Arts Programs
After ‘Cool: $17,460
University Partner: USC School of Dramatic Arts, Brent Blair
Community Partner: 24th Street Theatre, Jay McAdams
Website: http://www.24thstreet.org/after-cool/
After ‘Cool addresses the lack of arts education opportunities for K-12 students in the North University Park/Pico-Union neighborhood that surrounds the 24th Street Theatre. The program addresses the educational and social needs of the community’s youth, engaging 60 neighborhood 2nd-8th grade youth in after-school instruction that develops acting and creative skills.
Digital Promotoras: $17,640
University Partner: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, Amara Aguilar
Community Partner: Las Fotos Project, Lucia Torres
Website: https://lasfotosproject.org/digitalpromotoras/
Digital Promotoras empowers students to explore issues and injustices in their community through photography and digital storytelling. The students produce work and content that communicates challenges with public safety and raises awareness to inspire community members around the Health Sciences Campus to enact change through an evidence-informed public health promotora model.
Leadership Academy: $14,530
University Partner: USC School of Dramatic Arts, Brent Blair
Community Partner: 24th Street Theatre, Jay McAdams
Website: 24thstreet.org
Leadership Academy provides extracurricular programs facilitating college readiness in the University Park neighborhoods with low college attainment. The program broadens participants’ pathways to college and careers by using theatre arts as a vehicle for supporting academic achievement, strengthening confidence, communication, interpersonal skills, and more.
Learning in the Time of COVID-19: $31,730
University Partner: USC Marshall School of Business, Hank Wasiak
Community Partner: School on Wheels, Inc., Catherine Meek
Website: schoolonwheels.org
Learning in the Time of COVID-19 from the nonprofit Schools on Wheels seeks to mitigate the obstacles to learning and education presented to homeless youth during the pandemic. The program provides Chromebook devices as well as internet access necessary for online learning. School on Wheels trains and matches volunteers with students at shelters in the neighborhoods surrounding USC’s campuses.
USC Kaufman Connections (“KC”): $9,540
University Partner: USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, Tiffany Bong
Community Partner: 32nd Street/USC Visual & Performing Arts Magnet, Nelly Cristales
Website: https://kaufman.usc.edu/collaborations/kaufman-connections/
Kaufman Connections (KC) is a 24-week, hip hop-oriented program that introduces students to the creative field of dance, while also strengthening important social-emotional learning and cognitive skills. KC’s USC student Teaching Assistants receive first-hand community leadership and engagement experience in the neighborhood surrounding UPC.
Youth Artists as Civic Leaders: $12,030
University Partner: USC Community and Local Government Partnerships, David Galaviz
Community Partner: LA Commons, Karen Mack
Website: https://www.lacommons.org/exposition-park
Youth Artists as Civic Leaders increases the civic leadership capacity of youth around the University Park Campus by training participants to expand their knowledge of local community issues as they relate to mental health, while engaging fellow community members in the creation of a major public artwork.
Education Programs
Adventures Ahead After School Program: $19,260
University Partner: USC Sol Price School of Public Policy, Anna Parks
Community Partner: Redeemer Community Partnership, Lauren Tigrett
Website: https://www.redeemercp.org/education
Adventures Ahead is an after-school tutoring program seeking to improve education outcomes for elementary students in the University Park neighborhood. Adventures Ahead offers an individualized reading curriculum, homework help, and academic enrichment to students during the school year, and an all-day program during the summer.
Boyle Heights Beat: $23,700
University Partner: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, Willa Seidenberg
Community Partner: The Wellness Center @ General Hospital, Rosa Soto
Website: boyleheightsbeat.com
A community journalism and youth development training program, Boyle Heights Beat (BHB) builds capacity and leadership for youth storytellers, strengthens journalism skills, and prepares youth for higher education as well as career training. Produced content fills a news vacuum that has historically isolated residents surrounding the Health Sciences Campus from each other and from policymakers.
