The Youth Cohort is a summer fellowship open to changemakers ages 14-20
Sections:
The Youth Cohort is a summer fellowship open to changemakers ages 14-20 who are interested in joining a powerful network of community members as they learn and progress on their leadership journeys.
Fellows will deeply engage in individual and collective work that centers personal and professional development, racial equity, expanded social capital, knowledge and understanding of key issues faced by communities throughout metro Denver.
Aren’t 14-20 years old? The Piton Fellowship has two other cohorts that may be for you. The Early Career Cohort is comprised of Metro Denver leaders with similar aspirations and 2-5 years of experience, while the Mid-Career Cohort is recruiting leaders with 10+ years experience.
With a strong focus on racial equity, diversity and inclusion, this paid summer experience pushes fellows to deeply engage in individual and collective work that expands their knowledge and understanding of key issues faced by communities throughout Metro Denver.
Fellows will meet in person at the Gary offices near Union Station roughly 20-25 hours a week over the course of June and July in order to:
We’re looking for leaders who are:
The Youth Cohort is uniquely designed for aspiring leaders ages 14-20. Youth Fellows will:
Fellows were asked to lend their brilliance to a pair of pressing problems in the summer of 2023: youth mental health & youth self sufficiency. The 2023 Youth Cohort diligently worked over the course of 6 weeks, with support from Audrey Hartfield and Anna Lin, our partners from the Urban Leaders Fellowship (ULF), conducting research, executing interviews, preparing presentations and learning activities on their findings and recommendations as to how our city and state might address two ongoing issues:
The cohort presented their findings to an audience that included Gary Community Ventures employees, community partners and past Piton Fellowship participants. The Youth Cohort’s invaluable reports and findings will continue to inform solutions sought by the Gary team and the greater Denver community.
Across different research methodology and definitions, the fellows focused on self-sufficiency had similar findings and recommendations:
The fellows focused on youth mental health recommended creating more inclusive mental health services designed by and for underrepresented groups. These include:
To apply, please check back on this page when the application window for the Youth Cohort opens, which is typically in January or February each year.
Nominations, however, remain open year-round. Click the button below to nominate a fellow.
Our current cohort have roots everywhere from Ehtopia to Norway, China to Mexico and Five Points to Parker. They’re student athletes, musicians, environmental advocates, farmers, aspiring lawyers and culturally curious. During the summer of 2023, they explored new approaches we might take to youth mental health and self sufficiency.
Previous Youth Cohort members have come from a plethora of geographies and communities across Metro Denver, and they’ve come with an interest and an aptitude to tackle everything from inequities in our education system to gun violence to climate change to youth mental health to homelessness.
Although our initiatives now live under the Gary Community Ventures name, we intentionally chose to honor our history as The Piton Foundation in selecting The Piton Fellowship as the title for this program. We did so because we believe this name tells a perfect story about the idea of ascendency in leadership that Piton has long represented.
There are three cohorts of the fellowship for Youth, Early Career and Mid-Career Professionals. Designed to accessibly fit into the busy lives of fellows, this free experience allows fellows to continue working and learning while building their leadership skills, networks and potential to create community impact. Upon completion of the program, Gary provides fellows a payment to use towards professional development and career-building opportunities.
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I would like to see business people try to solve social problems with the same imagination and energy they use to finance a factory or make a deal. Don’t call it philanthropy; call it corporate social investment. Make it integral to business.