The Critical Gap in Youth Development: Filling the 18-24 Age Void with Community & Care

[0:16]  Welcome back to another episode here on the Heart and Hustle podcast. Mr. Noah, what's good, man?

[0:22]  What's good, man? How's it going? I'm good.

[0:23]  How's it going? I'm good.

[0:24]  Good. It's actually weird to say Mr. Noah because I always call my dad my Noah, and you know, so it's a little weird right now saying it out loud actually, you know, as I go live. But man, I appreciate you just coming on, and I just want people to know a little bit more about you. Man, you grew up as a missionary's kid in Colombia and Ecuador, moved to Chicago at 18, and then somehow you ended up in Boston to meet the coaches from a boxing club on the west side of Chicago, of all places. What happened in that moment, man?

[0:53]  That was pretty crazy to me. I mean, it's very unexpected. At that point in my life, I was thinking the goal was to have been in the classroom already teaching, but times were tough at the time.

[1:08]  Times were tough at that time in Chicago. There was a hiring freeze, and I kind of found myself coaching instead, which, you know, fit a lot with my upbringing and the things that impacted me. So, I was in Boston. I'd never been to Boston before, and there was a whole conference, so there were coaches from all these different fields, and they were all from Chicago for the most part. Yeah, I ran into these coaches from a boxing gym, and out of everybody that I had met that weekend, I found myself spending more time with them. They were chill, they were cool, and they were like, "Come to our boxing gym, let's hang out." So, I was like, "I've never done it before, let's do it." I showed up, like literally, I think that same week.

[1:53]  I was like, "You know what, I'm going to follow through," and I showed up and did a training with them. That first training, I'll never forget. I'm pretty confident the guy who invited me wanted to see me suffer. I remember puking on my first training day.

[2:09]  Oh my god.

[2:10]  Oh my god.

[2:10]  Oh my god. So, I was like, "You know what? This is it. I think I'm going to hang out here a little bit more often, you know."

[2:17]  Oh, weird. Yes. You had to earn your

[2:18]  Oh, weird. Yes. You had to earn your stripes. He probably wanted you to do that. He wanted you to earn your stripes. Listen, I want to get some water, but just don't make fun of my cup here, bro. Like, if you got kids, you know what I'm saying?

[2:26]  Gabby's Dollhouse is the goat. That show is phenomenal. You know about it. There are some parents like, "I don't know, man. My kid is not at that age." And I'm like, you know, Gabby's Dollhouse made a lot of money off of me, I would say.

[2:41]  From the dollhouse to the movies to the ears. That's what actually my daughter wanted to be for Halloween, actually. But talking about kids, man, you were working as a high school social studies teacher, if I'm not mistaken.

[2:54]  Yeah. Um, for eight years before you even get to this space—alternative schools, public schools—kids that most people probably had already kind of written off. And I think it's almost like how these two worlds align themselves. You felt like those two worlds prepared you for the next chapter of your life.

[3:12]  Yeah. I mean, and it's crazy to me.

[3:15]  Yeah. I mean, and it's crazy to me because I knew that, like, you know, from the get-go, when I was thinking about teaching and where I'd want to be, I knew that the last place I wanted to end up was in a space where they weren't hurting for good teachers, right? And 'cause there is that kind of breakdown. And you know, I had those opportunities to go teach at, like, a private school in the suburbs and stuff like that. Um, but yeah, what I didn't expect was for my first teaching gig to be at an alternative school. Um, at the time, I didn't even know that was a thing, right? But, you know, I met somebody that worked there, and he knew that I was looking for a teaching gig, and he was...

[4:00]  Looking for a teaching gig, and he was like, "You should go check out this school." Um, and sure enough, like they were looking for a social studies teacher, and I wound up my first gig with students that were anywhere between 16 and 22 years old. And at the time, I was like barely 24, 25. And so, you know, right off the bat, it was like, "This feels different," right? I think most people, when they expect to go into teaching, are thinking they're going to have kids, like young kids or whatever. But I was like, "Nope." Like, they're a few years younger than me. Like, when it comes to life, like some of them have even lived a whole lot more life than I have.

[4:34]  Life than I have.

[4:35]  Yeah.

[4:38]  And now I have to teach them, you know, but I think everybody needs to go through something like that. And I found it to be a very, you know, like it really shaped the way that I thought about teaching and how I see, you know, the impact that education can have.

