Summer 2026

GRADUATION

Below are some reflections from our Fellows and graduated Bridgers about their time in the Fellowship. We want to wish a hearty congratulations to all of our graduated Seniors, it has been a pleasure knowing each and every one of you, and we cannot wait to see all that you accomplish in the years to come!

A Room Full of Strangers to a Community
By Anna Lau and Afrin Hussain

This past year, I’ve had the privilege of being part of the YouthBridge NY fellowship, and I’m incredibly grateful for everything this experience has taught me. 

When I first joined YouthBridge, I remember walking into the room feeling completely out of place. I was nervous meeting students from all across New York City, each with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. 

What started as a room full of strangers gradually became a community. Through our discussions, workshops, and conversations, I learned that some of the most valuable growth happens when you're surrounded by people whose experiences are different from your own. Every meeting challenged me to think more critically, listen more carefully, and consider perspectives I may never have encountered otherwise.

Through our discussions at YouthBridge, I developed a deeper understanding of systemic inequality and the ways socioeconomic barriers can shape people's opportunities and experiences. While learning about these issues was valuable, hearing directly from people who had lived through them made those conversations especially impactful and reminded me of the importance of looking beyond my own perspective. Those experiences also taught me that we all have a responsibility to uplift those around us: whether that's by listening to someone's story, creating space for different voices to be heard, or working toward positive change in our communities.

Those experiences taught me that positive change begins with people listening to one another, supporting one another, and building genuine connections. And while the conversations we had were incredibly impactful, some of my favorite memories came from the friendships and experiences that grew out of them.

One of the first memories that comes to mind is our retreat at the beginning of the year. We all arrived not knowing one another, but through activities, conversations, and plenty of laughter, we quickly became comfortable with each other. Looking back, it set the tone for everything that followed.

Throughout the year, YouthBridge became much more than twice-monthly meetings. It became a place where we could challenge ideas respectfully, learn from one another, and build genuine friendships. Some of the most memorable moments weren't planned at all. They were the conversations before meetings started, the discussions that continued after they ended, and the connections we built along the way.

As those relationships grew, so did my confidence. One lesson I've learned this year is that confidence isn't about never being nervous. It's about speaking anyway. Through presentations, discussions, and conversations with guest speakers, I became more comfortable trusting my own voice and contributing my ideas.

I also learned that leadership doesn't always mean standing at the front of the room. Sometimes leadership means taking the initiative to introduce yourself to someone new, helping others feel included, or creating space for different voices to be heard. Those are lessons I'll carry with me long after this fellowship ends.

The opportunities we had to connect with professionals and community leaders also showed me the value of building relationships. Many of those conversations extended beyond a single meeting and demonstrated how meaningful one connection can become.

And I think that's one of the biggest lessons YouthBridge leaves us with: the importance of connection.

Whether it was learning from guest speakers, collaborating with our groups, or simply listening to one another's stories, this fellowship showed us how much we can gain when we're willing to engage with people whose experiences differ from our own.

YouthBridge challenged us to think critically about our communities, but it also reminded us that creating change begins with listening, understanding, and supporting one another.

As we look ahead to next year as Bridgers, we're excited to continue those conversations, strengthen the relationships we've built, and help welcome the next group of Fellows into this community.

When we first joined YouthBridge, we hoped to learn something new and meet new people. What we didn't expect was how much this program would come to mean to us.

To the YouthBridge staff, facilitators, guest speakers, Fellows, and Bridgers: thank you for making this year so memorable. We are incredibly grateful for everything we've learned and for the community we've found here.

Thank you.

The Importance of Helping Others

By Ethan Forbes, Ryan Lo, and Ahnaf Sarwar

During our time in YouthBridge we have made many memories and many friends. When I came into this experience I was thinking to myself “am I really about to go on an overnight retreat and sleep with a bunch of people I don’t know?” But as we learned, played ‘get to know you’ games, and saw all the items people brought in that meant something to them, through all those moments I started to see and understand everyone’s character and knew I was with a good group of people.

Being part of the healthcare disparities committee has taught me a lot. We have had many people from organizations across New York discuss real issues affecting people in New York, and how this generation needs to be the people who will step up and make a difference. These meetings made me more aware of the problems that affect people everyday and showed me the importance of helping others and listening to different perspectives. 

For example, we had a session on mental health where we talked about the struggles people go through and how some people don’t have the support they need. It made me realize how important it is to check in on people, especially the ones closest to you.  

From that moment on, YouthBridge became more than just a program to me; it became an experience full of memories, lessons and people I’m grateful to have met. I will carry on what I learned and the friendships I have made with me moving forward.

