Invest in the Future of 20 New Youth Leaders!

Thank you so much for your support! Here are some highlights from the last quarter:

• The 2021 National Fly By Light Training was completed in July with 18 participants receiving a Fly By Light curriculum license.

• Through a Learn24 Summer Strong grant, we are hosted OCU's inaugural Art and Social Justice Institute at Roosevelt Senior High School for 32  youth at Roosevelt Senior High School. The program provided an immersion into the Fly By Light curriculum with a focus on youth- led social justice campaigns, arts and media.  The program was offered in both English and Spanish and brought together students from differing backgrounds.
•  Students took various field trips including a canoe trip with the Anacostia Watershed Society, art viewing at the Artechouse, a special Kennedy Center performance and a culminating trip to Kings Dominion.  
• On the final day of camp students presented their art and social justice campaign presentations to a very special guest, Bernie Sanders!  The themes of the performances were centered around police brutality, climate change and mental health.

• On August 23rd Roosevelt High School hosted OCU staff and community partner artists for a special professional development launch into the new school year, The Harambee Summit, that was attended by the entire school staff.  The day included special music and dance performances, a keynote speaker, breakout rooms and youth performances. 

• Through a partnership with Mayor Marion Barry's Summer Youth Employment program, One Common Unity was a DC Summer Youth Employment (SYEP) host site. Four Fly By Light students from our various school chapters had the unique opportunity to transition from after-school program participants into more robust leadership roles within the organization.  Throughout the course of the program, youth:
• Developed, planned, led outreach for, and facilitated a community digital event on ways to manage COVID-19 "reopening" stress
• Facilitated a full day of Fly By Light National Training, giving unique insights to youth led activism to over 20 educators and social workers across the country 
• Hosted a group of Nigerian activists visiting the U.S. through the State Department's International Visitor Leadership Program, and facilitated a workshop about DC youth organizing for them 
• Collaboratively planned, developed, wrote and generated a zine "A Look Through The City" about interventions to gun violence, such as community organizing, mutual aid and more 
• Built community, social media engagement and their own social justice media analysis.
• School programming was launched in-person for the 2021- 2022 school year and things are just getting underway!  
• Per the strategic plan, FBL facilitators will be offering a deep dive model at Roosevelt HS.  Additional sites with intensive in-school programming for the school year include: Perry Street Prep MS and Eliot- Hine MS.
• OST sites for the school year include: LaSalle ES, SWW HS, Organizing Troupe and Eliot- Hine MS.