Empowerment Zone

Empowerment Zone Programs are programs designed for non-parenting youth that focus on positive choices, life skills, and building healthy, nurturing relationships.

Working hand-in-hand with partnering agencies, ECP has created a customized curriculum for our Empowerment Zone program which helps young people:

  • understand the need for self-care and self-sufficiency; 
  • increase personal responsibility and healthy behaviors;
  • understand the impact of negative behavior on families and the community;
  • recognize and communicate that violence is a public health issue; 
  • increase use of creative intelligence in problem-solving, decision making and goal setting skills; and
  • increase a sense of empowerment and well-being.

Empowerment Zone Programs at
Youth Study Center and RETI-WRAP

In 2003, ECP began providing programs for youth who have been adjudicated delinquent by the juvenile justice system. Empowerment Zone programs are held at the Youth Study Center, Philadelphia's secure youth detention facility, and at RETI-WRAP (Re-entry Transition Initiative - Welcome Return Assessment Process), a transitional center to support youth returning to the public school system from residential delinquent placement. 
 
ECP has created special curricula for this population that focus on youth development skills, issues involved in family reunification, and the fundamentals of healthy relationships, including parent-child relationships. ECP also runs Gender Responsive Workshops to address the unique needs of young women in the juvenile justice system who have often experienced abuse, domestic violence, and trauma.