College and Career: $22,000
University Partner: Keck School of Medicine of USC, Gregory Harlan
Community Partner: PUENTE Learning Center, Michele Wolfe
Website: https://www.puente.org/programs/college-and-career-readiness/
The College and Career Program empowers over 540 students from low-income communities of color to succeed with pre-college performance, gain acceptance to college, receive resources to succeed in college, obtain a competitive STEM degree, and contribute their gifts and skills to professional communities.
Futures in Transportation: $10,000
University Partner: USC METRANS Transportation Consortium, Victoria Deguzman
Community Partner: USC Hybrid High College Preparatory School, Sarah Batizy
Website: uschybridhigh.org
Futures in Transportation is designed to engage and empower youth to pursue post-secondary education and training in transportation-related fields. The program focuses on first-generation students living in the University Park neighborhood.
Language, Culture & STEM – Youth Empowerment & Mentorship Program: $21,150
University Partner: Society for the Advancement of Chicano/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS), Gwen Noda
Community Partner: Sacred Heart Elementary School, Adriana Bronzina
Website: www.sacredheartla.org
The Language, Culture & STEM – Youth Empowerment & Mentorship Program at Sacred Heart Elementary develops students’ love of math and science and helps them to see a reflection of themselves in their USC Hispanic student mentors. The program also provides a comprehensive English-Spanish Dual Language immersion program.
Mission Science: $35,450
University Partner: USC Viterbi K-12 STEM Center, Darin Gray
Community Partner: Gates Street Elementary School, Maria Barraza
Website: https://viterbik12.usc.edu/missionscience/
Mission Science (MS) takes place at 8 USC neighborhood elementary schools, providing 3rd- 5th grade students with hands-on, inquiry-based science and engineering activities and experiences. The elementary students are taught by USC undergraduate and graduate students majoring in STEM.
Music Inspiring Community: $2,420
University Partner: Music Inspiring Community, Jasmine Bryant
Community Partner: Theodore T. Alexander Science Center, Michelle Correa
Website: https://musicinspiringcomm.wixsite.com/home
Music Inspiring Community is a USC student-run effort to bring the proven benefits of music education to neighborhood elementary students. Multi-disciplinary USC students share their love of music and the inspiration which accompanies music education with LAUSD schools near University Park.
Project Scientist STEM Club at USC: $43,200
University Partner: Keck School of Medicine of USC, Ite Offringa
Community Partner: Project Scientist, Sandy Marshall
Website: https://projectscientist.org/
Project Scientist provides a virtual after-school STEM Club to elementary school girls in the USC Family of Schools. The program gives under-resourced girls access to high-quality, standards-aligned, teacher-guided STEM experiences to spark a lifelong love for STEM.
Rise Student Navigator Network at USC: $30,000
University Partner: USC Student Basic Needs, Alejandra Hong
Community Partner: Rise, Inc., Liz Conn
Website: https://risefree.org/covid-19-help/
The Rise Student Navigator Network at USC provides 1 on 1 case management to over 200 local LA community college students surrounding the USC campuses that are in need of resources. The resources include food access (CalFresh), Unemployment Insurance, Medi-Cal, and access to wifi or laptops.
Thrive in Joy C11 Curriculum: $3,800
University Partner: USC Sol Price School of Public Policy, Anthony Harguindeguy
Community Partner: Thrive in Joy Nick Fagnano Foundation, Mary Fagnano
Website: https://www.thriveinjoy.org/
Club Thrive in Joy helps students recognize their character strengths and to apply them to be of service to others. Students take on leadership roles and work as a team, implementing C11 Strength of Character framework to positively impact the University Park community while building relationships with their peers.
USC A-Lab Architecture Development Program: $26,144
University Partner: USC School of Architecture, Lauren Matchison
Community Partner: Foshay Learning Center, Lisa Beebe
Website: arch.usc.edu/a-lab
The USC A-LAB Architecture Development Program is a rigorous academic experience providing students from Foshay Learning Center with on-campus, immersive instruction in architecture and design. The curriculum imparts hard and soft architectural skills and helps students prepare for college and identify career goals.
