Check out our fellows’ newest self-designed Blueprints for Social Justice: Friends Help Friends for Development (FHFD) Video, I’L Pledge Campaign: Year II, and Project Dignity.

[ See more Blueprints for Social Justice ]

Tell us about your friends and heroes!
Recruitment for the 2009 fellowship class is in high gear. Now’s your chance: tell us about the excellent college students in your life or apply today!

Elody Gyekis was our featured fellow in May. She spoke with us about her Blueprint for Social Justice, working with the community and what makes it all worthwhile. To see pictures and read an update on Valley Roots – Approaching a Mural as a Process of Community Engagement, check out the YP4 Blog.

[ See pictures and more ]

This is the first week of “Ideology 101 in 2008,” our six-week course with the Movement Vision Lab @ the Center for Community Change. With special guest lecturer Sally Kohn, the Movement Vision Lab’s director, we’re examining the role that ideology has played in the conservative movement and other social movements of the past.

[ See what courses are next ]

The new Leadership Academy begins
This weekend, the 2009 Class of Leadership Academy fellows will convene for their first retreat August 3–7 at the Trinity Conference Center in West Cornwall, Conn. Everyone with a paid fellowship has secured a placement.

The first retreat emphasizes building relationships and trust among fellows, strengthening connections to YP4 staff and building relationships with the retreat’s facilitators. Workshops will focus on building the team, understanding the program, and creating a foundation that will allow these emerging young professionals to return to their employers and host organizations with new insights into their personal and professional leadership.

[ See where everyone’s working ]

Bernadita “Beni” Yunis (pictured at right) is a 2007 fellow from the University of Miami, a former Blog Team member and a participant in the 2008 internship program. This summer, Beni used her internship stipend to move to New York and build her professional experience working at the Clinton Foundation. As an undergraduate, Beni served as President of Amnesty International and had a regular column in her school newspaper.

Building off her writing experience and campus leadership, Beni is working in the Correspondence Department where she drafts official letters on behalf of the Clinton Foundation and the former president. When Beni met former President Clinton recently, she said, “His responses in general were eloquent and insightful. He always went far out to answer the questions, but always reeling you back in to the original point. It was simply perfection.”

Next steps for internship program participants
As summer fades, our internship program fellows aren’t just preparing to return to classes. They’re wrapping up their internships at progressive organizations across the country, completing their group coaching calls, conducting informational interviews, and being matched with mentors to continue their professional development beyond the summer. Additionally, some fellows who deferred their internship funding to the fall will begin to identify internships this month.

[ Learn more about other senior fellowship opportunities ]

Front Line Leaders Academy graduates and the new Leadership Academy class on Future Majority, an online back-and-forth about a panel at the Netroots Nation conference, and more.

[ Read the news coverage ]

National Hip Hop Political Convention (Las Vegas, Nevada, July 28–August 3)
Watch for YP4 fellows at this biennial gathering of social justice activists, organizers, students, journalists, scholars and artists who come together to define the political agenda of the hip hop community.

Power Vote MEGA Training Camp
From August 11–17, Energy Action Coalition and its partner organizations will host a MEGA Camp, a large-scale training program to equip youth leaders with the skills and resources necessary to run a large scale Power Vote field campaign. The goal is to bring innovative strategies to the grassroots and to train a powerhouse team of organizers prepared to train thousands more young people, building an unstoppable ground force this November and beyond.

You can find more events on YP4’s site and at the Center for Progressive Leadership.

Netroots Nation (Austin, Texas, July 17–20)
Members of the YP4 Blog Team rocked Netroots Nation (formerly known as the YearlyKos Convention), the most concentrated gathering of progressive bloggers. Young bloggers brainstorming in person, online organizers sharing best practices, a surprise appearance by Al Gore...

[ Read coverage on the blog ]

DMI Scholars Mixer (YP4 office, New York City, July 31)
A passel of Drum Major Institute Scholars met in YP4’s office last night for good food and good times. Congratulations to Daniel Wu, Francisco Covarrubias, Markus Kessler and Chloe Mirzayi, who are DMI Scholars as well as 2008 YP4 fellows, and to Leadership Academy graduate Allen Frimpong, who as Drum Major Institute program associate coordinated the event.

[ Read YP4 fellow and intern Amira Rahim’s account ]

The Task Force Policy Institute: LGBT Fellows Program
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute’s 2008–2009 LGBT Fellows program is designed to recognize and support the leadership of scholars of color across disciplines and put the best independent and academy-based thinkers to work on pressing movement issues.

The Policy Institute Fellowship offers full-time support for two researchers of color:

• A Junior Scholar: just post-doc, untenured early career university professor or independent researcher, and
• A Senior Scholar: advanced non-tenured or tenured university professor or advanced independent scholar.

Candidates who have not had advanced formal academic training may occasionally be considered.

Applications are being accepted on a rolling basis and are due no later than August 5. Awards will be made by August 15. The fellowship will run from September 2008–August 2009.

[ Learn more ]

Generation Vote and Hip Hop Caucus present: VOTE HIP HOP
Generation Vote is a national alliance of 18 youth organizations (including YP4!) working to engage the hip hop generation in the political process. We’re looking for DJ’s, emcees, writers, b-girls, b-boys, producers, poets, graf writers and fly-ass designers to tell the world which election issues are important to young people and why.

GET INVOLVED: It’s easy — and online. The contest is separated into four categories loosely based on the four elements of hip-hop: audio (DJing), video (MCing), design (graffiti) and dance (breaking).

Do you have a picture of a T-shirt or poster you designed? A poem you performed? Song you recently made? Explain why the candidates speak for you — or why they don’t. Express what’s important to you and your community. The pieces voted best will be used in national voter registration drives and calls to action.

THE PRIZES: One winner will be chosen from each category. Winners each get $500, a free trip to a nationally televised awards ceremony, and featured on BET.com, The Nation Magazine online, WireTap Magazine, Future5000.com and dozens of other syndicated websites.

[ Upload your work and vote in the contest! ]