
Youth Entrepreneurship Initiative: $10,980
Community Partner: NFTE, Greater Los Angeles (Olivia Lam)
University Partner: USC Marshall School of Business (Patrick Henry)
Website: https://www.nfte.com/
The Greif Center, The Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, and USC student volunteers will work together to provide an entrepreneurship course to high school students at Foshay Learning Center. Participating students will learn financial literacy and business skills within the context of starting and operating a small business. Up to 100 NFTE students will also be invited to a USC Marshall entrepreneurship course for undergraduates and a day-long youth conference on entrepreneurship. The Youth Entrepreneurship Initiative will inspire students to stay in school, recognize business opportunities, and plan for successful futures.
Health and Sports Programs
Comprando Rico y Sano (CRS) Buying Nutritious and Delicious: $27,360
Community Partner: Clinica Msr. Oscar A. Romero (Stephanie Lemus)
University Partner: USC Health Science Campus Community Partnerships (Dulce Acosta)
Website: www.clinicaromero.com
CRS applies a promotora community health education model to improve the health outcomes of 300 high risk low-income, overweight, pre-diabetic, and diabetic patients ages 18 to 60 living in Ramona Gardens and Boyle Heights. The CRS is a 12-month program broken up in to quarters. For each quarter, the tasks are respectively strengthening the relationship with the community leaders, recruiting and training 10 promotoras on the Diabetes Nutrition Education curriculum. The use of the Promotora model is an added benefit as it increases the capacity of local residents who are trained and given a stipend that adds to their overall yearly income. CRS further supports the capacity building for the 10 Promotoras by partnering with East Los Angeles Community College (ELACC) to provide classes that will ensure that the Promotoras are working towards gaining college units and professionalizing the skills gained through their involvement with CRS.
Expanding STARs/EHA Program: $43,200
Community Partner: Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School (Luis Lopez)
University Partner: USC School of Pharmacy (Daryl Davies)
Website: http://www.uscstar.org/
USC Science, Technology and Research (STAR)/ Engineering for Health Academy (EHA) program prepares high school students, including underrepresented minorities, for careers in life sciences, biomedical engineering & biotherapeutics. Key components of the program include mentoring and hands-on experiences. The main goal for this project is to provide life science and bio-engineering/biomedical education for inner-city high school students. Students conduct their own research project with a mentor who guides them through hands-on scientific investigation and discovery. Additionally, students gain exposure to an inquiry-based and problem-solving learning environment that facilitates science literacy.
FEAST Wellness Programs and Community Services: $18,000
Community Partner: FEAST (Dana Rizer)
University Partner: Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work (Stephanie George)
Website: www.feastforall.org
In partnership with USC, FEAST supports three 16-week FEAST groups, provides internships and training for two USC students, and implements ongoing health education and food access initiatives for community members across both Good Neighbors Zones serving 265 families. The program supports university-community programs that increase health and wellness for local residents by providing multi-faceted, interdisciplinary interventions in collaboration with the USC Schools of Social Work and Gerontology. FEAST’s mission is to promote health and wellness in underserved communities through the power of healthy foods and human connection. FEAST’s programs combine Food Education, Access and Support, together to measurably improve physical and emotional health so that participants can live full, healthy lives.
Fuente Initiative: $6,950
Community Partner: LAUSD Griffin Avenue Elementary School (Leonel Angulo)
University Partner: USC School of Pharmacy (Carla Blieden)
Website: https://pharmacyschool.usc.edu/
This project uses the educational resources of the University’s School of Pharmacy to coordinate pharmacists and student pharmacists to provide poison prevention education and appropriate drug use and self-management education. It also promotes information about pharmacy school and how to become a pharmacist. This program collaborates with pharmacists and student pharmacists from USC who share resources at three neighborhood elementary schools about how to prevent accidental poisonings, improve the quality of life, and increase health education in the surrounding community.
