Storytelling for Empowerment

Offers after-school, weekend, and summer creative writing workshops for children and youth ages 8 to 18 in Upper Manhattan, including specialized workshops in poetry, personal essays, fairy tales, myths and fables, screenwriting, and game design, taught by professional authors and artists. Programs run seasonally and use a Pay-What-You-Can Tuition model to ensure accessibility.

Provides in-school creative writing instruction and after-school enrichment programs as a registered vendor with the New York City Department of Education, including a student publication project at Columbia Secondary School and partnerships with schools like Amistad Dual Language School.

Offers hands-on storytelling workshops that integrate tactile arts such as bookbinding, weaving, paper sculptures, clay modeling, and kandi bracelet-making to help youth create narrative worlds through craft. These workshops are offered during after-school hours and special sessions.

Produces and publishes student writing through printed anthologies and Uptown Ink, a digital magazine featuring fiction, poetry, essays, comics, and news by students. Each workshop concludes with a celebratory reading and a published anthology, making all participating students published authors.

Supports youth collectives that use writing and voice to address citywide issues and fosters leadership development by transitioning former students into teaching roles, such as leading their own workshops or teaching kandi bracelet-making classes.

Funds a one-year fellowship including a $10,000 stipend and mentorship by a professional screenwriter to support an emerging screenwriter (aged 18–25) in writing an original screenplay. The fellowship also includes a 12-month ISAConnect membership through a partnership with the International Screenwriters’ Association.

Provides access to storytelling education through writing workshops for underserved populations including veterans, incarcerated individuals, first responders, disaster survivors, immigrant and refugee communities, LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, people living with chronic illness, and others facing systemic barriers. The organization conducts approximately one workshop per month, including remote formats during the pandemic, and has delivered workshops in locations such as Landstuhl, Germany, and Columbus, Ohio.

Produces and shares writing prompts (e.g., prompts 274 and 275) as part of an ongoing series to encourage storytelling and creative expression among broader audiences.

Provides ongoing support to alumni of writing workshops, helping them publish memoirs, fiction, children’s books, screenplays, and other works, including through mentorship and resources. Supported the publication of a memoir by participant Cindy Crystal.

Awards $8,000 annually in college scholarships to U.S. high school seniors through an essay contest highlighting independent thought, speech, or action, receiving over 4,000 submissions in 2026.

Supports policy change by advocating for "Reasonable Childhood Independence" laws, contributing to the passage of such bills in eleven states and inspiring federal "Let Grow" legislation.

Developed and distributed a Clinical Therapy Manual (also called Independence Therapy Manual) based on a pilot study showing increased independence as an effective intervention for childhood anxiety.

Provides free, ready-to-use curricula—including The Let Grow Experience and implementation support—for K-12 students and parents to build agency and confidence through independence, available via shared Google Drive and direct distribution.

Delivers a structured program in public and private K-8 schools that encourages children to independently try new tasks, supported by a free, full-year curriculum for students and parents accessible via shared Google Drive.

Provides a searchable Community Toolkit with resources, outreach tools, and external links to support local efforts in promoting child independence.

Runs school-based Play Clubs where children engage in unsupervised, screen-free play before or after school with minimal adult intervention beyond safety oversight; includes programs such as the twice-weekly club at Discovery Ridge Elementary with 72 participating students.

Hosts a recurring challenge inviting children to submit photos, videos, and stories documenting their independent activities to promote confidence and self-reliance.

Shares crime statistics and other evidence-based information with parents to counter fear-based parenting and support safe, independent childhood experiences.