Building on what Ethan shared about the mental health session, one of our favorite moments was when we acted as students hosting a mental health podcast. We had microphones, videos, and cards with specific scenarios to give advice. As I was watching the second group carry out their scenario, I couldn’t help but laugh and smile; I could barely hold the camera steady.

Ethan was being Ethan while still showing his care, and that applies to everyone at YouthBridge. They listen, care, and support with their own experiences all while still enjoying themselves. Our conversations are not only filled with thought, but laughter and humanity. The way in which we learned was through conversations, disagreements, and understanding. We get to learn while enjoying the process. Those moments were a reminder that learning about these topics doesn’t always have to be heavy when you're with a room full of people who care about the same things you care about. We’re thankful to the community that's been built and the friends and peers I’ve gained in learning more about healthcare accessibility. 

From our talks on health disparities, mental health, and identity, we learned that you can never reduce a person to data, that a lot of people who experience disparities are at the intersection of race, gender, economic background, and their own uniqueness.  

It was great when we all came together, laughed, and talked on topics that we actually cared about. It really hit when we were selecting a grant winner. We debated for a while, even past our 7:00 session end time, to try and find a unanimous winner. Several of us saw different ideas and reasons for different groups to win, but we all thoughtfully listened to each other all in an effort to find a cause worth supporting. In the end, we chose The National Alliance on Mental Illness, an organization that reflects our values as a committee as well.  

As we continue thinking about being the next generation of change, we look forward to continuing to learn more in our future skill building workshops and applying it to how we act in everyday life. 

Hungry for a Change

By Madysonrae Caban

It is an honor to be here tonight to celebrate these young adults and the incredible criminal justice reform here at YouthBridge. Change does not happen overnight, but it does start here. It starts with us. With the education and resources YouthBridge has provided us to learn about our current criminal justice system, these teenagers here today are taking the steps to make a huge difference in our system.  

My experience with YouthBridge has been nothing but exceptional. To learning and hearing from amazing guest speakers, to having amazing intellectual conversations with my fellow peers in the criminal justice reform, I can say that I have truly grown and learned more than I ever thought I would from first hearing about YouthBridge.  

Criminal Justice has a big presence in a city like New York, and many don’t realize how surface-level their knowledge is on it, myself included, before joining this committee. Criminal Justice is something that I have grown to be passionate about over the years, getting to learn about the corruption in our systems, like Rikers Island, to learning about some incredible organizations trying to make a difference, like NYC Books Through Bars, has truly been enlightening.  

I'm sure I am not the only one when I say that this committee has educated me tremendously, but has also grown my compassion for people, strengthened my communication skills, and made me hungry for change.  

The work done here at Youthbridge is something that should be showcased throughout the city, and I can only hope that this program can reach so many other kids, just like it did my peers and me. Thank you to Adama and Tiffany for giving so many teens across New York the opportunity to be a part of something so important. 

Thank you, everyone, for being here today to celebrate this amazing program and committee!

One Person’s Choice Can Change Everything

By Benjamin Danilov

Thank you all for being here tonight.

Before I start, I want to thank Tiffany, Adama, and the whole YouthBridge-NY staff for everything they have done for us over the past two years. I also want to thank the Bridgers in this room, because so much of what made this experience meaningful was not just the program itself, but the people I got to go through with.

When I first joined YouthBridge, I knew it was about leadership and diversity, but I do not think I fully understood what that meant yet. I came in with my own background, my own community, and my own way of seeing the world. I thought leadership mostly meant speaking up and having something important to say. Over time, I learned that leadership also means knowing when to listen, when to question yourself, and when to stay open even when a conversation is uncomfortable.

One thing I kept coming back to during this fellowship was my own family’s story.

My family comes from the Mountain Jewish community in the Caucasus, in a city called Nalchik. During World War II, when the Nazis occupied the city, my great-grandmother was hiding with her daughter, my grandmother, who was only two years old at the time. Eventually, they were found and placed with other Jewish people who were being marched away.

Then, at that moment, a Muslim man who knew my great-grandmother stepped forward. Even though he worked for the Nazis, he pulled her out of the line and hid her and my grandmother in his home for a month, until the soldiers left.

I am standing here tonight because of what he did. 

I have thought about that story a lot, especially during my time in YouthBridge. That man did not help my family because they shared the same religion or the same exact background. He helped because he knew them as people. They had lived near each other. They had shared the same city. There was enough human connection there that, even in a terrible moment, he could not look away.

