Youth Leadership Institute (yli) Equips Teens and Young Adults with Resources to Make Big, Lasting Change in Their Communities
- Mar 3
- 3 min read
When Aniyah Montoya-Atwood talks about helping young people find their voices, her enthusiasm is contagious. In her three years as a program manager with Youth Leadership Institute (yli), she has seen firsthand how teenagers and young adults in the Central Valley are challenging inequalities, shaping policy and building a future where everyone has the chance to thrive.
Founded in San Francisco and expanded to the Central Valley in the early 2000s, yli has grown into a statewide organization, with seven offices across California, including Fresno, Madera and Merced. The organization focuses on supporting primarily Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) youth from disadvantaged neighborhoods, equipping them with the resources they need to make positive change in their communities.
“We transform youth from being people who are impacted by systems into people who can actively reshape those systems,” Ms. Montoya-Atwood explains. “We do this through storytelling, research, advocacy and organizing.” In practice, that means everything from youth-led data collection to policy campaigns, from public comment at city meetings to creative media projects that describe lived experiences.
The organization’s social justice work spans environmental, economic, transportation and education justice. And the results are real. Through yli, young people have secured over 130 statewide policy wins—victories ranging from mental health initiatives to tobacco retail licensing reforms.
But for Ms. Montoya-Atwood, the true and lasting change isn’t measured in policy shifts. It’s measured in people.
“Wins are great,” she says, “We're creating lasting change in our communities. But the real impact lies in the lives of our young people.”
Each year, yli engages more than 400 youth across the Central Valley through workshops, events and school-based clubs. Their journalism program, The kNOw Youth Media, founded in 2006, publishes print magazines and weekly online content, stories written by young people about their own communities, their challenges and their hopes.
One of Ms. Montoya-Atwood’s favorite stories is of a young woman who spent four years in yli programs and is now a program assistant—proof of yli’s commitment to workforce development and long-term investment in the young people who take part. Many of yli’s participants go on to further their education.
“I’ve written so many letters of recommendation,” Ms. Montoya-Atwood says proudly.
All yli programs are paid opportunities that reflect the organization’s belief in economic justice and the value of youth labor. “We’re helping young people who maybe don’t have access to a job build some sort of financial stability,” Aniyah notes.
Yli is the awardee of a Catalyst grant administered by the Sierra San Joaquin Jobs (S2J2) Initiative, a four-county economic development plan to create quality jobs and economic access for all residents. The Central Valley Community Foundation serves as the regional convener and fiscal agent of S2J2 and provides support to partner agencies, like yli.
When asked what she most wants people to know about yli, Ms. Montoya-Atwood doesn’t hesitate: “Representation for young people is important. Their voices matter. Their voices are the future.”
In the Central Valley, a region shaped by resilience, hard work and hope, yli is helping mold that future, one young leader at a time. To learn more or to get involved in yli, visit their website here.
This story is part of the Central Valley Community Foundation’s “Sixty Stories That Shaped Us” initiative to help mark 60 years since our founding. We invite you to join us in celebrating this milestone and this special place we call home. To learn more, visit us at centralvalleycf.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn @centralvalleycf.