Garden Gateway Nutrition Education Project: $25,650
Community Partner: Community Services Unlimited Inc. (Neelam Sharma)
University Partner: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism (Francois Bar)
Website: http://www.csuinc.org
The Garden Gateway Nutrition Education Project improves the health of children and adults by teaching gardening and healthy cooking skills that increase their opportunities to access and consume fresh fruits and vegetables. Two series of gardening and healthy cooking workshops will be offered: One for community residents of all ages, and the other for pre-school aged children. Workshop participants are provided with garden supplies, fresh produce, and information they can use to implement increase their opportunity to access and consume more fresh fruits and vegetables.
Los Angeles Albert Schweitzer Fellow Projects: $15,000
Community Partner: Los Angeles Albert Schweitzer Fellowship (Amit Sura)
University Partner: USC School of Pharmacy (Jennifer Kwon)
Website: http://www.schweitzerfellowship.org/chapters/la/
The Los Angeles Schweitzer Fellows Program is dedicated to training future health professionals with the skills and commitment necessary to address health disparities. Fellows develop and implement service projects throughout the Los Angeles area. This program selects “Fellows” from a competitive pool of graduate students and immerses them in an experiential learning and leadership development program designed to increase and sharpen their skills and abilities to more effectively address the health needs of underserved people. Each Schweitzer Fellow partners with a community-based organization to identify an unmet health need, design a yearlong, 200-hour service project with a demonstrable impact on that need, and bring the project from idea to implementation and impact.
Opioids Fotonovela Project: $27,000
Community Partner: Beit T’Shuva (Nicole Goodman)
University Partner: USC School of Pharmacy (Mel Baron)
Website: www.pharmacyschool.usc.edu
This project seeks to produce and distribute a fotonovela booklet on the topic of opiods, in both English and Spanish, which serves as an educational tool. It is be designed for low-literacy populations in communities surrounding the USC campuses and the greater Los Angeles area. The mission of the USC School of Pharmacy Health Literacy Program is to develop, distribute, and evaluate health-related media for underserved and low-literacy Latino and African American populations. The main goal for this project is to develop, produce and distribute a fotonovela to serve as an education tool on hypertension.
Playworks Healthy Play Initiative: $28,350
Community Partner: Playworks Southern California (Roderick Burnley)
University Partner: USC Athletics (McCall Hall)
Website: www.playworks.org/southern-california
Playworks Healthy Play Initiative is designed to improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity, building social emotional skills and exposing elementary school students to university life through the power of play. Playworks provides training to principals, administrators, and school recess teams representing elementary schools from the USC Family of Schools. Their goal is to equip school staff with the tools to implement strategies for play-based learning on their campuses, helping to improve the health and well-being of their students. The program also hosts a Playworks Play Day with USC student athletes and a Day of Healthy Play, where students get to tour USC campus and see “a day in the life” of a student athlete. Approximately 1,646 elementary school students will gain access to our impactful Power of Play programming, designed to help children develop the social-emotional, cognitive, physical, language, and self-regulation skills that are vital to their success both now and in the future.
School Violence Prevention/Social-Emotional Learning Program (SVP/SELP): $26,570
Community Partner: United University Church (Susan Stouffer)
University Partner: USC Joint Educational Project (Susan Harris)
Website: www.uuc-la.org/the-peace-center-of-uuc
This School Violence Prevention/Social-Emotional Learning Program in partnership with the Peace Center, JEP, and USC Professors brings essential tools for well-being and school success to children in local elementary schools, tools such as self-management, conflict resolution, and meditation. The idea for this School Violence Prevention/Social-Emotional Learning Program (SVP/SELP) originated from the Peace Center’s experience providing violence prevention and social-emotional learning programs for local school kids on site for the past 13 years. This program is designed to help local economically disadvantaged kids learn skills and receive tools that they need for improved self-management and improved relational skills so that they can thrive at school and in life.
Trojan Kids Camp: $27,000
Community Partner: LAUSD – 32nd Street School (Nelly Cristales)
University Partner: USC Trojan Kids Camp (Cynthia Brass)
Website: www.usc.edu/recsports
The mission of Trojan Kids Camp is to provide a healthy and safe life style using quality sports and educational instruction to the youth. The mission also includes providing information about good nutrition to fight the obesity issue in youth. Trojan Kids Camp is a continuation of the NYSP program that was started in 1967 and used to be a federally funded program run at 106 different institutes throughout the country. The program has the following targets: educate the youth about healthy life styles through active participation in sports and proper nutrition; serve underserved youth between the ages of 9-15 years of age; provide a health start through good nutrition and physical fitness. Another goal is to teach youth-centered activities and educational session in a safe and positive college/university environment.
