With the support of a $1.125M grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc., North Park’s Center for Civic Engagement (CCE) this fall will partner with the Firehouse Community Arts Center of 芝加哥, 由牧师带领. Phil Jackson, to empower youth and young adults in 芝加哥’s Black churches.
五年计划, Elevating Church Outreach (ECHO) for the 下一个 Generation Black Church, aims to harness the creative energy of youth and young adults to create 项目 that encourage churches to be more involved in their communities.
North Park’s CCE will use the funds, 在某种程度上, to offer mini-grants that support 20 youth-led, church-based social impact projects addressing anything from food insecurity to gang violence to youth homelessness, 据Rich kong说, assistant vice president for civic engagement.
“In concert with our partners, our goal is to elevate youth voices within the church context,孔令辉说. “With the Firehouse as local convener and model, we hope the project will offer more avenues and resources so the local youth can dream of ways their churches can further impact their communities. This grant allows them to envision how they can do that.”
North Park University faculty and staff involved in the project include project evaluator Dr. Amy Governale, co-evaluator Dr. Michelle Dodson, and faculty advisor Dr. 丹White-Hodge.
A group of local pastors and faith leaders who have built and sustained social impact 项目 across the city will serve as coaches for the youth and young adult teams.
“They’ll be there to help the groups talk about messaging, 如何分配资金, 做预算, 组织志愿者,孔令辉说.
The main goal of the ECHO initiative is to see youth and young adults thrive as leaders in the church, which in turn can stimulate new energy in local congregations while leading to increased community appreciation of their importance and relevance.
Kohng说, “It’s about building on the legacy of local congregations as significant agents of change and transformation in their communities.”