Mikey Likes It Academy

“Discovering the scoop on Life”

Within the first 12 months Young adults are paired up with a Personal Mentor, where a unique case management begins to mold short & long term goals they need to survive

They are enrolled into a 2 day Young Adult Peer Provider Program training program where they intern inside of Mikey Likes it stores working for 3 days as paid training, this training period is where they receive their working licensees & needed credentials for stable work within the food service industries. Within the second year they are enrolling into their choice of continued education programs where they work for 30 hours and paid for 15 hours a week the remainder is saved in a separate account to be paid to them during their first year in college. We find that our young people suffer while trying to improve their lives and conditions, this program was designed by past youth who experienced additional trauma during their first year on campus, & youth that linger after mandated short time programs.

What are Credible Messengers in NYC?

New York City is increasingly employing credible messengers to engage young adults involved in the Juvenile and criminal justice systems. These programs serve thousands of young people through youth justice, violence interruption, and after-school programs. For the programs to be impactful and norm-changing, they must provide alternatives and opportunities for both participants and credible messenger staff for lawful, gainful employment and support to build productive and healthy lives for themselves and their families.

Credible messengers are hired to stand in harm’s way in the streets and act as agents of change in young people’s lives. They also become staff at human services agencies and must adapt to an entirely different set of norms. The Institute was developed in partnership with social service employers and responds to the need for professional development and support for this vital workforce.

Credible Messengers help make communities safer and reduce incarceration. Mayor de Blasio has recognized their impact on reducing gun violence and a new evaluation from the Urban Institute and the Department of Probation shows a 57% decrease in convictions among young people working with credible messenger mentors. The Incarcerated Nation Credible Messenger Institute (INCMI) is dedicated to the positive development of Young Adult Credible Messengers who work as peer providers.

Academy Mission:

The Mission of Mikey likes it Academy is to provide professional development & personal mentorship to justice impacted youth. NYC has more justice impacted youth in the poorest districts than any other state in the Nation. A nation that spends over 8 Billion incarcerating KIDS.

Mikey Likes It Ice Academy(MLA) believes in the strength of Human Resilience & the power of community change through supporting those most marginalized. MLA focuses on 3 main components to impact the youth we serve & mentor. The program allows Justice Impacted Young Adults who are members within the Academy to work 3 days a week while attending classes & additional trainings for 2 days. This allows our Youth to earn funds while learning needed skills and trades. They choose their track of professional development and continued education while being supported by a personal mentor in collaboration with the department of probation and other city, private & community partners.

This 5 year internship supports the young adult members long term, after the initial phase youth can work in different programs that will follow them into their first year in college and beyond. Youth need more than just second chances, they deserve a first chance in life that lasts longer than their community supervision sentence. MLA has developed this program with city, state & CBO partners as well as the Incarcerated Nation Credible Messenger Institute (INCMI) to provide a two year trauma informed internship program tailored for Arches & Next steps graduates.

We imagine a world where a fleet of ice cream trucks bring treats as well as services & resources to young Adults. A positive engagement can lead to the opportunities young people need. As Young Adult Peer Providers Youth enrolled will provide other youth with employment, housing and community civil rights information, sign up for health care and other needed resources.

MLA is dedicated to providing positive resources for youth sentenced to community supervision with no other option then a few months of programing then nothing.

Seeing the problem MLA seeks to be that bridge of time that young adults need to access what will impact their adult lives. We will bring trauma informed service to the food industry with trained youth ready to work and support the communities they are employed in. MLA focuses on 3 main systems of development that include but are not limited to:

• Positive Youth Personal Development

• Professional Employment Development

• Public Health Business Development & Continued Education

POSITIVE YOUTH PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

MLA provides each youth enrolled with a tailored personal mentor who does personal 1 on 1 personal lifetime mentors who guide & support our youth with case management, this allows MLA to support Young Adults to establish short term & long term goals that improve their conditions of life.