[4:53]  The impact that education can have.

[4:55]  And what do you think about that? Like working with those type of kids, man, 'cause those are not bad kids, right? Like they're in alternative schools or whatever life has kind of thrown their way, still showing up, right? Still trying to get an education. What do you think you learned from those individuals, man, that really still had this fight in them, but probably didn't feel they were seen or heard?

[5:14]  didn't feel they were seen or heard? Yeah. No, that taught me a lot.

[5:16]  Yeah. No, that taught me a lot, right? Because I think the traditional way of how education is approached is sort of like the kids have to acquiesce to the way that the adults teach and how they frame how education is shared. Um, when it should be the other way around, right? Like every generation is different, every group of every classroom is different, and every individual student is different. They need something that speaks to them in the way that they can understand it. Um, and so yeah, each and every one of my students all had different stories, right? Like you had kids that just sort of dropped out on their own because they had pretty serious depression and they didn't have supports in their life to keep them pushing to go to school.

[6:02]  keep them pushing them to go to school, and they just sort of like fell off the, and they just sort of like fell off the, and they just sort of like fell off the, you know, kind of fell off and didn't go, you know, kind of fell off and didn't go, you know, kind of fell off and didn't go back for a couple of years. Um, and other back for a couple of years. Um, and other back for a couple of years. Um, and other students were like forcibly removed from students were like forcibly removed from students were like forcibly removed from their schools, right, for, you know, for their schools, right, for, you know, for different reasons. Um, so in a way, like different reasons. Um, so in a way, like different reasons. Um, so in a way, like, you know, they had that decision, you know, they had that decision, you know, they had that decision forced on them. And, uh, so for me, it was forced on them. And, uh, so for me, it was forced on them. And, uh, so for me, it was all about like building that rapport, all about like building that rapport, all about like building that rapport with each and every one of them. Um, with each and every one of them. Um, with each and every one of them. Um, being true to myself, uh, and building a sense of like communal respect in the sense of like communal respect in the sense of like communal respect in the classroom. And once you I was able to classroom. And once you I was able to classroom. And once you I was able to build that culture, you know, from build that culture, you know, from build that culture, you know, from there we could have the conversations, there we could have the conversations, there we could have the conversations around, you know, skills and content. Um, around, you know, skills and content. Um, around, you know, skills and content. Um, you know, and it was easier because they, you know, and it was easier because they, you know, and it was easier because they knew that I respected them, that I, you knew that I respected them, that I,

[6:50]  knew that I respected them, that I, you know, that there was the trust. Um, and I think the other piece of it was also like thinking creatively about how to make the content engaging, right? Like I think all of us, but kids especially, like they need to see how what they are learning in the classroom is going to impact them in real life, right? Of course, like they always talk about, "I want to learn how to do my taxes," or "I want to learn how to invest my money," which all of those things, you know, are meaningful, right? Like they really do need to learn those hard skills that we all have to figure out on our own afterwards, but it goes beyond that, right? It's thinking about how what the content they're learning actually has an impact on their everyday life.

[7:34]  everyday life. Um,

[7:34]  Um,

[7:34]  Um, I love it. You were pretty much

[7:37]  I love it. You were pretty much meeting the kids at where they were at, and when they felt comfortable enough, it was easier for you to pour it back into them, right? I think a lot of times you just got to meet them where they're at. Um, I can imagine in the boxing space, man, talk about it, man. Like, how did you get to that world? We talked about a little bit of it, but was it a hard decision to go from an educator to now working as a director at a boxing gym? Um, it was kind of like a lot of big decisions, unexpected in a way, but it makes sense. Um, for context, the time frame that I was thinking about the transition, like, what's the next step, sort of a thing, like, I'd always kind of had it in my mind that I wanted to be a...

[8:23]  would want to that I wanted to be a principal, right? An administrator of a principal, right? An administrator of a principal, right? An administrator of a school, right? When I was thinking big school, right? When I was thinking big school, right? When I was thinking big picture of like what impacts the picture of like what impacts the picture of like what impacts the classroom. Sure, you need good teachers. You really do need good teachers that know what they're doing, that understand what the craft that they and the mission that they have. But, you know, the entire environment of the school makes a huge difference on the type of teacher you can be. And so, that was got a kind of like was always my goal. But I don't know a few three, you know, during the pandemic that was a really rough time for me as a teacher, like just stuck in my basement teaching virtually. It was really tough to see the kids go through that and be isolated, uh, and really experience some tough times without that connection in the classroom. And it was pretty extended. Um, and I was also going through, you know, a certification process that was really challenging. And I was really watching, you know, my leaders in the school space and just thinking like that is what I have in mind, what I think it means to be a school leader is probably not what actually happens. And I really value the time that I have with my family, you.

