Sharefest 2019-2020 Impact Report

SHAREFEST 2019-2020
IMPACT REPORT

EMPOWER UNDER-SERVED YOUTH TO
TRANSFORM THEIR FUTURE AND
BECOME LEADERS OF COLLABORATIVE
COMMUNITY CHANGE.

2019-2020 SCHOOL YEAR
107
MIDDLE SCHOOL
STUDENTS
359
+ +
HIGH SCHOOL
STUDENTS
480
= TOTAL YOUTH SERVED
14
COLLEGE
STUDENTS
88%
QUALIFY FOR FREE LUNCH
80% OF OUR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS STARTED
THE SCHOOL YEAR AT LEAST 5 CLASSES BEHIND
PROGRAM LOCATIONS
CONTINUATION HIGH SCHOOLS
AVALON • Wilmington
PATTON • Harbor City
ANGEL'S GATE • San Pedro
SIMON RODIA • South Gate
MIDDLE SCHOOLS
HARRY BRIDGES • Wilmington
DODSON • Rancho Palos Verdes
WILMINGTON • Wilmington
DANA • San Pedro

OUR WHY
SHAREFEST STUDENTS ARE BRIGHT, CREATIVE,
INSPIRATIONAL, STRONG, AND BRAVE. Yet they
face tremendous barriers to success simply
because of their circumstances.
BARRIERS INCLUDE BEING...
• ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED
• AFFECTED BY GANG VIOLENCE
• IMPACTED BY THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
• OVER-AGE/UNDER-CREDIT
• UNDOCUMENTED OR FIRST GENERATION US CITIZEN
These barriers were only exacerbated as COVID-19 forced
students into a distance learning environment to end the
19-20 school year. While the barriers are tremendous, they
are not insurmountable.
Sharefest programming helps keep students enrolled in
school through graduation, achieve increases in their GPA
and develop social skills that help them reach college or
career goals. Our ongoing work with these students is
essential to their success and well-being.
THIS CRISIS [COVID-19] HAS LAID BARE WHAT
WE ALWAYS KNEW — HOW EQUITABLE
OPPORTUNITIES ARE SO DEPENDENT ON
PARENTAL BACKGROUND AND WEALTH AND
ACCESS TO RESOURCES.
- Janelle Scott, UC Berkeley Education &
African American studies professor

REDUCE COLLEGE/CAREER
BARRIERS
Youth will be able to increase their
educational attainment and articulate
their college and career pathways
through college preparation courses,
workshops, college field trips, mentoring,
and career exposure.
OUR GOALS
INCREASE POWER AND
AUTONOMY
Youth will be able to influence people in
and their environment, and will gain a
sense of control over their decisions
and community.
INCREASE SOCIAL
CONNECTEDNESS
Youth will develop a sense of belonging
and increase their social capital.
Eventually, they will build a web of
networks and relationships that will lead
to economic benefit.

COLLEGE / CAREER BARRIERS
\ ˈkä-lij \ \ kə-ˈrir \ \ ˈber-ē-ərs \
College/career barriers include the lack of opportunities, connections, finances and support
that prevent youth from pursuing higher education or a career pathway.
WE BELIEVE youth shouldn’t have limited access to higher education or career opportunities
simply because of where they are from or challenges they have faced. Our programs help youth
increase their educational attainment and articulate their college and career pathways through
college preparation courses, workshops, college field trips, mentoring, and career exposure.
248 STUDENTS
EARNED CREDIT
TOWARD GRADUATION
2,125 CREDITS
EARNED BY
SHAREFEST STUDENTS
28%
INCREASE
IN AVERAGE GPA
85
CONTINUATION
HIGH SCHOOL
GRADUATES
MENTORED 14
FORMER CONTINUATION
STUDENTS NOW IN
COMMUNITY COLLEGE

MEET LUIS GUERRERO
SHAREFEST INSTRUCTOR
Luis grew up where our students live. He attended the same schools
and knows what it is like to walk in their shoes. Now Luis is an
Instructor and Mentor at the continuation high schools like the one
he attended. He is passionate about helping students recognize
their full potential. Luis holds a Bachelor's of Arts Degree
in Chicano/Latino Studies and History and just completed his
Master’s in Social and Cultural Analysis of Education from Cal State
Long Beach!

