Program areas at USES
Uses's youth programming provides a "whole child" continuum of programming from birth to age 17 that serves over 300 children and teens per year. We offer full-day early childhood education as well as after school and full-day summertime programming that focuses on academic achievement, emotional development, and arts enrichment. Uses's boston-based youth programs employ a steam-based curriculum that promotes social-emotional development while imparting critical skills that allow students to thrive in and out of school. Camp hale is a sleepaway summer camp designed to create opportunities for outdoor enrichment and leadership development for youth that typically don't have access to such spaces. By ensuring the financial accessibility of these programs, uses helps to prevent learning loss among historically underserved populations, closing racial and socioeconomic achievement gaps.
Coaching helps participants set their own goals, identify concrete steps toward meeting those goals, and provides check-ins at regular intervals to provide accountability. 50+ participants focus on building success in five areas: career, finances, family, education/training, and community connections. In fy23, the family mobility team worked to enhance their partnerships and expand the array of 2-gen offerings available to participants such as power of parenting classes and a strengthened collaboration with boston community pediatrics.in fy22, uses launched a pilot guaranteed income program, called striving toward economic prosperity (step). This pilot cohort included 16 families receiving $800 monthly payments for a period of 18 months. This program provides financial stability and security, and allows families to make their own decisions regarding their finances. At the conclusion of this first cohort, data illustrates notable increases in financial health for enrolled families. Median savings increased from $200 to $1,000, and the percentage of families making regular savings deposits rose from 12% to 73%. Median credit scores increased by 62 points and median credit card debt decreased from $3,000 to $1,000. At the start of the step program, 25% of families had challenges meeting basic utility expenses; by the End, this number dropped to just 7%.