BOOST Network Member Profile
At Project Vida, we offer a one-stop shop to help underserved communities in El Paso access a variety of important services, including primary and behavioral health care, wellness classes, early childhood and other education opportunities, housing assistance, entrepreneurship resources, and out-of-school-time programming.
Project Vida offers several programs to help young people realize their potential. Our year-round After-school Enrichment and Youth Development Program, which serves more than 400 students ages 6-18, offers homework assistance and tutoring, mentoring, reading programs, arts & crafts, aquaponic gardening, outdoor activities, and overall health services with the goal of improving students’ grades and outcomes. We also offer a summer program to keep youth engaged with field trips and guest speakers, as well as “All Stars,” an age-appropriate, curriculum- and evidence-based character development program aimed at building self-confident young people while preventing gang involvement and high-risk behaviors. Lastly, our college readiness program helps high school students navigate the college application process and plan for their future.
From a humble beginning in a small adobe house in the Chamizal neighborhood in south-central El Paso, Project Vida has expanded to now serve youth and families from three locations across the city. In 2021, as we celebrate 30 years of serving our community, we will open the Best Buy Teen Tech Center in the same neighborhood where we started. This Tech center will provide teens in the community with the opportunity to learn new skills via collaborative workstations, 3-D printing, a music studio, sound and video production, and other tech-based capabilities.
We are proud to have been a charter member of the BOOST Network when it first launched, thanks to our partnership with United Way of El Paso County. We enjoy learning from other OST providers in the region and keeping up to date on issues and resources that affect our services and our mission to serve local youth and their families. We especially appreciate that the BOOST Network spans three states and two countries, so that we can stay on top of developments in neighboring areas.