Mentorship Programs in Oakland

As an Oakland native, Councilmember Loren Taylor is the product of several local mentorship programs, which he credits to providing him the life skills, knowledge, and self-confidence to become a leader in his civic, professional, and family life. Understanding the power these programs have to change the lives of Oakland youth, he is honored to bring forth the National Mentorship Month resolution for the Oakland City Council to adopt. Below is a list of mentorship programs that are positively impacting the life outcomes of Oakland youth. If you are aware of others who are not on this list, please email Councilmember Taylor’s Office at district6@oaklandca.gov and we will add them. Please also share this website with others, who may be interested in learning more about how they can participate in one of these incredible programs as either a mentor or a mentee.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bay Area

The mission of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bay Area create and support one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite power and promise of youth.

Boys and Girls Club of Oakland

To accomplish its purpose, Boys & Girls Clubs of Oakland (BGCO) provides programs and services tailored to the special needs of today’s youth and supplementary to the endeavors of families, our schools, and other community-based organizations.

East Oakland Youth Development Center

EOYDC develops the social and leadership capacities of youth and young adults (ages 6 – 24) so that they are prepared for employment, higher education, and leadership opportunities.

Girls Inc. of Alameda County

The vision is for Girls Inc. is for all girls growing up in Alameda County to feel valued, safe, and prepared to achieve their dreams of college, career, and leadership. To that end, we connect girls from underserved neighborhoods with access to the resources and opportunities they need to navigate gender, economic, and racial barriers, and realize their potential.

Hidden Genius Project

The Hidden Genius Project trains and mentors Black male youth in technology creation, entrepreneurship, and leadership skills to transform their lives and communities.

Homies Empowerment

Homies Empowerment is an independent, grassroots community-based organization out of East Oakland. They started as a volunteer-run, Jefferson Award winning, after-school program taking on an approach and a way of seeing gang-impacted youth through an asset-based lens. To provide spaces where youth can heal, thrive and self-actualize, they mirror the positive assets that attract young people to gangs: a sense of belonging, protection, rites of passage, and meeting basic needs. Their after-school program evolved to full-fledged Ethnic Studies and Leadership courses offered throughout Oakland schools.

Oakland Promise – College Completion Program

Striving to create equity, Oakland Promise (OP) empowers Oakland’s young people with opportunities to make a difference in their lives and in our world. Oakland Promise’s College Completion Program equips students with social and emotional support through mentoring, peer advising, counseling, and retreats. Oakland Promise's holistic programming is designed to create a culture of career and college preparedness in students, families, and educators.

OK Program / 100 Black Men of the Bay Area

The OK Program is a mentoring and leadership development model that focuses on African-American males 12 to 18 years old. The Program’s primary goals are to help young men develop leadership and critical thinking skills, promote academic excellence, and reduce the high rates of incarceration and homicide.

Positive Steps

The National Coalition of 100 Black Women’s Oakland Bay Area Chapter’s “Positive Steps” is a mentoring program developed to support and nurture leadership in young girls, ages 12 to 17. Our members are committed to investing in the education of future leaders and providing young women with the opportunity to recognize their full potential through the introduction of educational, developmental, and cultural programs. We host monthly sessions during the school year that include topics like financial literacy, STEAM, etiquette, healthy living, leadership development, public speaking, and cultural awareness.

The Mentoring Center

The Mentoring Center exists to move all youth, whatever challenges they are facing, toward healthy, successful lives, by providing support, love, and opportunities for self-mastery.

Youth UpRising (YU)

YU’s mission is to transform East Oakland into a healthy and economically robust community by developing the leadership of youth and young adults and improving the systems that impact them.

We Lead Ours

We Lead Ours provides children with enrichment programs that use hands-on learning experiences to nurture life skills that focus on career exploration, civic leadership, college preparation, and health and wellness.

Posted: February 1st, 2022 9:05 AM

Last Updated: February 1st, 2022 9:16 AM

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