About the Pathways to Hope Program Elements

Our Pathways to Hope program enriches the lives of youth from ages 0 to 24. The different pillars of our program touch a child's life by:

• Early Start Childhood Development Center (Early Start): Starting a child's life with our Early Start  Center where children prepare for Kindergarten by learning colors, shapes, ABC's, socialization skills, and more.

• After School Enrichment Program (ASEP): Continuing nourishment as children enter Kindergarten through the 12th grade by providing transportation, a healthy snack/meal, and enrichment courses during our ASEP.

• Summer Enrichment Program (SEP): Extending fun and interactive learning for K-12th graders during the summer months with a day camp, known as the Summer Enrichment Program. In this program, children receive healthy meals and snacks, mentoring, learn social skills, and participate in enrichment courses throughout the day.

  • ​​Enrichment courses include classes that teach confidence, self-esteem, social-emotional learning, health and wellness, teamwork, sports, music/DJing, financial literacy, digital literacy, and overall social skills.​

• Leaders in Training (LIT) Teen Center: Teaching Detroit teens and young adults the training, tools, and skills they need to explore diverse careers and skilled trades to make successful and meaningful contributions to the workforce by teaching vocational training, introducing career development, enhancing career readiness soft skills, and participating in financial literacy, academic support, community activism, recreational activities, and culturally based field trips.

• Annual Summer College Tour: Immersing youth into the world of higher education and college readiness, which is a major component of our LIT Teen Center. Metro Detroit youth get the experience of traveling out of state to visit up to 10 colleges and universities, where many of the youth receive on-site admissions. Over the last 20 years, 97% of the youth who attend the college tour go on to attend post-secondary education.

• Grow Detroit's Young Talent (GDYT): Engaging youth through a summer workforce development program through the City of Detroit providing meaningful on-the-job training and career readiness. The youth participants also use a curriculum titled, “Hats & Ladders” to learn about various career fields, complete career assessments, and interactive exercises to identify career areas of interest and the skills and education needed to secure employment in their chosen career fields.