Empowering Employment
Powerful Connections Inspiring Youth to National Success
Words Deven Wilson | Photos from e4 youth
The recipe for success comes with confusing instructions and often expired advice, leaving young people lost in the sauce. Add in a harsher socioeconomic climate for youth of color and a collective cultural mindset that sees any creative career path as doomed, and it’s no wonder why so many talented minds give up before their careers are fully realized.
“I didn’t know that you could be creative and make a living,” E4 Youth founder Carl Settles reflects on his origins. At 30 years old, Carl earned a degree in music and found himself teaching at Mendez Middle School. In the early 2000s, he also established an after-school arts and technology program to teach kids HTML, which many claimed would be a passing fad. Through the next few years, Carl rode the highs and lows of working in the production side of advertising. By the time he hit 40, a spark lit a fire under him to change careers yet again and pursue a means to help youth of color find their way into creative jobs with a guiding hand, not by fate as Carl once did.
Carl says the nonprofit “is about helping connect an ecosystem where our students can accrue cultural capital,” explaining ‘cultural capital’ as “experiences and relationships that can help [youth of color] become successful.”
With a collection of successful mentors consisting of both career creatives and E4 alumni, young people are guided to find what they do best, while also learning the various roles and skills that can be applied to their career goal. It’s an opportunity youth of color don’t always have without intervention, and it can lead to many feeling lost in the education system. Mentors engage youth while empowering, educating, and eventually employing them, hence the name “E4.”
“Many times when you ask students what they’re interested in or what they’re good at, they can’t tell you,” Carl remarks, adding that he’s often the first adult to ever ask this question to a young person. Asking youth these forward-thinking questions makes them feel cared for and opens their eyes to new personal potential, even if they don’t end up in pursuing a creative field.
Carl recalls E4 grad David “Sleepy” Prius who came to the program sleeping through classes. Carl showed genuine interest in him and awakened his mind to see his creative potential. Now, while David’s career led him to succeed in the banking world rather than an illustrator, what makes him a success story is that without E4’s intervention, David could’ve easily slept through his education entirely.
The change comes when mentors are able to see every kid’s potential success. E4 Youth allows young people the self-assurance to try new things, knowing they can actually be great.
Contact:
5930 Middle Fiskville Rd.
e4youth.org
@e4youth
