TEEN START PROGRAM

Teen Start was launched in 1996 to provide services to young women in Cleveland, OH, and became a 501(c)3 in 1998. The overall goal of the program was to provide individual instruction to young girls on the soft skills needed to stay in school, secure and retain a job, and cope with life’s daily challenges. Addressing other relevant issues, such as abuse and neglect of inner-city teenagers, provides tools to assist teenagers with coping skills and personal growth.

Determining a need for younger girls, in 1999 services were extended to a Pre-Teen Start program. Identifying a gap in the male population in 2002, Boys Becoming Men, was created to respond to the need for mentoring services to young boys in the at-risk community.

Since its inception, more than 11,500 youth and families have participated in prevention programming through life skills training, educational support, and mentoring during out-of-school hours in Northeast and Central Ohio.

Today, Teen Start is offering services in Cuyahoga, Delaware, and Franklin Counties in Ohio.