Since our founding in the late 1960s, LAYC has grown from a small grassroots recreation center into a nationally recognized agency serving all youth.
Who We Are.
Our mission is to empower all youth to achieve a successful transition to adulthood through comprehensive and innovative programs that address youths’ social, academic, and career needs.
Since our founding in the late 1960s, LAYC has grown from a small grassroots recreation center into a nationally recognized agency serving all youth. Each year LAYC serves over 4,000 youth and families through youth centers, school-based sites, and public charter schools in the District of Columbia and Maryland’s Prince George’s and Montgomery Counties as the Maryland Multicultural Youth Centers (MMYC).
We believe in a future where all youth pursue their dreams, reach their goals, and acquire the skills and self-confidence to live a life of purpose, connection, contribution, and joy.
What We Do.
We create safe spaces to work alongside youth through a variety of services. We provide programs and opportunities in academics, arts and recreation, job readiness, safe housing, and health and wellness to help youth make a successful transition to young adulthood. We support youth to pursue their goals and connect to jobs/employment or post-secondary opportunities so they can become contributing members of society.
A strong relationship with a caring adult is critical to a young person’s ability to achieve success. Our signature youth development model, the Promotor Pathway®, transforms lives by combining individualized support with mentoring and high-quality services to transform lives. The Pathway’s goal is to eliminate as many challenges as possible in young people’s lives.
The Promotor Pathway® has been rigorously evaluated by the Urban Institute. The results show youth enrolled in the Promotor Pathway® are more likely to stay in school, avoid unplanned parenthood, and have stable places to live.
Who We Serve.
We serve all youth, ages 11-24, of all backgrounds. See our demographics.
Our Impact.
Since 1968, we have served more than 70,000 youth and families. In the fiscal year 2024, we served 4,247 individuals, roughly one-third of whom participated in our Maryland Multicultural Youth Centers (MMYC). See more of our impact here.
Increased academic success
Transition to work or competition in vocational/technical education
Improvement in practice of healthy behaviors
Our Affiliations
UNIDOS US
LAYC is a member of the UnidosUS Affiliate Network, collaborating on programs and advocacy to address the social, economic, and political barriers faced by the Latino community