Young Adults are faced with a whole array of challenges that impact their lives on a daily basis. Credible Messengers assist young people in their everyday challenges. MLA works to meet each young adult where they are, each member is assigned a mentor who will develop goals to be achieved during their Academy Internship time that will be both long term and short term goals to succeed in life & as a MLA Academy member. Some of the trainings and workshops are designed to increase the youths safety and access to needed personal development. This part includes

• Know Your Rights trainings ( Young Adults enrolled will be trained to facilitate Know Your Rights workshops in partnership with the Local Defender legal services, this is a needed component for youth to have wrap around legal services that will assist them in succeeding )

• Youth are assigned a personal social worker who takes care of their needed psycho social profile for their health care needs

• As a peer provider young adults are trained around providing health care options for community members in partnership with Health First & DOMH&H

We believe in second chances, because we know and understand that our youth were not given a first one. this belief in human resilience centers our trauma informed support program and guides our mission that #HealedPeople #HealPeople youth are often given long, inhumane sentences with impossible expectations to meet. we have designed our Academy to match the community supervision sentence: bringing a family, community structure of support to every young adult we serve.

Professional development is a every day process training young adult to be prepared for work in pressured environments, coping skills and team work is what builds a great employee. Often employers don’t have the investment capital to train and employ. INCMI mentors work with youth at the level their on to develop them into employable Young Adults.

PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT

Mikey Likes It Academy (MLA) Believes in the all youth deserve the opportunity to excel. Quite often their excellence depends on their aces to resources & support they lack living in marginalized communities. The majority of marginalized communities are directly impacted by mass incarceration, in 2013 the United nations accepted a Report from the sentencing project in DC reporting that
“One in every three black males born at that time can expect to go to prison at some point in their life, compared with one in every six Latino males, and one in every 17 white males, if current incarceration trends continue.”

And that trend has continued today, there are more kids under correctional control & community supervision there ever before in NYC according to a recent report from the Katal Center & Columbia University, #LessIsMoreNY campaign in New York City. The majority of youth serving alternative to incarceration sentences return home unable to work or support themselves disenfranchised from society and the resources to succeed .they are often required to attend Arches a program that pays them $15 or other programs that do not incentivize or lead to stability. Through mentorship, love and positive reinforcement we individually support the goals of the youth enrolled.

INCMI Trauma informed trainings happen 2-3 days a week while young adults are interning 3 days and hold events on the weekend. This 2-3 year commitment is meant to fill the gap of resources for young people who are often homeless between 18 years old and 22 when they can legally receive public assistance. MLA serves young adults ages18-25, generally. our youth sit on focus groups, meet with legislators & District Attorneys advocating on their behalf & their peers.

Public Health Business Development & Continued Education

In this phase Young Adults have progressed past the Personal Development stage. When youth excel we support their growth and development. Each Young Adult Peer Provider Is given professional business development training through our partnership with the SBA (Small Business Association) that empowers our Youth members with the knowledge of how a business runs, operates and is formed. This is not taught in public schools but is a needed set of knowledge in order to excel as a professional in today’s world. Most youth do not know their civic duty as citizens this often leads to a lack of confidence and identity as an American citizen.
We at MLA believe that where public school curriculum fails community must pick up in this phase young adults are given :

• Experience to work in the Mikey Likes it Stores building their skills in the food service industry, customer service & public health.

• Learn from the A 2 trainings with the SBA about how a business is formed and its positions

• In partnership with US senator Sandra Day O'Connor we utilize her I Civics program to teach our young Adults their role within their communities and their duties as American citizens. youth are offered extended policy tracks of education and workshops.

• Voter registration and workshops on why this is vital in the post incarcerated community, jury duty, due process workshops & KYR1a course

Incarcerated Nation Credible Messenger Institute(INCMI) Training for Young Adult Peer Providers

Training Sessions are conducted on non-work days for our Young Adult Peer Providers , this 16 week training is conducted with our community University & CUNY partners. The class schedule follows the college calendar and provides 25-30 hours of class time each week where youth learn about trauma informed care facilitated by Credible Messengers & licensed health care providers. These trainings and in store work trainings last the entire two years of the internship membership. Far too often short internships damage Young Adults who need long term support.
Young Adults must complete the Institute for Transformative Mentoring 8 week course at the New School with a A or higher to qualify for College scholarship placement.

During initial year Youth are given a per class stipend as well as a work stipend as the learn by working alongside peer mentor coordinators who all are trained through ITM at the New School. young Adults who excel are offered additional professional development such as :

• scholarship to attend Columbia University center for justice, justice in education program

• Harlem Clemente scholarship through MLA’s partnership with INC

• CUNY graduate center Credible Messenger Justice Center classes

• BPI application and support for all who apply to the CUNY system of continued education

• NYC Department of Education

• NYC Department of continued Adult Education