Celebrating MNN's 2018 Summer Youth Program Graduates!

School’s out and for most students that means a much needed break from a rigorous academic year or a chance to pick up a part-time job. For the students in MNN’s Summer Youth Program, it’s a chance to continue their education.

For the past five weeks, 32 ambitious students (ages 14-23) from across Manhattan and the Bronx have been attending classes at MNN’s El Barrio Firehouse Community Media Center as part of the city’s paid Summer Youth Employment Program.

From technical training in studio and field production to workshops on social justice topics, students will leave the program with the skills they need to create high-quality media with a purpose. As part of the program, the young people also had the opportunity to attend field trips to cultural institutions like the the Abrazo Interno Gallery at The Clemente and hear guest speakers such as Democracy Now!'s Juan Gonzalez, Forefront Team Builder Yulkendy Valdez, The Young Lords' Minerva Solla and more.

To celebrate their achievements and the culmination of the program, MNN is hosting a graduation ceremony on Thursday, August 16th at 5pm at the El Barrio Firehouse. The students will screen their final video projects for staff, parents and community members and will officially become certified community producers. This means they’ll have free access to MNN’s state-of-the-art equipment and studios to continue creating media.

We hope you’ll join us in congratulating this talented group of young people next week and stay tuned to see their work posted on the Youth Channel YouTube page in the weeks to come!

For a behind the scenes look at the Youth Media Center’s programs, check out the Youth Channel Instagram page.