What is Ready to Rise?
Ready to Rise is currently a $38+ million public-private partnership between the California Community Foundation, Liberty Hill Foundation and the Los Angeles County Probation Department designed to expand opportunities and resources for programs that provide youth development and enrichment services focused on diversion and prevention versus ineffective punitive measures. Our goal is to build a system that replaces the traditional structures of punishment and incarceration with emerging best practices centered on healing, learning, and opportunity.
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How Does Ready to Rise Work?
49 Nonprofits were awarded grants ranging from $50,000 to $150,000.
These grants are designed to accelerate impact in targeted communities with the goal of transforming the educational, personal and professional outcomes of young people, as well as vastly decreasing youth interactions with the justice system.
Ready to Rise funding helps grantees provide a variety of programs focused on educational attainment, leadership, workforce development, mentorship, arts, wellness, youth organizing and other areas. All grantees share a focus on multiple aspects of youth development and a commitment to improving outcomes for Black and Brown youth.
Why Does L.A. County Need Ready to Rise?
L.A. County currently incarcerates more Black and Brown youth than anywhere else in the nation.
Research has shown that punitive methods of arrest, incarceration and probation are ineffective and do not acknowledge the high needs of many youth. A community-based model of intervention focused on prevention and treatment decreases the number of youths incarcerated and improves overall outcomes, including the likelihood that youth will go on to college, become gainfully employed and avoid the justice system as adults.
“Young people need a system that focuses on their unmet needs and develop them through a positive, whole child framework.”
A Community Approach In Light Of COVID-19
Ready to Rise grantees are currently receiving customized peer-learning, training and coaching to adapt their programs and stabilize their organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sessions are being held on everything from emotional wellness and stress management for staff, to resources for online facilitation, and organizational financial planning to address the immediate impact of the pandemic on budgets and finances.