USC Family of Schools Facilitators 2021-2022: $62,660
University Partner: USC Educational Partnerships, Kim Thomas-Barrios
Community Partner: 32nd Street Magnet/Visual & Performing Arts Magnet, Nelly Cristales
Website: https://communities.usc.edu/family-of-schools/
The USC Family of Schools School Site Facilitators are crucial to ensuring the implementation of on-site programming at local schools, ensuring that Good Neighbors partnerships work together to connect the resources of USC to local schools, and providing opportunities to the greatest number of students, teachers, and families.
USC ReadersPLUS: $74,640
University Partner: USC Joint Educational Project, Tina Koneazny
Community Partner: John Mack Elementary School, Ana Guzman
Website: https://dornsife.usc.edu/joint-educational-project/readersplus/
USC ReadersPlus places reading and math tutors in the USC Family of Schools, inspiring academic confidence and positive learning relationships for children who are at reading or math levels below the classroom average. The after-school curriculum addresses homework help, STEM, literature, and mindfulness in children around University Park.
USC Science Outreach: $5,130
University Partner: USC SCout, Susumu Takahashi
Community Partner: 32nd Street/USC Visual & Performing Arts Magnet, Nelly Cristales
Website: http://www.uscscienceoutreach.org/
USC Science Outreach (SCout) introduces scientific curiosity into elementary school students through interactive science experiments and concepts before their formal science curriculum begins. Experiments build upon students’ knowledge while encouraging them to further practice scientific inquiry skills.
Virtual Assisted Living and Education Program (VALE): $29,800
University Partner: USC Viterbi K-12 STEM Center, Darin Gray
Community Partner: Living Advantage, Inc. (LA, Inc.), Pamela Clay
Website: livingadvantageinc.org
The Virtual Assisted Living and Education Program (VALE) provides specialized support to at-risk individuals, foster youth, people on probation, people experiencing homelessness, and pregnant and/or parenting teens by providing tutoring, mentoring, and case management services around University Park Campus.
Writing 150 and the Writer’s Room at Manual Arts High School: $16,590
University Partner: USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, Ben Pack
Community Partner: 826LA, Joel Arquillos
Website: www.826LA.org
826LA seeks to support students improve creative and expository writing skills and to help teachers inspire their students to write. With innovative curriculum, intensive writing projects, and encouraging mentors, 826LA helps local high school students build their communication and literacy skills with one-on-one support from community volunteers, including USC undergraduates.
Young Researchers Program: $8,370
University Partner: USC Young Researchers Program, Naomi Levine
Community Partner: Manual Arts High School, Natalie Beck
Website: http://youngresearchers.usc.edu
The Young Researchers Program (YRP) is a 6-week summer program that provides under-represented, low-income high school students from neighboring USC communities with exposure to university-level scientific research through 1-on-1 mentorship with Ph.D. students at the University Park Campus.
STEM Programs
Adventures in Robotics: $4,770
University Partner: USC Viterbi School of Engineering, Mark Redekopp
Community Partner: Redeemer Community Partnership, Lauren Tigrett
Website: viterbipk12.usc.edu
Adventures in Robotics (AiR) partners with the Adventures Ahead After School Program providing students with practical applications of math, engineering, and design through Lego Robotics around University Park Campus.
BOTS: Building Opportunities with Teachers in Schools: $34,200
University Partner: USC Viterbi K-12 STEM Center, Mary Bonaparte-Saller
Community Partner: Los Angeles Unified School District, Local District East, Craig Sipes
Website: https://viterbipk12.usc.edu/bots
The USC BOTS program’s primary goal is to impart widespread computer science and digital literacy in young students of under-represented and under-resourced backgrounds by providing elementary school teachers with professional development (PD) that empowers them to integrate CS into their classroom through coding and robotics.
