Inclusive Prom will offer a free opportunity for high schoolers in the Acadiana region to meet students from other schools and build community. Many teenagers in our area, including those who are LGBTQ+, will not be able to go to their proms as themselves or with the date of their choice. Inclusive Prom offers an opportunity for high schoolers who would benefit from an alternate prom experience to come together to celebrate their authentic selves and each other. This community event will benefit our community by creating a safe space for LGBTQ+ and other marginalized youth where they can be accepted as themselves, where they can see there are people in the community that support them, and where teenagers from different schools can meet, furthering a sense of community.
Inclusive Prom will be a free 3 hour event hosted at a local venue in Lafayette, open to all high school students in the Acadiana region. Music, dancing, and snacks will be offered. There will be a photo station offering free selfie opportunities and paid-for photo packages. By offering a safe and inclusive space for youth in the community to feel accepted as themselves, we hope to build up and support young people who may not have other sources of support.
The challenges facing youth today are unprecedented. There has been a dramatic increase in mental health concerns for teenagers. This is even more true in the LGBTQ+ community. According to the Trevor Project’s 2022 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health, 45% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year. LGBTQ youth who live in a community that is accepting of LGBTQ people reported significantly lower rates of attempting suicide than those who do not. By hosting this community event, we can hopefully help to reduce suicide rates of LGBTQ+ youth in our community by demonstrating a safe place of acceptance and support.
Project Details
Team Leader: Acadiana Queer Collective, LLC – Wendy Dorfman, Brandi Ortiz, Kelly Noyes, Monet David, Peyton Michelle, Jess Allain Funded Date: November 5, 2022 Amount: $4,000 Location: Lafayette, LA
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The Healthy Acadiana Seed Library is a free program committed to increasing our community’s ability to feed ourselves wholesome food by offering seeds and education. Through the time-honored tradition of seed saving we celebrate biodiversity, nurture locally adapted plant varieties, and foster community resilience, self-reliance, and a culture of sharing.
The Seed Library operates on the honor system. You become a member automatically when you withdraw seeds to plant. We will encourage all members to save their seeds, donate them back to the library, and repeat.
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Team Leader: Angela Morrison Funded Date: November 5, 2022 Amount: $2,000 Location: Lafayette, LA
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The sights and sounds of a festival or any large scale event can be very overwhelming, especially when there’s nowhere to retreat to. Think of a Mardi Gras Parade…you’ve been standing all day, the music hasn’t stopped, you may be hungry, cold…hot…like you want to crawl out of your skin…You don’t want to leave the parade for good but your brain is telling you: I just need a minute!! Or, what if you are in a wheelchair and need to change, but there’s no accessible changing station close by? This is where Team Sensory Safe Spaces comes in.
Team Sensory Safe Spaces will team up with that particular event to provide an inclusive space for ALL to rest, refresh, and decompress before enjoying more of the event. At these designated spaces, there will be sensory tents (hello shade and decreased noise), sensory bags to be given out (think fidgets, sunglasses, earplugs, gum), calming activities (art, sensory bins, and bubble machines) and much more to ensure that those who may be overwhelmed or just need a break can still experience and enjoy their time.
One key (and hopeful) feature of the space will be to provide a changing area for individuals who are in wheelchairs or still have difficulty with bowel and bladder control. There will be a designated tent (not necessarily at the main location) that can still provide the appropriate accommodations and autonomy that everyone else has at an event. We all need and deserve an opportunity to take a break and chill at large scale events. To date, there is nothing like this in our community. The Beluga Project, in conjunction with Festival International, helped create the first space like this at Festival in April 2022. The positive feedback we received throughout and the call to do more of this is apparent, however, we need funding to make this space work over and over, not just one time. From durable tents, to filling the sensory bags, we need our community to help make this happen…one inclusive event at a time. Thank you 24 Citizen Project for helping make this happen!
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Team Leader: David Pilon Funded Date: November 5, 2022 Amount: $3,000 Location: Lafayette, LA
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1 in 5 adults in Louisiana have some college credit but haven’t earned a degree. Some reasons adults (or young adults) do not attend or complete college are:
Fear
Immaturity
Lack of guidance/support
Academic unpreparedness or
Insufficient finances
High school guidance counselors desire to assist in this discovery process, but according to the American Schools Counseling Association, the ratio of guidance counselors to students in Louisiana is about 1:450.
We propose implementing a Guide to Post-Secondary (GPS) Curriculum at Northside High School to guide families through the college or trade school enrollment process. This curriculum includes workshops for parents & students such as:
Career exploration
Financial planning/management
College/trade school
Application college tours
ACT prep
Volunteering enrollment
9-12 grade students and their parents will matriculate through a series of workshops to foster conversations and thought processes about their future and create a clear, purposeful plan with action steps that will lead to a solid decision to attend a 2-year, 4-year college or trade school.
Students and parents who complete this curriculum will develop strong communication with each other, as well as, develop a “village” with other families and support staff who will take the journey with them. The support staff would follow each student and family for at least two years after high school graduation.
Funds received from the 24 Hour Citizen Project will be used to award incentives as students complete each checkpoint. The first 10 students who complete the GPS curriculum will be awarded scholarships.
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Team Leader: Karen Dugas Funded Date: November 5, 2022 Amount: $3,500 Location: Lafayette, LA
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We’ve all heard the common phrase “when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade”. The Lemonade Stand Project will allow youth to use their lemons to make a difference instead! By combining lessons on entrepreneurship, marketing, sales, basic construction, and quality control, youth at the Granberry Boys & Girls Club will build a lemonade stand brand and use the proceeds to impact local community initiatives.
There are nearly 1,500 nonprofit organizations listed in Lafeyette alone. Those organizations serve missions rooted in education, youth development, homelessness, hunger, and plenty of other meaningful services. Today, youth struggle to identify where to fit into the equation and how to make an impact while gaining useful skills in the process. The Lemonade Stand Project will allow youth to do just that! The club will partner with the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s Louisiana Entrepreneurship & Economic Development Center to deliver lessons and mentorship to participating youth to teach them important skills to develop their lemonade brand and business. Youth will then implement those lessons to pitch three lemonade stands across Acadiana on National Lemonade Day! 30% of each sale will remain in business to purchase supplies for the next year. Our teams of kids will spilt 10%. The last 60% will be donated to a community organization determined by participating youth. The first step of the project will be to devise a business plan for the lemonade stand. In the process, youth will gain valuable business skills, earn some money, and make a difference all through this project!
Project Details
Team Leader: Micah Nicholas Funded Date: November 6, 2021 Amount: $3,315 Location: Lafayette, LA