[9:36]  The time that I have with my family, you know, all the creative stuff that I do outside of work. And I had a feeling like if I did this, I would probably have to say goodbye to a lot of that stuff, which is not what I'm willing to do. Um,

[9:46]  do. Um,

[9:47]  yeah.

[9:47]  yeah. But when it comes to the boxing club,

[9:50]  But when it comes to the boxing club, um, you know, it kind of popped under my radar. They were looking for a director. I knew, you know, I had good relationships with the board and, you know, they kind of pitched it to me and I met with a few people and one guy in particular, like, you know, he boiled it down to me. He's like, a lot of this, you know, think about it in terms of your values. Like, what is it that you really truly value? Um, and the more I thought about that particular question, I was like, this makes perfect sense. You know, like it's about reaching young people. It's about building spaces in community. It's about building third places, third spaces where, you know, people can really like be safe and, you know, achieve their goals.

[10:35]  I could do that from this role as an executive director. Um, and there was a lot that I didn't know definitely when I stepped into the role that I had to learn along the way, but you know, I

[10:45]  learn along the way, but you know, I that's what that's what makes, uh, I would

[10:47]  That's what makes, uh, I would say nonprofits in this space fun, though, right? It's like every day is a new day. Every day you're learning something different, and the impacts that you make are so cool. And I mean, even what was so cool that you just mentioned is just creating spaces, but this space has been around for 20 years in the same space. Yeah.

[11:02]  Right. West Garfield Park, if I'm not mistaken, underneath a B in the basement of a church.

[11:06]  Yeah. It's Little Village. So, we're just south of West Garfield, right? We're not too far from West Garfield, but yeah, it's the basement of a church.

[11:11]  Um, and the building itself has a lot of history. It's an old Masonic temple. So, I think it's like 100 plus years old.

[11:20]  Wow. You know, there's a lot of other community functions that happen in the building. Um, but we have always been down here in the basement.

[11:26]  And you said that's your superpower. Why do you say it's your superpower that you guys are consistent?

[11:37]  Yeah, it's our superpower because, you...

[11:44]  Yeah, it's our superpower because, you know, we've been around for so long. The consistency has been there. For most of the history, the organization has been on a shoestring budget. A lot of volunteer work over the years. It's just sort of grown and morphed with the times. But I also feel like it has this charm where it's like for people that first find us, they're always like, "I did not expect this to be here." We don't have this big massive sign outside, you know, we don't have this fancy building or anything, but you ask the right people in the neighborhood and they're like, "Oh yeah, we know about CYBC." So yeah, that's kind of like this. And you come in and you're like, "Oh my goodness, like there's all this activity."

[12:30]  Um, it's busy.

[12:34]  Um, it's busy. What is the reach that you guys are getting a year? Like how many youth are you guys seeing?

[12:35]  We have served anywhere between 400 and 600 youth members a year. Yeah. And on average this year we have about 150 enrolled every month. You know, and the way we understand our data has changed too, right? Where we used to kind of like shoot for high enrollment numbers, but then we realized high enrollment doesn't necessarily mean that all of those members are coming to us frequently, right?

[13:06]  Frequently, right? Attention. Yeah.

[13:07]  Attention. Yeah.

[13:07]  Attention. Yeah. And so, that's kind of been the aim.

[13:10]  And so, that's kind of been the aim.

[13:10]  And so, that's kind of been the aim now is like, let's see how we can keep those members coming more frequently and spending more time with us. Um, and so, yeah, we've kind of learned a lot more about what those numbers mean for us.

[13:27]  Uh, so but yeah, on a daily, you're learning data, you're learning systems.

[13:29]  You're learning data, you're learning systems. Yeah, when you say learning, a lot of new things, man, from being the educator and planning that day to planning this. Yeah, it's definitely could only imagine it's a lot of curves that you've had to take. But what would you say is the biggest thing you've learned being in the seat as an executive director?

