PODIUM FOUNDATION
This organization has already been registered
Someone in your organization has already registered and setup an account. would you like to join their team?Profile owner : v***********n@p*******a.o*g
Mission Statement
Podium empowers youth ages 11-19 living in under-resourced communities in Richmond, Henrico, Hopewell, and Petersburg, VA, as confident and capable writers and communicators.
About This Cause
Podium builds educational equity through youth literacy development. Our region’s young people are incredibly talented but don't often have the platform to showcase their perspectives and achievements. Writing and communication are critical skills that support personal development and prepare youth for success in school and career. Podium offers free writing workshops, publications, showcases, and teen professional development programs year-round. Youth meet weekly for 1-or-2-hours with their mentors in 3-month sessions after-school and during the summer. Every child has a safe and supportive platform for personal expression and academic growth in every program. By partnering with community centers, middle, and high schools that feed into one other, Podium provides consistent and dependable mentorship for children from 6th - 12th grade. Alongside their mentors, youth learn to use writing as a tool for healing, self-expression, and to build their self-confidence and advocacy skills. Youth discuss identity and culture while exploring literary forms of poetry, prose, debate, journalism, science fiction, and more. Podium is essential to youth education and artistic development in the region. Its impact on language and literary knowledge, social-emotional wellness, and personal growth is demonstrated by Podium youth every day. Developing as writers and healthy communicators, youth share their experiences, process them through dialogue and reflection, and build meaningful relationships with peers and trusted adults. They take pride in the publication of their work, and the community benefits from connecting with youth experiences, stories, and culture. Podium is a trauma-informed, community building space for youth to meaningfully express their perspectives with others. Shared by Najah from Armstrong HS, "Writing is important to me because I struggle with expressing myself. Whenever I am writing, it makes everything feel 10 times easier." Gabrielle from Huguenot HS noted that, "When I am stressed, I can release all of that through my writing. It helps me reason with myself and feel centered." Podium is also primarily staffed by alumni of its programs. When you support Podium, you support an unique experience. Podium mentors create meaningful and long-lasting relationships with youth participants, where mentors possess lived experience expertise, and youth can see themselves within the mentors they look up to.