That is one of the biggest lessons I am taking from YouthBridge. It is easy to talk about bringing people together, but it is much harder to actually sit with people who come from different communities and really try to understand them.

Over the past two years, I heard perspectives that were not the same as mine. I listened to people talk about experiences I never lived through. I started to understand that people’s views do not come from nowhere. They come from their families, their neighborhoods, their struggles, and the way the world has treated them.

That changed the way I think.

This fellowship pushed me to care about what other communities are carrying too. It made me realize that being a leader cannot just mean protecting the people who already feel familiar to you. It has to mean paying attention to people whose experiences are different from yours, because if you only see the world through your own lens, you are going to miss a lot.

Some of my favorite moments were not the biggest events or the most formal parts of the program. They were the smaller conversations, when someone would say something about their life or their community, and I would realize I had never really thought about it that way before. Those moments stayed with me because they made the world feel bigger than my own experience.

YouthBridge also gave me practice. Practice listening without just waiting for my turn to talk. Practice speaking honestly without trying to win every conversation. Practice being in a room where not everyone agrees, and still finding a way to move forward. I think that is a skill we need more than ever, because it feels like the world keeps making it easier for people to separate themselves from anyone who thinks differently.

Now that the fellowship is ending, I feel grateful, but I also feel responsible. YouthBridge was not just something we attended for two years. It was preparing us for the moments when we have to decide what kind of people we are going to be outside of this room.

My family’s story taught me that one person’s choice can change everything. YouthBridge helped me understand that those choices do not happen randomly. They come from the way we train ourselves to see other people before the moment gets hard.

So what comes next for me is taking that lesson with me into my school, my community, and whatever leadership roles I have in the future. I want to be someone who does not just talk about bridging communities, but actually tries to do it.

Thank you again to the YouthBridge staff, my fellow Bridgers, and everyone here tonight. I am very grateful for these two years, and I know I will carry this experience with me for a long time. 

Spring 2026

Spring has sprung! The weather is getting warmer, the leaves are returning to the trees, and our teens want to share what they have been up to at YouthBridge-NY. Over the past few months, we have continued to see engaging dialogue and growth from our teens in our Skillbuilding Workshops and Social Action Committees. Keep reading to hear from our teens about how they relate what they have been learning in our program to their own lives.

BECOMING A LEADER

By Allie Li-Seabrooks

I joined YouthBridge because I wanted to expand my knowledge on community issues and learn things I would most likely never be taught in school. I wanted to know how I could become a leader that can solve problems for my community by knowing what can cause them.

I learned so much during the Immigrant Rights workshop with Adama Bah. We started off by trying to answer questions that would be on a citizenship test. The fact that I knew some citizens that could not answer the questions on this quiz made me wonder just how fair it was. We went around the room, sharing our family ancestry and saw everyone’s family had come from somewhere different, just at different times. The times immigrants came, however, affected their citizenship circumstances.

We then went on to discuss how the citizenship system is broken and restricts many people from living their lives without worry. I was impacted by Adama Bah’s story* because I never knew how bad the citizenship system was and how it could cause innocent people to be seen as suspicious or a threat. I really appreciated that I had the opportunity to learn about something like this because I feel I would’ve never known this struggle otherwise.

There is so much more I look forward to after knowing how much I can learn. Not only do I look forward to learning about different community struggles, but I want to learn about how they occur, and who they affect. I look forward to hearing more stories and continuously learning about the world.

*You can learn more about Adama Bah’s story at Documented.

AIMING TO BREAK BARRIERS

By Natalia Cuatlacuatl

In search of a program that provided students like me opportunities for resources and research, YouthBridge stood out to me as one I needed to participate in. I joined YouthBridge initially to learn more about the committee I was intrigued by, Healthcare Disparities. Through the time I’ve spent with YouthBridge, I’ve learned the real impact that advocacy and research have on people, especially youth. To unite a team of passionate students, like my peers and me gathered at YouthBridge, taught me the value of collaboration. In times where differences divide us, peers I now know as friends through YouthBridge opened new perspectives and experiences in my learning, altering the way I view life and issues within our communities. Being a part of the skillbuilding workshops we have every Thursday introduced new topics that educated us on the world around us.

In March, YouthBridge fellows were joined by Ebonie Simpson from Generation Citizen for our skillbuilding workshop on Civic Engagement. Ebonie, who brought along her adorable pup, began by introducing her role at Generation Citizen, a youth empowerment organization which strives to connect students through civics and advocacy. I recalled attending a Civics Day Event brought together by Generation Citizen with my school’s Civics Club this year, and I was excited to learn more about the organization. As a young advocate, I push myself every day to participate in civic engagement. As Ebonie explained, Generation Citizen gives students the opportunity to share their experiences on issues they face or have seen others face, encouraging youth involvement in civics.