[13:48]  Yeah. No. And I want to say this because if there's any teachers listening to this, like I'm sure you know this already, but I think teachers are like a true superpower when it comes to career options, right? When...

[14:01]  You know, career options, right? When you're thinking about like the next steps and whatnot, because I think as teachers, you get really siloed into one thing, which is fine, right? I think we need more like lifelong teachers, but teachers also need a sense of like what's the next step? Like, how else can I grow? You can do anything; you're a people manager. You manage 30 people every single day, and you have to create these, you know, units that are all sequential, and you know, it's a whole lot. So, for me, the things that I've had to really dig in and learn that I'm definitely still adapting to is, I mean, number one, like the fundraising side of things has probably been one of my biggest learning curves. You know, this idea that yeah, like we have to steward the funders that we have but think creatively about how we can grow that. And right now, the fundraising landscape is very challenging. Um, it's changed a lot. Like, I talked to people that have been doing this for years, and even they are saying like, "Yeah, this is something new we've never experienced before." Uh, but when it comes to

[15:12]  some of the amazing work that you guys

[15:13]  some of the amazing work that you guys done, I can imagine there's a lot of stories to it, but what are some stories that just allow you to remember why you do it? Because a lot of times we have to remind ourselves on the why. I mean, are there stories on kids that you've seen go to nationals? Any of those stories that just come to mind?

[15:27]  stories that just come to mind? Yeah. Yeah. I mean, there's a whole

[15:29]  range, right? Like there's the day-to-day stuff that always keeps me going, right? When I think about the kids that on a day-to-day basis are just telling me like, "This has made my life better. I have more discipline. I want to show up to school more frequently. Um, you know, I want to help out at the house more." You know, that stuff really pushes me 'cause that's like day-to-day. Um, but as far as like, you know, other stories, like man, right now we have two young men that are professional boxers. Um, you know, one of them started in our program when he was 12 years old. Um, he's 25 now and he has stuck with it. Like he has racked up

[16:17]  nearly a hundred amateur fights before he went pro in 2019, and now he just fought his 10th fight

[16:27]  a few days ago on, you know, Cinco de

[16:30]  Uh, a few days ago on, you know, Cinco de Mayo, he won. It was a resounding victory, and he's been very disciplined recently. If he keeps this up, I really honestly feel like he could be on some pretty big shows, you know, fights in the next couple of months.

[16:45]  Next.

[16:46]  Oh, yeah.

[16:46]  You know, that's cool.

[16:47]  Yeah. And so that is obviously really exciting because he's not the only one, right? Like, there are other kids that are, you know, really kind of following in that path. We've had other kids that have gone pro, and they're really excited, right? You know, they're really thinking about what they can envision their life looks like in a position like that, right?

[17:12]  Yeah, I was going to say they have the representation right in front of them. Those people that, you know, stay consistent and now pro, seeing that just definitely gives people that hope and that, "Oh, I can do it if I wanted to." I just got to put the work in. Um, that's cool. How many—what is the age range of the kids?

[17:28]  Yeah. So we serve anywhere starting...

[17:31]  Yeah. So we serve anywhere starting around 8 years old up into adulthood. Most of our members are between the age of 14 and 18, with kind of like a second and third group split between, you know, 9 to 11 and then 19 to mid-20s, which is a pretty important age demographic because a lot of youth serving programs stop at age 18.

[17:54]  You know, you sort of graduate after 18, and that's it. Um, and what we're seeing is that a lot of young folks in that age group between 19 and 24, you know, are having a pretty hard time. Like, they're having a hard time looking for work or finding work. Um, and you know, they have fewer options for them to, like, kind of gravitate towards. And so, yeah, that's the age group.

[18:15]  I'll tell you something that really brought this to mind recently because I've been talking to people in higher ed. That school system, right? And you go ahead and you graduate. Not everybody goes to college, so you are right. What happens to that gap of 18 to 24? They no longer have structure. They don't have someone pushing them. They don't have the resources. But someone, you know, in an organization like yourself in Chicago is that you do have the resources. You do have someone that cares. You still have someone that cares.

[18:42]  have someone that cares. You still have someone pushing you. I mean, a former educator, right? That doesn't ever leave. You are still the educator you are. You still care for humanity and care for children, just very differently now and in a different space. So I do feel there should be more organizations like yours that fill that gap. 'Cause while some may see the other side, some also stay in the mindset of that 11th or 12th grade version of themselves, 'cause that's all they could, you know? They got stuck there. They didn't have anybody there.

