Leadership Development
LA CAUSA believes that our community needs more diverse, effective and locally trained leaders. It is important that, through their experience at LA CAUSA, our participants develop a consciousness that is socially aware of issues affecting their community.
Mental Toughness Week
LA CAUSA’s leadership component begins during Mental Toughness (MT) week where students actively participate in workshops and activities designed to challenge and engage them. During this time, youth learn critical thinking, time management, team building, conflict resolution, anger management, decision making, communication, assertiveness, peer counseling, leadership, and cultural sensitivity skills.
Community Action Project
LA CAUSA youth work on a yearly Community Action Project (CAP). The purpose of this project annual project is for our youth to identify a social justice issue within their communities and then organize and mobilize in order to contribute to the transformation of their communities.
Last year’s project (2018), titled “Uprising Outcasts,” was a collaboration with LACMA. Through the teachings of photographer Rafael Cardenas, our youth learned the fundamentals of the art of photography. Students then received the opportunity to have both their photography and poetry exhibited at the Vincent Price Museum, bringing light to their experiences and the forgotten narratives of their community.
Community Service
LA CAUSA youth are required to complete a total of 45 community service hours per academic year, or 15 per trimester. The purpose is to encourage our youth to actively engage in their communities in order to create change. This also ensures that the skills our students learned during Mental Toughness Week, are implemented and practiced throughout the year.