In the near future, I aspire to continue advocating for underserved communities. As someone who grew up to see the impact that issues have on others, including myself, I aim to break the barriers that are placed to prevent youth from being heard. Being a part of YouthBridge is one of the ways I plan on taking action. Staying civically engaged, advocating for reforms, and sharing lived experiences are actions we as students can take toward making a change in our society.

Winter 2026

Our Fellows and Bridgers have been busy attending skill-building sessions, committee meetings, and joining together for volunteering. Read more below to check out some highlights of the season!

CONNECTING ACROSS DIFFERENCES

by Raphael Capangpangan

I joined YouthBridge-NY because I recognized the unique opportunities it could open for me as a student passionate about activism, community, and social change. Centered around the connectivity of New York City’s diversity, YouthBridge’s emphasis on social advocacy, representation, and youth leadership immediately drew me in. Coming from central New Jersey, I had realized there was a lack of programs that truly educated and empowered young people around me about organizing and advocacy, two areas I hope to pursue in my future.

While searching online for “social impact programs for high school sophomores,” YouthBridge was one of the first programs I came across. The more I learned about how YouthBridge encourages students to question assumptions and connect across differences, the more I felt it resonated with what I believe in. Its long-term commitment to fellows and focus on real dialogue and impact made it stand out as more than just another youth program I saw online.

Now, seven months into the program, I’ve formed meaningful friendships with talented, compassionate peers and have even had the chance to collaborate on social impact projects alongside them. As the only person in my cohort commuting from New Jersey, I’ve also gained independence, learning to navigate the MTA and NJ Transit on my own, adapting to a city I’ve only visited on weekends with family, and understanding the differences between school systems and student life in NYC and NJ.

I joined YouthBridge to learn, connect, and challenge myself, and it has given me all of that and more. Through its mentorship and opportunities, I’ve not only grown as an advocate, but as a more knowledgeable person who better understands the world and my impact within it.

LEARNING FROM EACH OTHER
by Eshal Masood

When I joined YouthBridge, I expected to learn about social issues, but I did not expect how much of that learning would come from the people around me. Through meetings and workshops, working together, sharing ideas, and building off one another’s thoughts became one of the most meaningful parts of the program. Hearing different perspectives and personal connections to topics pushed me to think more deeply and speak more confidently. YouthBridge feels less like a traditional program and more like a space for open conversation, where everyone contributes something valuable.

One of the most impactful experiences so far was learning about the history of policing in New York City through the National Urban League workshop. We discussed how policing developed over time, including its origins in controlling freed Black people after slavery, and learned about important figures and moments in history such as the Exonerated Five. These conversations added important context to present-day issues and challenged me to think beyond what I already knew.

Moving forward, I am looking forward to continuing committee work, building ideas with my peers, and growing through the honest and thoughtful discussions that make YouthBridge such a meaningful experience.

BECOMING A MORE THOUGHTFUL GLOBAL CITIZEN
by Rachel Uh

As a sophomore, I applied to YouthBridge because I wanted to learn from peers whose perspectives differed from my own while developing my leadership skills and becoming a more thoughtful global citizen. While YouthBridge has undoubtedly helped me accomplish those goals, what has been even more meaningful are the deeper shifts in perspective I have experienced along the way.

During my junior year as a Fellow, I built lasting friendships with peers from across the city and broadened my understanding of the world through learning within my healthcare disparities committee. Now, as a senior, I continue to feel both surprised and grateful for the ways this organization challenges and shapes me.

Most recently, at the News and Media Literacy workshop, I reconsidered how I interpret messaging in media and the press. As a group, we discussed the role of political and social commentary in network television. I have long loved sitcoms and other forms of televised media, but I had rarely paused to consider how social messaging operates within my favorite shows, especially when those messages aligned with my own beliefs.

Through conversations with fellow Bridgers and our presenter, Michelle Ciulla Lipkin, a globally recognized leader in media literacy education, I began to reflect more critically. Art can provoke emotion and inspire people to reconsider their beliefs. At the same time, I came to believe that political commentary is often most effective when introduced thoughtfully and with humility. When shows assign clear moral superiority to one set of beliefs while portraying opposing views as inherently villainous, it can deepen division rather than encourage understanding.

This workshop prompted me to move beyond passively consuming media and toward engaging with it more intentionally. Instead of assuming political commentary in television is inherently positive, I now approach it with greater curiosity and critical awareness. YouthBridge continues to teach me not what to think, but how to think more carefully and compassionately.

