UPTown Youth Collective

Uptown Youth Collective is led by Viva Uptown’s Community Coordinator, with 19 schools, organizations, churches, Police Precincts 34 and 33, and businesses. The Youth Collective provides a community-based safety net of care, resources, and ongoing support for the youth and their families facing difficult challenges. The Youth Collective has three components:

  • The Credible Messenger Mentoring Program, working with individuals and groups of young people that are at-risk or have been through the criminal justice system, the first Latinx based Gun & Gang Violence Prevention Intervention initiative in Northern Manhattan

  • The Uptown Youth Council, a group of student leaders working with community leaders, learning how to become members of the Collective and community advocates. Three older mentees are on this Council.

  • The Rapid Referral System, a way to connect youth and young adults in immediate need with a "warm" handoff to faithful organizations in the partnership.