As a Training & Capacity Building Manager at Youth Collaboratory, I wear a lot of hats—but I am most energized by the time I spend engaging with our Youth Catalyst Team (YCT). YCT is a national group of young leaders aged 18 to 24, focused on creating transformative change in programs, services, and systems for youth experiencing homelessness, strengthening mentoring programs for older youth, and other initiatives. YCT members are passionate about using their lived expertise to improve programs, services, and systems, resulting in stronger outcomes for youth and young adults.    

The Work 

YCT members use their lived expertise and professional skillset to do a variety of work. They develop resources that teach people how to deepen their work with youth and young adults—such as this Guide to Authentic Youth Leadership and Collaboration, or this tip sheet on Supporting and Affirming LGBTQIA2S+ Youth and Young Adults. The team hosts webinars, write blogs, and curate newsletters on important topics like disability rights and mental health. 

YCT + Launch 

Members of our YCT have been integrated in Launch from the beginning and will continue to be throughout the cohort’s 12-month journey. YCT members supported the process of assessing applications and selecting Launch’s first cohort of innovators. Moving forward, they will continue to engage with our Launch teams and advise on the development of their solutions. As a diverse team made up of Black, Brown, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQ21AS+, and disabled young people, YCT members offer creative problem-solving and advice on critical components like trauma-informed care and cultural competence. Overall, YCT members will help ensure that the curricula, apps, and resources created and built upon over the next 12 months are relevant and useful to young people, especially those who have been intentionally separated from accessing critical resources.   

Authentic Youth Collaboration 

YCT is special and is the manifestation of authentic youth collaboration because of the young people and partners who invest(ed) in the team. At Youth Collaboratory, we define authentic youth engagement as the act of intentionally pursuing a genuine connection or relationship with young people. With genuine connection is the respect and acknowledgement of young people as essential partners. It is necessary to honor that partnership with:   

• Equitable compensation
• Valuing members’ skills and expertise in addition to compensation
• Recognizing implicit biases and intentionally understanding youth are equal to adult partners
• Honoring that young people offer a unique and needed knowledge to create impactful change 

My Story

Youth Collaboratory has built an intentional pathway for youth to transition from consultants to full-time staff members. I am one of many who took this pathway; I joined YCT when I was 24, and stayed on with Youth Collaboratory as a Training & Capacity Building Associate once I aged out of the YCT role. 

The reason I decided to stay is that Youth Collaboratory offered me the opportunity to do everything that I wanted. I have always wanted to make an impact after experiencing houselessness as a teen, and it is important to me to work with amazing people who represent diverse identities and cultures. I am privileged to be able to do the work I love with people I admire, draw inspiration from, and learn from daily. Working with YCT offers me that.