13 local teens just granted $45K to 5 area nonprofits through the Philadelphia Foundation

What social issues are Philadelphia teens most concerned about? According to 13 public and private school students, social justice, mental health, college and career guidance and women’s empowerment top the list.

So, those 13 students gave five local nonprofits that address those issues a total of $45,000.

The students make up YOUTHadelphia, a committee within the Philadelphia Foundation‘s Fund for Children. The team was tasked with handpicking five nonprofits out of 28 applicants. They’ve been meeting since September to make their selections, conducting 10 site visits for analysis, participating in service projects for perspective and developing an application process for prospective grantees.

After assessing the finalists, the students decided on these five nonprofit programs:

• Asian Americans United‘s Chinese Youth Organizing Project, a program committed to creating a safe community for Chinese immigrant students in Philadelphia ($5,000)
• Philadelphia Physicians for Social Responsibility‘s Youth Courts, a program that serves as an alternative to youth suspension ($10,000)
• Attic Youth Center‘s Bryson Institute, a program that educates and trains other organizations on how to create a positive environment for LGBTQ youth ($10,000)
• Juntos‘ Fuerza, a youth-led program that organizes documented and undocumented Latino youth and provides mentorship to organizers of social justice campaigns ($10,000)
• MusiCorp‘s Rock to the Future, a program that offers music lessons to Philadelphia students and preparation for standardized tests ($10,000)

“[The students] exhibit great diligence and judgment,” said Philadelphia Foundation president and CEO Pedro Ramos. “Hopefully, they and all of us on staff also learn a few things along the way about our community and the opportunities we all have every day to make a difference.”