Juntos is committed to building the social and political consciousness of our youngest members and investing in developing the next generation of strong community leaders.
By investing in the leadership, well-being, and collective power of Latine immigrant youth and their families, we collectively dismantle racial inequality and oppression.
Our work supports young people in developing political consciousness, reclaiming cultural identity, building strong community ties, and organizing for systemic change.
We do this through regular programming spanning early childhood to early adulthood, our youth leadership development pipeline, and our Sanctuary Schools initiative - an intergenerational, youth-led campaign for education justice. At Juntos, young people’s voices not only matter but fundamentally lead our work.
Youth Programs
Fuerza
Fuerza is our teen program for young people ages 12 to 18, initially founded in 2011 by student leaders in South Philadelphia to address the high Latine drop-out rate and barriers to college access for undocumented youth. Since then, it has grown into a trusted and transformative space for youth-led organizing, political education, and collective healing. Through Fuerza, youth learn about movements for justice from around the world and throughout history, engage in arts & cultural exploration, and build powerful relationships with peers and mentors. Fuerza is also one of Juntos’ five leadership committees that make up our membership base, in which youth members discuss and vote on our overall work and strategy.
Poderosos
Poderosos serves youth ages 5-11, created in 2021 at the direct request of parents to have a space for their younger children. The program creates a healing-centered, culturally affirming space where youth can explore their identities, learn about their heritages, and begin developing a sense of early political awareness and community responsibility through creativity and play. These sessions blend art, cultural exploration, wellness practices, and group discussions to engage students in exploring intersecting forms of justice. This serves as a natural foundation for youth to continue these investigations as part of Fuerza.
Juntos Podemos
Juntos Podemos is our civic engagement programming for youth ages 18+. This work fosters civic confidence and creates meaningful connections to democratic participation by engaging with initiatives around the city, from park cleanups to the fight against a stadium in Chinatown. During election seasons, Juntos Podemos engages in non-partisan voter registration, education, and GOTV initiatives and accompanies first-time voters to the polls. This work seeks to provide an outlet for Latine youth to use their voices to shape the future in their image.
Youth Leadership Ladder
We have created an intentional youth development trajectory to support our young people in building skills to meet their goals, whether that lies in organizing their communities or other pursuits. By supporting young people in advancing through successive leadership roles with the organization, we view this ladder as a means of ensuring that Juntos and its work remain in the hands of our immediate community.
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Youth can participate in biweekly Poderosos sessions as they begin to build their understanding of and relationship with Juntos!
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Youth can participate in weekly Fuerza sessions, as well as Fuerza committee meetings to provide leadership to Juntos at large. Youth do not need to have participated in Poderosos to join Fuerza!
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Youth Ambassadors receive a 3-month stipend to develop organizing skills on diverse issues, such as cultural organizing and mutual aid. They each complete a capstone project on a topic of their choice to practice and demonstrate the skills they have learned. We work with 1 Ambassador per quarter or 4 per year.
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Junior Organizers are paid, year-long staff positions in which youth lead our Sanctuary Schools campaign, help facilitate programming for Poderosos students, and run recruitment for our youth work at large. We work with 2 Junior Organizers per school year.
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If we have open staff positions, youth who have completed the Leadership Ladder receive priority consideration. Our current Civic Engagement Youth Organizer began as a Fuerza participant and completed the ladder trajectory before ultimately joining the team as full-time staff.
Resources & Referrals
If you or your family are seeking support in accessing high school or college, please see our resources page below. This provides information on how to navigate application essays, scholarship & financial aid applications, and more. Feel free to reach out if you need additional support!
If you are a young person or are working with someone who would like to join our work, please get in touch!
Call our office at 215-218-9079 - either you or the young person can call to request more information.
Reach out to Guadalupe Mendez, our Director of Youth Organizing, at lupe@vamosjuntos.org.