POWER and AUTONOMY
\ ˈpau(-ə)r \ \ o-ˈtä-nə-mē \
Power is a person’s ability to influence their environment, other people, and their own
outcomes, and autonomy is a person’s ability to act according to their own decisions, rather
than according to other’s decisions.
Measuring Mobility from Poverty by Gregory Acs, Amrita Maitreyi, Alana L. Conner, Hazel Rose Markus, Nisha G. Patel, Sarah
Lyons-Padilla, and Jennifer L. Eberhardt
WE BELIEVE every youth should know their life has meaning and have access to the tools they need
to achieve their goals. Our programs keep students off the streets and engaged in creative, physical,
and intellectual pursuits designed to help them graduate and pursue purposeful futures.
SHAREFEST GAVE ME THE MOTIVATION TO DO
MY WORK AND DISTRACT ME FROM STRESS.
MORE THAN 50%
OF STUDENTS FELT AN
INCREASE IN THEIR
POWER & AUTONOMY
STUDENTS FELT
AN INCREASE
IN THEIR LEADERSHIP
ASPIRATIONS

MEET SARAH RODRIGUEZ
FORMER SHAREFEST STUDENT AND 2020 SUMMER INTERN
I’ve been with Sharefest as a student since 2014 as a seventh-grader.
I am now at Bucknell University. I spent every summer at Sharefest’s
summer YLA because it was a safe and fun place. Sharefest has been
a tremendous part of my life. I have seen first hand the positive
effects the program and mentors have on students like myself. I’ve
learned to mediate, learned how to swim, received help with my
personal statements for college, took SAT prep classes, and learned
how to speak with confidence in public.

SOCIAL CONNECTEDNESS
\ ˈsō-shəl \ \ kə-ˈnek-tədˈnes \
Social connectedness is a person’s relationships with other people and groups.
Measuring Mobility from Poverty by Gregory Acs, Amrita Maitreyi, Alana L. Conner, Hazel Rose Markus, Nisha G. Patel, Sarah
Lyons-Padilla, and Jennifer L. Eberhardt
WE BELIEVE youth should have a place where they can develop a sense of belonging and
increase their social capital. Eventually this web of relationships will lead to economic benefit.
Our programs introduce students to positive role models, community leaders and new
opportunities to enable them to build a network that will help them achieve their goals.
MILAD CAME UP TO ME WANTING TO TALK ABOUT
HOW "STRESSED" AND "OVERWHELMED" HE FELT
WITH A PARTICULAR SCHOOL PROJECT. HIS
RESPONSES IN THE PAST HAVE BEEN "GOOD" OR
"OK" AND THAT'S ABOUT IT. I KNOW FOR A FACT THIS
HAS A LOT TO DO WITH HIS PARTICIPATION IN
SHAREFEST AND THE CONVERSATIONS THAT TAKE
PLACE ON THE ROUND TABLE BY STAFF/MENTORS. I
SINCERELY THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR PROGRAM
HAS TO OFFER.
ALMOST 50%
OF STUDENTS
INCREASED
THEIR SOCIAL
CONNECTEDNESS
- Francis E., Sharefest Mom

MEET KEONI
SHAREFEST STUDENT AND 2020 HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE
Sharefest student, Keoni D. from Angel’s Gate Continuation High
School comes from a tough background. When she started
Angel's Gate in Fall 2018, it was a slow start. Keoni’s behavior
was good, but she wasn’t motivated. The office manager asked
us to enroll her in the mentorship program for additional
support. Keoni instantly clicked with our instructor Kendra. On
the last day of our online class in 2020, she wrote to Kendra in
the group chat, "The biggest thing I'll remember about you Ms.
Kendra is that you really give your all, right along with being the
person I needed in that moment and that really helped with a lot
of uncertainty. You really helped with teamwork, helped me
learned how do it." Keoni celebrated her graduation via Zoom in
June 2020. She is considering community college and remains
connected with Kendra.

