Every dream begins with one idea, one person, or one opportunity to try something new. That’s at the core of what we do at Britebound™: giving young people opportunities to figure out who they are, what they want to pursue, and where they want to go in life. Britebound is committed to helping young people discover their paths and take control of their futures. Through our grantees, we hope to empower innovative programs and individuals to create change within their community. In this article, we will highlight three of our grantees whose work is shaping the future of career and education pathways for youth around the country.
The first grantee we’re spotlighting is the Island Institute’s Lift All Boats Program, an initiative in Maine that’s working to connect students in island and coastal communities with hands-on career experiences in the lobster industry. Through Britebound’s support, Lift All Boats will be able to expand its work-based learning programs — giving students the ability to explore real-world opportunities without having to leave their community.
“Britebound’s support has been crucial to the expansion and evolution of Lift All Boats, allowing us to provide career-connected learning to more young people in Maine, and to do so more effectively. Britebound support allowed us to hire a full-time program manager who has experience in our industry and superior organizational skills. That has helped us train 30 students to lobster this year (up from four students in 2022) and to provide better wraparound education from guest speakers on topics ranging from personal financial management to the impacts of climate change on fisheries. This means that as our students enter a field in which they previously had no pathway, they are doing so with not only the skills of a lobsterman but the deeper knowledge to manage their businesses successfully.” — Ben Conniff, Founder and Director of Lift All Boats
Our next grantee, The Center for Teen Empowerment, is a non-profit organization with several locations in Massachusetts and New York. Their mission? To employ, train, and empower youth with the help of adults to create peace, equity, and justice. The Center for Teen Empowerment (TE) will use their grant to launch career-connected learning initiatives focused on nonprofit, social services, public health, public service and art sectors.
Serving youth in Massachusetts, The Center for Teen Empowerment helps approximately 150 young people annually, many of whom are involved in the justice system or have experiences with incarceration and racial injustice. The grant from Britebound will support TE’s mission to empower the youth as leaders and changemakers.
“Young people are the greatest resource for contending with pressing social issues; issues that impact them directly. At Teen Empowerment, we give our youth the space to become leaders in confronting daily social and racial justice challenges, where they work together to develop strategies, and recommend solutions to address issues impacting their own lives and their communities.” — Abrigal Forrester, Chief Executive Officer, The Center for Teen Empowerment
Lastly, our grantee, SparkNC, is a non-profit providing learner-centered, industry-relevant and competency-based experiences that enhance awareness of careers in tech. Students enjoy the freedom to choose their learning paths, decide the topics they’re interested in and learn at their own pace. SparkNC will use their grant from Britebound to work with District C to expand Spark Teamship into 20 new districts across North Carolina over the next two years. Teamship is a team-based internship where students solve real business problems for real companies. Through partnership with local schools, SparkNC empowers students to discover who they are while developing career readiness by building knowledge, professional networks and the durable skills employers are seeking.
“SparkNC ignites futures in technology by helping young people develop not only high-tech skills but also success skills like collaboration, communication, and adaptability,” — Dr. Lynn Moody, President of SparkNC
“Britebound’s generous support is supercharging SparkNC’s partnership with District C to provide Spark Teamship opportunities for learners across North Carolina where they solve real business problems for real companies. Meaningful internship opportunities are too often limited to a subset of students with social capital and family connections. We are thrilled to have the support of Britebound as we work with our partners at SparkNC to scale innovative, accessible internship opportunities to more students in North Carolina through our Spark Teamship program,” — Dan Gonzalez, Co-Founder and CEO, District C
Together, these three grantees — The Island Institute, The Center for Teen Empowerment, and SparkNC — are redefining what career exploration and readiness can look like for young people across the country. From career-connected learning, youth-led community impact, and tech-driven learning models, each initiative reflects a strong commitment to equity, access, and innovation for all youth. Through our relationship with these organizations, Britebound is helping to create a future where all students — regardless of background — can discover their passions, develop skills, and confidently pursue paths that align with their goals.