Community Applying Systemic STEM Education to Schools (C-ASSETS): $38,800
University Partner: USC Joint Educational Project, Dieuwertje Kast
Community Partner: Norwood Street Elementary School, Irene Worrel
Website: https://sites.google.com/usc.edu/usc-community-assets
C-ASSETS students engage in authentic STEM experiences both in class and after school, reflecting what scientists and engineers do in the real world. C-ASSETS delivers scientific labs directly to students & their teachers, strengthening science literacy and promoting interest in science careers in children in the University Park area.
Expanding STARs/EHA Program: $41,900
University Partner: USC School of Pharmacy, Daryl Davies
Community Partner: Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School, Luis Lopez
Website: http://www.uscstar.org/
The STARs/EHA Program introduces high school students around the Health Sciences Campus to the relationship between engineering and medical sciences, it helps students achieve proficiency in college-level science courses and prepares students for post-secondary science and engineering education pathways.
Med-COR (Medical Counseling, Organizing and Recruiting): $44,620
University Partner: Keck School of Medicine of USC, Joyce Richey
Community Partner: Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School, Millicent Dypiangco
Website: https://medcor.usc.edu/
The Medical Counseling, Organizing, and Recruiting program (Med-COR) increases the pool of local high school BIPOC students committed to the pursuit of careers as health professionals by offering comprehensive curricular and co-curricular training.
STEM After School at Legacy LA: $3,530
University Partner: USC Viterbi K-12 STEM Center, Darin Gray
Community Partner: Legacy LA Youth Development Corporation, Lou Calanche
Website: uscviterbipk12.usc.edu
STEM After-School introduces volunteer USC graduate students to middle school students to provide homework help, lead hands-on experiments and activities, and to act as professional role models. The middle school students are from the area surrounding the Health Sciences Campus participating in the Legacy LA after-school program.
Health Programs
Al Otro Lado + Violence Intervention Program Healthcare-Legal Partnership: $35,780
University Partner: Keck School of Medicine of USC, Astrid Heger
Community Partner: Al Otro Lado, Nora Phillips
Website: alotrolado.org
This partnership provides direct legal services to immigrants that are vulnerable. The program serves through the LAC+USC Medical Center, both improving health outcomes in the patient community and providing comprehensive medical and legal care. Al Otro Lado is the only free, full-service immigration legal service provider on the LAC+USC Medical Campus
Early Intervention & Community Wellness/USC Internship Program: $28,000
University Partner: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, Ruth Supranovich
Community Partner: Wellnest, Jenna Haelflinger-Kurtz
Website: wellnestla.org
The Wellnest/USC partnership’s mission is to address and treat mental health and emotional illness in children and help improve mental illness outcomes for them, their families and caregivers. The program serves individuals living in the University Park neighborhood.
Expanding the Network of Grief Support for Children in the USC Neighborhood: $38,000
University Partner: USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, Maria Hu
Community Partner: OUR HOUSE Grief Support Center, Lauren Schneider
Website: ourhouse-grief.org
With the help of USC Master of Social Work (MSW) interns, OUR HOUSE’s School Program provides free grief support groups for bereaved elementary, middle, and high school students who have experienced the loss of a family member or close friend in the past 2-36 months.
New Familia-Beyond Pregnancy: Diabetes Prevention in Women with History of Gestational Diabetes: $19,610
University Partner: Keck School of Medicine of USC, Thomas Buchanan
Community Partner: New Familia Health Support Services, LLC, Cristina Carlos
Website: https://www.newfamilia.org/diabetes-prevention/
The New Familia Diabetes Prevention Program focuses on women with a history of gestational diabetes. This effort brings culturally rich, educationally appropriate, and linguistically tailored programming to residents in the northeast Los Angeles communities around the Health Sciences campus.
FEAST Wellness Programs and Community Services: $17,460
University Partner: USC Keck School of Medicine of USC, Kayla de la Haye
Community Partner: FEAST, Amy Vu
Website: www.feastforall.org
FEAST’s 16-week Wellness Programs and 8-week Family Feeding Series aim to reduce the negative impacts of stress, depression, and anxiety as well as prevent childhood obesity by providing social support for parents as well as healthy food access and nutrition education around USC’s campuses.