2019 FINANCIALS
GRANTS
$283,253
FUNDRAISING
EVENTS
$265,160
18%
6%
INDIVIDUAL
DONORS
$99,002
COVID-19 IMPACT
17%
GOVERNMENT GRANTS
$38,400
2%
TOTAL REVENUE
$1,586,715
18%
CORPORATE
SPONSORSHIPS
$281,805
39%
IN-KIND
DONATIONS
$619,095
EXPENSE
BREAKDOWN
80% PROGRAMS
8% ADMINISTRATION
12% FUNDRAISING
When schools and government buildings closed, we lost access to our program
sites including our Youth Leadership Center. Our instructors used every means of
communication to stay in touch with students. They provided meal delivery,
helped get internet to homes and delivered encouragement and motivation.
Our annual Community Workday typically engages 2,500+ volunteers in service
projects across the Harbor area and generates revenue to fund youth
programming. COVID-19 forced us to cancel. In lieu of Workday, we selected three
nonprofits on the frontlines of the crisis and launched Workday from Afar to
encourage our volunteers to find another way to impact our community.
As a result of these developments and funding impacts, we were forced to reduce
our staff expenses by 50%. We know our students need Sharefest now more than
ever and we remain committed to doing everything we can to support them.

MEET MELANIE & RICHARD LUNDQUIST
PHILANTHROPISTS & SHAREFEST SUPPORTERS
Melanie and Richard Lundquist have always been
passionate about stepping in to help to, “do the things no
one else does.” After learning about Sharefest, Melanie and
Richard decided to commit $1,000,000 over 5 years to
Sharefest and establish The Lundquist Youth Leadership
Center. Our model of partnership with local LAUSD
Continuation Schools fits well with their vision for
addressing the most vulnerable in society. Melanie and
Richard are more than supporters. In November 2019
Melanie met with a former Sharefest student, Jairo. After
getting to know him and hearing his struggles with paying
for college she offered to cover 2 years of his tuition on the
spot. When talking about youth like Jairo, Melanie says,
“They have resilience second to none, they have insight
second to none. They are amazing young people.”

OUR FUTURE IS STILL BRIGHT. 2020 has thrown the world for a loop,
but it has also allowed us to pause and focus on some initiatives we
have been wanting to pursue for years.
TRADES PROGRAM
About 60% of our students are interested in going into a trade. We are sitting on the
front end of a trade resurgence in the US and we want provide a pathway to a better life
for our students. We are well connected to local trades and have begun pursuing
partnerships to turn the Trades Program from idea to reality.
YOUTH REINVESTMENT GRANT (YRG)
We are 1 of only 7 organizations who were selected from 29 proposals to receive this
exclusive grant. YRG is a state funded grant that focuses on diversion. Their goal is to
keep students out of the criminal justice system. We received $600,000 over 3 years to
support mental health services, mentoring and case management in our existing
programming.
OUR FUTURE
SHAREFEST ALUMNI PROGRAM
Even with the accomplishment of graduating high school, many of our students don’t
pursue post-secondary education or they drop out. Loren Sweet approached us about
funding a Sharefest Alumni Program to provide ongoing mentorship for students who
choose community college. A recent study done by Drexel University found that low SES
student mentees in their mentoring program had a 90% retention rate! Our pilot
program launches in Fall 2020.
READY 2 RISE GRANT
In January 2020, we were awarded $203,000 from the California Community
Foundation's Ready 2 Rise initiative, an unprecedented public-private partnership with
the Los Angeles County Department of Probation designed to keep youth out of the
criminal justice system. These funds are enabling us to expand the Youth Leadership
Academy, bolster our staff outreach to community organizations and implement a new
student tracking database.

THANK YOU
NONE OF THE IMPACT MADE WOULD BE POSSIBLE
WITHOUT THE GENEROUS SUPPORT OF INDIVIDUALS,
ORGANIZATIONS AND CORPORATIONS WHO
BELIEVE IN OUR YOUTH.

SHAREFESTINC.ORG