USC Anesthesia Technician Training Program: $27,000
Community Partner: East Los Angeles Occupational Center (Vladimir Tigno)
University Partner: Keck School of Medicine of USC (Sachin Jha)
The USC Anesthesia Technician Training Program is a six week anesthesia technician certificate program to train highly qualified and competent anesthesia technicians who are readily able to enter the workforce. The targeted community will be citizens from Los Angeles County and our partnership with the East Los Angeles Occupational Center will enable for the recruitment of members from our community for this program. Training will consist of two components, a classroom portion primarily hosted at the East LA Occupational Center and a clinical portion which will be hosted at the Keck Hospital of USC and LAC+USC Hospital.
USC Dental Screening Initiative for Foster Children: $18,630
Community Partner: The Violence Intervention Program (Astrid Heger)
University Partner: The Pediatric Dental Clinic (Thanh Ton)
Website: https://dentistry.usc.edu/programs/dental-hygiene/community/
This program is a dental health screening initiative for foster children and adolescents in the Violence Intervention Program (VIP) in collaboration with the Pediatric Dental Clinic (PDC) and the Concurrent Enrollment Dental Assistant Certificate Program. The program aims to establish a dental home for foster children in the Violence Intervention Program (VIP), a nonprofit organization that provides comprehensive health and support services for child victims and their non-offending family members. Students receive training from the medical and dental staff and under the supervision of a USC professor in pediatric dentistry. As part of their training to become dental assistants in the Concurrent Enrollment program, high school students need to go into the community and do an internship. One of the main goals for this program is to provide oral hygiene demonstrations, caries risk management, and oral health education to 1000 families.
USC Neighborhood Mobile Dental Van Prevention Program: $29,930
Community Partner: St. Agnes Parish School (Kevin Dempsey)
University Partner: USC Ostrow School of Dentistry, Community Oral Health Programs (Carlos Sanchez and Linda Brookman)
Website: http://dentistry.usc.edu/community-programs/mobile-clinics/
The USC Neighborhood Mobile Dental Van Prevention Program (NMDVPP) is unique to Los Angeles in that it is the only school-based mobile provider for preventive oral health care and education in the city. The program helps accomplish the USC community building objective of improving the quality of K-12 oral health education and quality of life for children and their families. By providing the children in need with access to free oral health care and education, the incidence of dental disease has the potential to decrease, thus increasing the quality of life that each child and their family experience. As a leader in providing school-based oral health preventive services, the NMDVPP expects to successfully screen and treat each consented child in the USC Partner schools that is in need of oral health care services, as well as to promote oral health education at various community outreach events.
USC PT Fit Families: $15,210
Community Partner: Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School (Luis Lopez)
University School: USC Division of Biokinesiology & Physical Therapy (Cheryl Resnik)
Website: www.bravoweb.lausd.net/
The USC Neighborhood Mobile Dental Van Prevention Program (NMDVPP) is unique to Los Angeles in that it is the only school-based mobile provider for preventive oral health care and education in the city. The program helps accomplish the USC community building objective of improving the quality of K-12 oral health education and quality of life for children and their families. By providing the children in need with access to free oral health care and education, the incidence of dental disease has the potential to decrease, thus increasing the quality of life that each child and their family experience. As a leader in providing school-based oral health preventive services, the NMDVPP expects to successfully screen and treat each consented child in the USC Partner schools that is in need of oral health care services, as well as to promote oral health education at various community outreach events.