Fuente Initiative: $5,340
University Partner: USC School of Pharmacy, Carla Blieden
Community Partner: Griffin Avenue Elementary School, Reuben Rios
Website: https://pharmacyschool.usc.edu/
Fuente Initiative uses the educational resources of the USC School of Pharmacy, allowing pharmacists and student pharmacists to educate the communities surrounding the Health Sciences Campus about poison prevention, appropriate drug use, self-management, and pathways to becoming a pharmacist.
Garden Gateway Nutrition Education Project: $24,880
University Partner: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, Francois Bar
Community Partner: Community Services Unlimited Inc., Heather Fenney
Website: http://www.csuinc.org
The Garden Gateway Nutrition Education Project increases knowledge about interconnected food systems including health, environmental, and social justice issues. It also helps build skills for growing and eating fresh produce and increasing community self-sufficiency around University Park.
Nutrition for Health and Longevity Program: $24,990
University Partner: USC Transplant Institute, Susan Kim
Community Partner: SF General Hospital Foundation, Cissie Bonini
Website: https://sfghf.org/
The Nutrition for Health and Longevity Community Program equips and empowers participants with the knowledge, skills, resources to make healthier dietary choices. Participants learn the correlations between healthy lifestyle and prevention of obesity and chronic diseases over a 10- week program at Keck Medical Center.
Troy Camp: $40,000
University Partner: USC Viterbi School of Engineering, Christina Mireles Martin
Community Partner: Lenicia B. Weemes Elementary School, Mercedes Pineda
Website: http://www.troycamp.org/
Since 1948, USC’s Troy Camp’s mission has been to provide mentorship and community building for 3rd-12th grade students in the neighborhoods of South Los Angeles. The student-run program has accomplished its mission through free programming, provided by over 160 undergraduate mentors. The program provides resources and guidance to help 3rd-12th grade students achieve their academic and personal goals at the University Park Campus.
USC Dental Screening Initiative for Foster Children: $24,970
University Partner: Pediatric Dental Clinic (PDC), Thanh Tam Ton
Community Partner: Violence Intervention Program, Astrid Heger
Website: https://violenceinterventionprogram.org/
The USC Dental Screening Initiative for Foster Children establishes a dental home for foster children in the Violence Intervention Program (VIP). The program provides dental health services to the foster children and their caregivers in the neighborhoods surrounding the Health Science Campus.
USC Neighborhood Mobile Dental Van Prevention Project: $25,000
University Partner: Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC, Carlos Sanchez and Linda Brookman
Community Partner: St. Agnes Parish School, Will Summer
Website: https://dentistry.usc.edu/community/mobile-dental-clinics/
The USC Neighborhood Mobile Dental Van Prevention Program (NMDVPP) is the only school-based mobile provider in the city for preventive oral health care and education, which decreases dental disease and increases the quality of life for children in need in the areas surrounding both campuses.
VIP Mentoring & Tutoring Program: $29,390
University Partner: Violence Intervention Volunteers, John Walsh
Community Partner: Violence Intervention Program, Astrid Heger
Website: https://www.laworks.com/organization/001A000000a9amOIAQ?layoutViewMode=tablet
VIP is the only program in East Los Angeles to offer co-located mentoring and tutoring services as part of a comprehensive care model for foster and high-risk youth which has remained fully operational during COVID-19. VIP provides academic programming, treatment, and tutoring in the Health Sciences Campus area.
Public Safety Programs
University Park Slow Jams: $25,000
University Partner: USC Sol Price School of Public Policy, David Sloane
Community Partner: Public Matters, Reanne Estrada
Website: http://publicmattersgroup.com/upsjla2050/
University Park Slow Jams (UPSJ) helps neighbors make safe, people-friendly streets around the University Park Campus. UPSJ is a creative call to action for safer streets that combines art, education, and capacity building with creativity to build awareness of street safety issues, map local conditions, and shape changes to local infrastructure.
