Speak 4 Life- Calling For Spoken Word Artists

Mission Statement

Minds Beyond Measure (MBM), a nonprofit, strives to inspire purpose and passion, to empower and cultivate great minds in children, youth, and teachers to improve educational outcomes in New York and developing countries. 

Background of Our Organization

Minds Beyond Measure (MBM), is a nonprofit, newly established in 2019. It was born from the founder's traveling experiences and living abroad across Asia, and seeing a lack of educational resources and the lack of access to education in some very impoverished communities.  The journey included training teachers, teaching children and youth, visiting rural schools with limited or no resources, and experiencing children and youth who were hungry for small things, often taken for granted in the Western world, such as pencils and paper to write and books to read. This experience then evolved into a passion to serve the underserved, and at-risk and provide access to quality education for both teachers and students through pathways that inspire for life.  This is when MBM was born.

Job Description

What if you could go to your place of employment with a renewed sense of purpose and direction, confident in the knowledge that the work you do contributes to a great cause? When you work with us in the role of Speak 4 Life (R4L) Program Mentor this could be your life. 

We're seeking someone who wants to give back to the community and be a part of making a lasting impact on young people.  By using their passion, creativity, and communication skills (written and spoken), they will strive to inspire, empower, and positively impact young people through a 8-week program, where the focus is provide a safe space for them to develop and strengthen their writing and speaking skills, including resilience, social-emotional, team and leadership skills and lead them toward their freer and more expressive selves.

Please Note: This is a paid opportunity offering $20/hour, however, it requires a mandatory 2-day training program prior to starting which will be unpaid.

Please visit our website to learn more about our program at 

https://www.mindsbeyondmeasure.org/youth-development

If this sounds like the perfect fit, we'd love to hear from you!

Job Duties and Tasks 

• Training (30 minutes a week) in the Speak 4 Life: Where Words & Verbs Make You Right For Life program
• Co-facilitate a group of 10-12 incarcerated individuals with the Program Lead on  
• Evaluate and reflect on program effectiveness
• Raise awareness of the mentor program to others

Job Skills & Qualifications

• Passionate about being a positive role model for young people
• Students studying to be teachers or have prior teaching experience
• Strong desire to positively impact children and youth
• Confident with presenting and performing to groups of people
• Comfortable with being assertive with children when the need arises
• Comfortable working with children/youth in an urban environment
• Strong communication, interpersonal, and team skills
• Excellent organizational skills and time-management abilities
• Creativity skills 
• Available to commit to a full program implementation for 8 weeks (2 hours each week): 1 hour - of lesson preparation and 1 hour of program implementation

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with underserved communities and/or at-risk youth
• Experience and/or a passion to work with correctional facilities/detainees
• Comfortable working with Rikers Prison

Special Note on Riker’s Island 

The Speak 4 Life program will also include opportunities to engage with youth at Riker’s Island, providing mentorship and support through our program. This unique aspect of our program aims to offer hope, skill development, and a sense of community to incarcerated youth, helping them to build a positive future. This will begin as a pilot program (1 - 2 sessions), and if successful, we plan to continue our partnership with Riker’s Island. Additionally, the first session will involve shadowing the Program Lead to ensure a smooth start.

Join us in making a difference in the lives of young people, both in schools and at Riker’s Island. Together, we can inspire and empower the next generation.