USC Troy Camp: $52,590
Community Partner: Lenicia B. Weemes Elementary School (Mercedes Pineda)
University Partner: USC Viterbi School of Engineering (Christina Mireles)
Website: www.troycamp.org
USC Troy Camp is a youth development organization that enriches the lives of children, broadening their horizons through long-term mentoring experiences with USC undergraduate students. USC students operate the program, which begins in May with a weeklong summer camp at Idyllwild Pines in Idyllwild, CA, with oversight from a small advisory board. The 210 children who will attend this year’s camp are third through fifth grade students from 19 partner schools in South Los Angeles. Counselors facilitate character development through daily programs such as swimming, horseback riding, hiking, arts, and athletics. The mentoring relationship between counselors and campers continues after camp with a series of monthly Kids Events, including trips to museums and a USC football game. Throughout the school year, Troy Camp also hosts after-school tutoring and enrichment opportunities for students. To date, Troy Camp has served more than 11,000 children in the south Los Angeles community.
Public Safety Programs
Documented Presence and Realities: $35,780
Community Partner: Al Otro Lado Inc (Nora Phillips)
University Partner: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism (Robert Hernandez)
Website: http://homelessrealities.jovrnalism.io/
“Documented Presence and Realities,” is a project collaboration between Al Otro Lado and USC’s School of Journalism provide direct legal representation and pop-up technological experiences in virtual reality to low-income immigrants, focusing on homeless immigrants, at the USC Health Campus at the Wellness Center in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles. Beginning in the Fall 2019, Al Otro Lado and USC School of Journalism students will document through trauma informed services the wide range of experiences to affirm the realities of immigrant homeless families in Los Angeles. Through the use of photogrammetry, students will capture experiences of homeless individuals on both sides of the border which will provide Los Angeles residents with the experience of the realities of refugees and asylum seekers. The experiences will be recorded and project will allow for Los Angeles residents to have a full range of the realities of the current humanitarian crisis.
Get It Straight (GIS): $24,800
Community Partner: Hollenbeck Police Activities League (Lorraine Garcia)
University Partner: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work (Rosemary Alamo)
Website: http://lapdhollenbeckpal.org/gis
Through the Get It Straight (GIS) Program, neighborhood law enforcement officers, parents, and schools will work together to reduce juvenile delinquency by offering case management, delinquency prevention training, parent skills training, and comprehensive mental health and coaching to children ages 9-17 and their parents. GIS staff will be trained in evidence-based intervention methodologies, including motivational interviewing, problem-solving therapy, and cognitive behavior therapy, so as to help students stay in school and improve their personal, social, and academic progress. Parents will be encouraged and equipped to be confident, strong, and knowledgeable advocates to support their child’s path toward a successful future. GIS is the only program of its kind in Boyle Heights working hand-in-hand with the LAPD, parents, and schools to increase safety and prevent delinquency.
LGBTQA Healthy School Climate: Stand Up, Speak Up Against Bullying: $11,930
Community Partner: Community Partners/Latino Equality Alliance (Eddie Martinez)
University Partner: Keck School of Medicine of USC (Paula Cannon)
Website: www.latinoequalityalliance.org
The program supports Latino Equality Alliance (LEA)’s effort to sharply promote a healthy school climate for LGBTQ youth and create a safe pathway towards a higher education. The project engages LGBTQ youth and parents for education, skills building, leadership development and community service. Through collaboration with partners and local schools, LEA encourages students and parent advocates to transform schools into more accepting environments for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) students, as well as to advocate for programs/policies that eradicate barriers to education for LGBTQ students. The goal of the program is to improve the mental health and leadership skills of LGBT youth and parents in the Boyle Heights area by building healthy school climates. The intention is to build a safe environment that supports youth’s desire towards a higher education.
Public Safety Peer Mediation Program: $40,500
Community Partner: Institute for Nonviolence in Los Angeles (Avis Ridley-Thomas)
University Partner: USC Educational Partnerships (Kim Thomas-Barrios)
Website: www.invla.org
The program introduces peer mediation, which effectively teaches students and adults how to deescalate and resolve conflict using a five-step process called ITUNA. Experienced volunteer mediators reach to school staffs and parents with the goal of training student mediators in the USC service area and establishing peer mediation programs at each school. The program provides six 1-hour training sessions for students and any staff who choose to participate, at the schools. Post training, school-based implementation is managed by a program administrator with a goal of a minimum of ten students serving as peer mediators at each school. The mediation methodology, social emotional learning, and communication skills are tools that the students are able to use for the rest of their school careers, and beyond. The program hopes to help build a long-term safe and healthy community.