Fall 2025

We have started off the program year with a bang! Beginning with our orientation retreat in August, we welcomed new eleventh grade Fellows into the Fellowship and twelfth grade Bridgers into their second year. Fellows and Bridgers have been busy attending skill-building sessions, committee meetings, hearing from our alumni, and joining together for team building and bonding activities. Read more below and check out some highlights of the season!

MY OLDER SISTER’S ADVICE

by Caroline Kollander

I live on the Upper East Side of New York City and attend Jewish day school. As an eager freshman awaiting my first day of school, I asked my older sister and her friends for their best advice for high school. Between things like the classes I should take and the best vending machine to use, one thing my sister mentioned stood out to me, her excitement for her first year of YouthBridge. Going into junior year, she embarked on the annual YouthBridge retreat. Before having even started the classes, she had already learned so much over one weekend. She talked about the people she met (who would later become close friends), and real-world issues she knew nothing of prior. At that moment, I knew I would commit to YouthBridge the second I could. Watching my sister throughout her junior and senior year come home from classes full of endless information and experiences to share, my excitement grew stronger. Finally, when it was my turn to go on the retreat myself, I made sure to make the most of every moment. Fortunately, YouthBridge made doing that very easy. I was constantly grouped with new people to try new activities like archery, a ropes course, and an inflatable park in the lake. Every window of time was spent participating in engaging team-building exercises that are relevant to my everyday life and future as a member of society. Today, I am so excited and honored to be a part of the healthcare disparities group. I look forward to spending more time with the people I met on the retreat, and soon mastering a topic I know so little about right now.    

DEEPENING MY UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD AROUND US

by Jessie Kim

I joined YouthBridge through a web search to learn more about communities and gain a deeper understanding of diversity, as I had begun to deepen my passion for activism and advocacy through my school. I found that Youthbridge truly aligned with my values, specifically becoming more aware of commonly held stereotypes and prejudices, as mentioned in YouthBridge’s impact. When I joined Youthbridge, I was excited to hear the different opinions from teens scattered across New York. Entering the retreat, I was timid, but engaging in the workshops provided by YouthBridge allowed me not only to learn about the program but also to form lifelong friendships through the engaging icebreakers. Hearing about the experiences, cultures, and religions of my peers opens me to learning about their upbringings and their environments. It was truly an experience where no one was judged or critiqued for their opinions, and we could truly relate to one another. 

One of the biggest highlights for me was during the criminal justice reform workshop when the Rikers Island commissioners came in to share their insights and experience with Rikers Island. I was able to learn about such an important topic that I had previously known very little about. Thanks to the wonderful, hardworking people at Youthbridge and the resources and opportunities provided to me and other fellows, I look forward to the impact we will make as committees! In the future, I am excited to continue exploring different social issues with my peers through skill-building workshops and to deepen my understanding of the world around us.

EVERY PERSON TELLS A NEW STORY

by Ryan Lo

When I decided to apply to YouthBridge in the spring of my sophomore year, I had underestimated how much the program would show me about the world. Of course, I had looked into the program before and the mission of the program really resonated with me. But even from the couple workshops and discussions I’ve learned so much from everyone around me; hearing the different voices and results of different life experiences through other Fellows has shown me just how diverse NYC is. Each person tells a new story, and each story gives me a new perspective. As I hear more and learn about other Fellows, I’m gaining more than just new friends; I’m also bettering my understanding of the world. Even from the first Skill-building workshop, I got to reflect on my own identity. It’s something I thought was so much simpler, but we started breaking down the many different components of identity and I realized just how complex my own identity is. I got to reflect on how my own life experiences have shaped me. It was super humbling to examine the influences that have shaped me and to hear others do the same. I look forward to getting to know everybody around me even further because I know it’s programs like this that form the most genuine relationships.  

YouthBridge is a space where we have authentic discussions, covering topics and issues that are relevant everywhere around the world. I never thought I’d get to learn about Healthcare Disparities in the level of detail I’ve been learning about it at YouthBridge. Hearing about the different inequities minorities face in healthcare made me realize how lucky I have it already, but how much further society can go to make it equitable for everyone. It sparked deep reflection for me, leaving me to think for that whole night about what changes we can make for it to be accessible for everyone, even small changes. It affects so many more people than I thought it did. I’m glad I am a part of this committee; I’ve gotten to become more aware about the world and learn about issues that I can create a lasting positive change for. I’m so grateful I got the chance to join YouthBridge, it really has changed the way I see the world.