Chapter 8: Profiles, Key Moments, and a Continuum of Youth-Led Participation: An Inclusive Model of Youth Development Work

Youth in Action (YIA) is housed in an old New England four-story home on the Southside of Providence. The building has no shortage of narrow hallways, each of which opens to a large, cozy room, painted in warm colors and filled with couches. The hallways are lined with photos from two decades of programming, creating the feel of a memory portal; it is always a conversation starter when guests visit. There are very few doors at YIA, and fittingly, the ones that do exist are either made of glass or don’t fully close. What this lends itself to for all 75 youth, 3 full-time staff, and 2–3 interns is a shared experience. We playfully tease one another about things being a “we problem”—that one person’s actions are all of ours. If you make a scene, I’mma make a scene. While there are no secrets at YIA, there are private moments—times when folks grapple with religion, sexuality, death, and challenging family dynamics. Those moments are sacred, even when the doors don’t close fully; they are respected and protected by the YIA family.