USC Department of Public Safety Cadets Program: $10,170
Community Partner: 32nd Street Visual and Performing Arts Magnet (K-8) / USC MAST High School (Ezequiel Gonzalez)
University Partner: USC Department of Public Safety (John Thomas)
Website: https://dps.usc.edu/about/cadets/
The Cadet Program is designed to offer youth ages 13-21 opportunities to develop professional and academic skills while working with Department of Public Safety officers and the surrounding community. Cadets and recruits perform under the supervision of full-time Department of Public Safety officers who serve as Post Advisers and mentors. Participants explore careers in law enforcement and public service, broadening their employment and academic options within the university community.
USC Kid Watch: $63,000
Community Partner: Foshay Learning Center (Lisa Beebe)
University Partner: USC Educational Partnerships (Kim Thomas-Barrios)
Website: http://communities.usc.edu/health-and-safety/kid-watch/
Since 1996, USC Kid Watch community members have committed themselves to help ensure the safety of children on their way to and from school. Volunteers intently watch over children from six USC Family of Schools as they are dropped off or as they to walk, trained to report anything suspicious. Kid Watch volunteers are committed to providing safe passage to children, assisting law enforcement agencies, and increasing community empowerment. Kid Watch partners with the LA Police Department-Southwest Division, LA Unified School District Police Department, LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, USC Department of Public Safety, USC Civic Engagement, USC Fire Safety and Emergency Planning, City of Los Angeles Emergency Management Department, City of Los Angeles Fire Department, USC School for Early Childhood Education, and the USC Family of Schools at the University Park Campus.
Economic Development Programs
Ascot Hills Park and Community Nursery: $13,610
Community Partner: North East Trees (Carlos Naranjo)
University Partner: USC Health Science Campus Community Partnerships (Dulce Acosta)
Website: www.northeasttrees.org
North East Trees is currently developing a community based native plant nursery located in Ascot Hills Park. The Ascot Nursery will be a center for healthy activities, youth education, and a safe place for members of the university community, residents of North East Los Angeles, and Naturalist to explore Ascot Park. Youths, young adults, and academics will be invited to participate in the process of the nursery management. The observations made will help in the environmental restoration of the ninety-acre Ascot Hills Park and other neglected spaces in the area. The USC East College Prep’s numerous clubs will be offered extracurricular experiences in the various sciences relating to the park and nursery and it will also create immediate job opportunities for disadvantaged youth within the organization.
Concurrent Enrollment Medical Assistant Certificate Program: $39,100
Community Partner: West Los Angeles Community College (Carmen Dones)
University Partner: USC Government Partnerships and Programs (Theda Douglas)
The program is designed as a pipeline for student participants to get a better understanding of the medical profession. It provides medical training in emergency and first-aid procedures, from which students assist doctors with medical procedures, blood pressure, lab work and front office training. Participants attend class for 15 weeks and a total of 180 hours to achieve ‘Basic Medical Skill Certificates. After receiving the certificate, they can begin internships for 6-10 weeks in a medical facility. The purpose of the program is to expand the high school experience to include relevant career-path opportunities in allied-health occupations and job-ready skills to high school students in the 11th and 12th grades.
Empowerment for Independent Living: $16,200
Community Partner: Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment (Johnson Ng)
University Partner: USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology (Maria Henke)
Website: www.pacela.org
PACE partners with the USC Davis School to train 40 individuals from the UPC & HSC areas to become certified & registered home care providers serving LA’s growing senior community. The program creates living wage jobs with benefits & a career ladder in the high growth healthcare industry. Participants undergo a 2-month specialized, home care aide training program utilizing curriculum which has been developed in-house by PACE in partnership with our wholly-owned healthcare subsidiary, PACE Care. Upon successful completion of the training, participants receive certification and are registered in the State of California Department of Social Services caregiver’s database. One of PACE’s main goals is to enhance the quality of life for older adults in our community by training home care providers to assist them in their homes, thus allowing seniors to remain in their homes surrounded by friends and family.