UPI over the Years: A Historical Retrospect

The Uplift Project, Inc. (UPI) formed a legal nonprofit operation after many years of working with young males in the Durham community – tutoring, mentoring, sponsoring softball and t-ball teams - in an ad hoc manner. Traditionally, the organization has worked with low-income at-risk males in the Durham community by providing access to summer camps, mentoring via surrogate father activities for young boys in single-parent households, and providing team sports-related outlets for youth in little league baseball and basketball.

The following are specific programs developed and administered by UPI:

• Youth League Sports in basketball and baseball
• Youth Mentoring Program
• Back to School Youth Fair
• Public Awareness Seminars

Youth League Sports in Basketball and Baseball

The origins of UPI's participation in youth sports began in the early 1990s. UPI worked to prepare young boys and girls for play in the little league program of Durham Parks and Recreation Department. UPI has sponsored baseball teams in the Durham Bulls Youth Athletic League and basketball teams in the Durham Parks and Recreation Division of the Jr. NBA Little League Association. In previous years, we participated in the South Durham Youth Athletic League.

Youth Mentoring Program

The Youth Mentoring Program was an extensive male mentoring and manhood program that was developed and created by the Uplift Project, Inc. The Program will focused on preventative measures and intervention methods to increase positive behaviors, to result in a decrease in youth gang membership, rampant teen violence, and reinforce a strong scholastic foundation to combat the increasing number of school dropouts.

Back to School Youth Fair

The objective of the BTSYF is to create an interactive learning environment that will benefit the most important and precious resource in our community - our children. Closing the achievement gap that exists in our public schools, the Uplift Project, Inc. strives to construct preventative programs to promote student achievement. Currently, it appears that nearly one in two African American-American males in grades 7 through 12 are prone to become high school dropouts in Durham. One in three African American females are prone to become high school dropouts. These are alarming rates! Early literacy in grades K-3 is a strong indicator of continued academic success. If we are to cause a change, we need to affect the habits of our youth, now.

The goals for the Back to School Youth Fair are to provide school supplies for children in the Durham Community, deliver meaningful educational activities, educate parents on issues pertaining to their children, and provide opportunities for involvement for potential mentors in the community.

The first Back to School Youth Fair was held on August 7, 1999 at the Salvation Army Boys and Girls Club here in Durham. Our purpose was to present a program that would benefit the young people in the Durham community through educational and motivational means. Our initial focus was to target school kids in or about the range of K through the 6th grade.

With little media exposure and sheer determination, the first youth fair was an overwhelming success. We were able to supply nearly 100 children with school supplies. Some of our initial contributors included Mechanics and Farmers Bank, North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company, Mutual Community Savings Bank, Nations Bank, Glaxo, IBM, Ericksson, Eckerd Drugs, Rhone Pulanc Pharmaceuticals and North Carolina Central University.

Public Awareness Seminars

The Public Awareness Series of Uplift Project, Inc. is a dialogical and informational venue that deals with local, state, national, and world issues that impact the life of the citizens of Durham. These forums will feature insightful speakers and provide excellent networking opportunities for participants.

Our mission is to empower the local community of Durham through education, public awareness, and strategy development. The forum's goal is to address current issues affecting the Durham community. This venue provides local citizens with solutions to shared problems, useful skills and solid networking opportunities. Forum attendees will gather to hear about key issues vital to their physical, professional, mental and emotional well-being. The forum's success and continued growth will be a direct result of the quality of its speakers and topics. These topics include, but are not limited to, health, legal, religious/spiritual, financial, political issues, leadership and current events.

The goals of the Public Awareness Seminars are to provide leadership, knowledge, guidance, and in some instances, technical assistance to the local community concerning issues related to their overall well-being.