[19:08]  You know, so it's cool to know that you guys are filling that gap. Not a lot of organizations fill that gap for those youth and those young adults, man, that are really still learning life.

[19:21]  Yeah. Yeah. No, their prefrontal cortex is still developing, you know, and with fewer structures in place to support them, it's a lot harder for them to, like, find their footing.

[19:36]  What is your vision, man? What's your vision now that you've been doing this for some time? What's your vision for the Chicago boxing club, man?

[19:43]  Yeah. Um, there's a lot, right? I still

[19:47]  Yeah. Um, there's a lot, right? I still feel very new to the role. Um, but I definitely feel like I've learned a lot. The vision is to open a second location, right, on the south side of Chicago, where we can replicate the model that we have right now. Um, and do it in a way that stays true to our mission, to the heart of why we do this. Um, but also, you know, leave a lot of room for expansion and adding new things that we can include to serve our communities. Um, so I guess I would say that that's the immediate vision, but I know that that's going to take a while. Um, so I want to be very realistic about what that vision looks like because especially like, you know, usually the big conversation is like, are you gonna go school-based or community-based, right? And I definitely think there's pros to both strategies. Um, but for me, and I know for us on the team and at the board, like there's a belief that, you know, people need community spaces, right, that they can go to very frequently. Um, and there's not as much out there like that, right? Um, there's a lot of school-based programs. Um, and we need those, right? But we also need those community spaces. Um, so that is the vision for the next couple of years to really...

[21:18]  For the next couple of years, to really build the platform to get there. Uh, build the platform to get there. Uh, yeah. And I envision a big grand opening. You know, opening. You know,

[21:26]  opening. You know, hey man, you got to continue speaking to

[21:28]  existence. I always say it is 100% possible. You're just getting started, and you have some really cool opportunities, man. But as we start to wrap this up and we talk to another young person in Chicago or really anywhere who doesn't see that path forward and doesn't know what a place like you guys are doing could really do for them, what do you say directly to them? Because I feel a lot of times they just don't know what's in their own backyards.

[21:51]  Yeah. Yeah. Um, I mean, so you're saying like what would I say to a young person that doesn't know or

[21:54]  doesn't know or

[21:58]  doesn't know what a place like you guys could actually do for them?

[22:00]  Yeah. Well, I mean, I

[22:05]  Yeah. Well, I mean, I have always, even with my students, have always had the question of, like, what do you want to accomplish, right? What are your goals, right? And we try to frame a lot of what we do with the coaches. Like, it's always about what do you want to accomplish? Do you want to go pro? Do you want to just fight amateur? Do you want to just work out? You know, like, what are your goals? And I think from there, like, is the most essential starting point with young people is really centering around what it is that they want to do. And I think from there, you can really build out something that's more meaningful, right? Because if you just go in assuming that you know what they need, the engagement's not going to follow, right? Like, buy-in is huge. Buy-in is everything when it comes to teaching whatever it is, and how you get that buy-in is really centering on what it is that the young person really wants to accomplish. And so that's what I always like to start with, is really getting to know what does the kid want to do. What do you want to accomplish? Let's make that happen then.

[23:06]  Yeah, right.

[23:07]  Yeah, right.

[23:07]  Yeah, right. Understanding the why.

[23:09]  Understanding the why.

[23:09]  Understanding the why. Why?

[23:10]  Um, no man, I really appreciate the...

[23:11]  Um, no man, I really appreciate the...

[23:11]  Um, no man, I really appreciate the conversation that we've had today. Where can people find more information about what you guys are doing? Are you guys on social? Is there a website?

[23:18]  Yeah, so we're on Instagram.

[23:20]  You can go to cybc_boxing. We also have a website, chicagoyouthboxingclub.org. You'll be able to find a lot of that stuff there. We're in the process of developing an app, which you should be able to download from the website as well. Um, but yeah, anywhere you can, you can sign up for my newsletter that I'm about to send out today. Um, and yeah, I would say those are the two major platforms you could go to.

[23:40]  I love it, Noah. I appreciate the conversation. For those that are watching, make sure you guys do like, subscribe, and comment. This has been Ephrain. This is Noah. We'll catch you on the next conversation later.