Ever Forward – Siempre Adelante
Ashanti Branch, Founder & Executive Director
EERI
Mission: Ever Forward’s mission is to address the underlying causes of dropout rates, youth violence, and the growing achievement gap through mentoring and social-emotional development.
Year Founded: 2004
The Ever Forward Club mentors underserved youth in middle and high school by providing them with safe, brave communities that build character and transform lives. They have a four-fold approach to developing their dynamic club communities:
- Academic development through academic support, bi-weekly progress reports, and advisory
- Personal development through goal-setting workshops, mentorship, and school emotional learning
- Community development through team building, service to the school community, and service to the local community
- Family development through family potlucks, parent focus groups, and parent service projects.
Branch decided to serve these young men as a mentor, and launched the first Ever Forward Club as a support program where at-risk young men could gather over lunch in a mentor-led safe environment, process emotions, and sustain each other through their struggles.
Ashanti Branch
Founder and Executive Director