“This next big thing on Eastern Avenue will be coming to a reality and its one of the most exciting things.”
Eric Brown is the Chief Executive Officer of the Grand Rapids Urban League. Speaking at a press conference about the $750,000 grant. It was secured by Grand Rapids Democrat, U.S. Representative Hillary Scholten. Brown says the Urban League can now move forward with the dream it’s been working on since 2021.
“I grew up five and a half blocks from here – I’m about to get choked up but I‘m not going to do that – and having something like this a few decades ago when I was coming up is something I would have been appreciative for.”
The Youth Development Center will likely be a separate wing on the existing Urban League campus on Eastern Avenue in Grand Rapids. It will offer in-school and after-school programs for at-risk youth to encourage academic achievement, college or vocational training, and job placement.
Mother Missy Johnson says bringing new opportunities to local youth is the next step in generations of work.
“When I think of the Urban League, I see it as generational and although today is not your grandfather’s Urban League, somebody’s grandparents benefitted from it.”
Teenager Nathan Johnson sees how it will get students ready to compete in the workforce, especially in STEM careers.
“The youth program in the League teaches us that from the time we wake up in the morning to the time we got to bed at night, everything you do has some science, technology, engineering or math in it”.
Leaders want to move fast, hoping to start construction this fall and open next summer.