USC Kid Watch Program: $61,110
University Partner: USC Educational Partnerships, Kim Thomas-Barrios
Community Partner: 32nd Street Magnet/USC Visual & Performing Arts Magnet, Nelly Cristales
Website: https://communities.usc.edu/community-partnerships/kid-watch/
Since 1996, USC Kid Watch has mobilized community volunteers to provide safe passage for thousands of neighborhood children as they walk to and from the USC Family of Schools. By mobilizing residents and other stakeholders to “observe and report,” crime is reduced, improving public safety in the University Park area.
Violence Prevention/Social Emotional Learning: $25,770
University Partner: USC Joint Educational Project, Susan Harris
Community Partner: SOLA Community Peace Center, Susan Stouffer
Website: solacommunitypeacecenter.org
This in-school program seeks to develop vital peacemaking and social- emotional skills (VP/SEL) to local kids and families around University Park Campus. Participants learn through experiential and fun learning activities such as role play, crafts, and small group activities, and learn the practices of gratitude and positivity.
Economic Development Programs
NFTE Youth Entrepreneurship Initiative: $10,650
University Partner: USC Marshall School of Business, Glenn Fox
Community Partner: Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, Estefanny Aybar
Website: https://www.nfte.com/
NFTE Youth Entrepreneurship Initiative’s overall objective is to increase the agency of students in the University Park area to help them learn how to prepare themselves for the future of work, providing new opportunities to help them chart their own course.
South Central Growers and Harvesters Network: $9,400
University Partner: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, Francois Bar
Community Partner: Community Services Unlimited Inc., Heather Fenney
Website: http://www.csuinc.org
The South Central Growers and Harvesters Network engages residents in the University Park community to identify their need and capacity to launch urban agriculture micro-enterprises. The program provides training and mentorship, supporting urban production and developing functional agriculture microenterprises both increasing economic security and enhancing access to quality produce.
Workforce Training
Career Success for High School Youth: $8,000
University Partner: USC Marshall School of Business, Lindsey Bier
Community Partner: Youth Business Alliance, Betsy Blanchard
Website: youthbizalliance.org
The Youth Business Alliance (YBA) was established to introduce local high school students to business and career skills and to connect them to career paths in a variety of industries. The program serves students living in the University Park neighborhood.
Jazz Hands Virtual Academy: $28,500
University Partner: USC Sol Price School of Public Policy, Nicole Esparza
Community Partner: Jazz Hands for Autism, Ifunanya Nweke
Website: jazzhandsforautism.org
Jazz Hands for Autism serves a growing population of adults with autism in a world where services disproportionately focus on school-aged children. The program helps participants build career goals that match their interests and serves individuals living in the University Park neighborhood.
Small Business Development
CBH Small Business Resilience Strategy: $25,000
University Partner: USC School of Architecture, Lorcan O’Herlihy
Community Partner: Clifford Beers Housing, Inc, Cristian Ahumada
Website: cbhousing.org
Clifford Beers Housing creates thoughtfully designed, affordable, and integrated communities that enhance the lives of people who have experienced mental illness and homelessness. Communities are located in the University Park neighborhood.
Share a Meal: $19,000
University Partner: USC Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, Reverend Jim Burklo
Community Partner: Khalsa Peace Corps, Ravinder Singh
Share A Meal builds caring communities through mobile kitchens that share basic necessities with the unhoused community in the University Park neighborhood. The program operates a mobile food truck and serves any community member who may be experiencing food insecurity.
Trojan Shelter: $9,576
University Partner: Trojan Shelter, Alex Graddy-Reed
Community Partner: Mount Olive Lutheran Church, Reverend Eric Shafer
Website: trojanshelter.org
A home for college students, by college students, Trojan Shelter offers free-of-charge housing, meals, and resources to those experiencing homelessness in the University Park neighborhood.