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Empowering Healing and Growth: Create Safe Spaces for Young People

By Jared Cooper, Juvenile Law Center, Generocity | March 8, 2023

Jared Cooper, a Youth Advocate with Juvenile Law Center, authored a guest column for Generocity discussing ways to create safe spaces and positive leadership opportunities for young people.

My name is Jared Cooper. I was arrested and thrown into the criminal justice system at 18 years old. Through fighting for my life and freedom, I was able to break the shackles that so effortlessly tried to hold me back. Now, my primary focus in life is health and wellness, and I currently do restorative work with a nonprofit organization, Youth Art & Self-empowerment Project (YSAP) and advocacy work as a member of Advocates for Youth Justice with Juvenile Law Center’s Youth Advocacy Program.

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Who We Are

The Stoneleigh Foundation was founded in 2006 by John and Chara Haas to improve the life outcomes of our community's youth. We meet our mission by awarding Fellowships to exceptional leaders who advance change in the systems that serve these young people.

Our Priorities

We seek to improve the life outcomes of our community’s youth by advancing change in the systems that serve them. Because we believe that youth are best served when systems work together to holistically address their needs, Stoneleigh prioritizes work designed to strengthen coordination between or among these systems.

Our Projects

We award two types of projects that catalyze change within, alongside, and outside of youth-serving systems. Our Fellowship Projects enhance how systems work together, improve practice, shift narratives, and generate new knowledge through action-oriented research. Our Youth Partnership Projects support youth-centric organizations that build the leadership and advocacy skills of young people.

Advancing The Field

We are pragmatic and have a bias toward action. We advance the field by hosting public events, publishing policy-relevant research and reports, and elevating the work of our Fellows and grantees in the media.

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We award two types of Fellowships to exceptional individuals who work within and alongside youth-serving systems to catalyze change. Our Fellows undertake projects that enhance how systems work together, improve practice, and generate new knowledge through action-oriented research.