ULead
Leadership Council Program for High School Students
2015 Issue = Homelessness
2015 Partner = Upward Bound House


Syllabus for 2015-2016
Each session of ULead will begin with socializing and a light dinner (provided by KidUnity) starting at 6:00pm. The program will start at 6:30pm and conclude by 8pm. If possible, and as appropriate, we hope to invite guest speaker, clients and/or agency staff to join light dinner.
Meetings will begin with a 5-10 minute presentation by an Upward Bound House (UBH) staff member about what’s happening at UBH - something that shows the day-to-day issues, challenges and successes, as well as interesting anecdotes.
Meetings will generally touch on the following four areas:
A. Learning about Board Management - The group will spend time team building, establishing rules/norms for how the group will function and developing a deeper understanding of how a board of directors functions (roles on the board, committees, decision making processes, etc).
B. Learning about the Organization & the Broader Social Service Sector - The ULead board will hear from UBH staff or homeless experts about specific issues impacting the organization or general challenges affecting family homelessness.
C. Student-Driven Project - Over the course of the program, students will work in small groups on self-directed projects to help the organization or address the broader issue of . Each meeting will have time for the groups to discuss their projects.
D. Reflection - Meetings will wrap-up with engaging activities for the group and individuals to review, process and reflect on the session in fun ways.
Session 1: Meeting at Upward Bound House (UBH)
Introductions, orientation & overview of homelessness in Los Angeles and UBH
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Meeting with the Executive Director of UBH & UBH Clients
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History of UBH, sharing of mission statement, etc
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Tour & on-site project to learn about day-to-day operation of UBH
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Food Pantry and Kids Night
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Explanation of UBH in-take process and role playing exercise to help students empathize with homeless.
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Introduction of student directed project #1 - Home Run For Kids 5k/10k fundraiser
Session 2: Meeting at UBH
Building a leadership team - board governance
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Board roles & responsibilities, assigning roles to the group
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Meeting with a member of the UBH Board of Directors
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Running an effective board meeting (agendas / committees / subcommittees,).
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Introduction of student directed project #2 - Kids Night
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Develop student directed project #1 (Home Run for Kids)
Session 3: Offsite Meeting at a Corporation / Foundation
Understanding fundraising and philanthropy
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Meeting with a philanthropist to better understand why / how they give
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Meeting with UBH Director of Development to discuss funding sources & challenges
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Overview of philanthropic climate/landscape (national, state, local)
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Fund raising 101: How to approach a funder, use of social media in fund raising, fund raising trends, sources of funding (private, foundation, corporate, government)
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Mock fundraising pitches/interviews
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Further develop student directed project #1
Session 4: Meeting at UBH
Non-profit finances 101
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Learning to read financial statements
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Discussion and debate of case studies in non-profit corporate finance
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Discussion, debate, and student presentations about how to resolve challenging funding decisions
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Students will form teams and design and implement a self directed project that will benefit UBH.
Session 5: Meeting with local media partner
Public relations, advocacy, and civic awareness
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Meet with local journalists / editor / reporters to discuss media coverage of homelessness
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Develop public relations strategies to advocate for social change and promote the mission of UBH
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Social media project - case studies of use of social media for social change - ie “Invisible People” (http://invisiblepeople.tv/blog/)
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Student directed project using social media for social change
Session 6: Meeting at City Hall.
The role of government in addressing the homeless problem
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Meet with elected officials to discuss current and future programs
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Role of government in addressing community challenge (sate vs local vs national)
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What is effective advocacy? What is the role of lobbyists in shaping policy and political agendas?
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Student led policy/lobbying project
Session 7: Meeting at partner agency
Solving homelessness through partnerships
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Meet directors of other service agencies that address homelessness.
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Students discuss how UBH fits into the larger eco-system of social service agencies.
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Discussion and debate of executive director case studies and challenges that agencies face.
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Continue work on student led projects - Home Run For Kids, policy/lobbying, fundraising
Session 8: Meeting at Upward Bound House
Group projects.
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Student presentations to Executive Director
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Reflections and discussion of what’s next