The Gazebo Gazette
GULFPORT (GG) — Jake Cook, CEO at Climb CDC in Gulfport, Mississippi, has completed the 2024–2026 YouthBuild Leadership Fellowship, a two-year international leadership initiative developed and hosted by YouthBuild Global, the headquarters for the YouthBuild movement. The initiative brings together leaders from YouthBuild programs across the United States and around the world to cultivate their leadership skills, strengthen the YouthBuild network, and create sustainable positive impact for opportunity youth.
Jake was selected in 2024 for this first-ever global cohort of dedicated international leaders from across the YouthBuild movement for their commitment to personal growth, the future of the YouthBuild network, and opportunity youth — young adults between the ages of 16 and 24 who are neither in school nor employed. They embody the principles of service and transformation at the heart of YouthBuild’s mission.
Jake celebrated this accomplishment alongside 16 of their peers during a completion ceremony with YouthBuild Global on March 19.
Climb CDC’s YouthBuild program has represented a comprehensive, evidence-informed model that integrates education, workforce training, leadership development, and supportive services to address the complex needs of opportunity youth. Through its broader continuum of service, CLIMB’s participants have attained more than 400 high school diplomas and over 520 nationally recognized workforce certifications.
Participants have gone on to junior colleges, four-year universities, military service, and direct entry into the workforce. By aligning programming with regional workforce demands and providing clear pathways to employment, post-secondary advancement, and self-sufficiency, Climb CDC is transforming lives while strengthening the economic vitality of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Climb CDC is one of more than 340 local YouthBuild programs around the world that partner with opportunity youth as they build the skill-sets and mindsets that lead to lifelong learning, livelihood and leadership. In YouthBuild programs, young people who are out of school and out of work reclaim their education, gain job skills and credentials, and become leaders in their communities.
Responding to the urgent need for knowledge, training and opportunity, YouthBuild primarily serves young people who lack a high school diploma and financial resources. As headquarters for the YouthBuild movement, YouthBuild Global unifies and partners with this expansive network, championing opportunity youth as they achieve their ambitions and reach their full potential.
The two-year fellowship is designed to support the leadership of local YouthBuild program directors globally, providing opportunities to strengthen their leadership and organizational development skills, build community and work together to strengthen YouthBuild’s collective efforts in support of opportunity youth.
It offers immersive learning experience with three key components: Leadership and Professional Development; Self-Care; and Peer Support and Community Building. Fellows work together on practices to inform the entire network about positive youth development and program sustainability, influencing the future of policies and practices at all YouthBuild programs. This framework is grounded in YouthBuild’s core values of love, accountability, community, collaboration and leadership.
The YouthBuild Leadership Fellows included four in-person gatherings and multiple virtual sessions across two years, guided by a blend of peer insights, YouthBuild Global staff and external experts.
“Our Leadership Fellows embody the values at the heart of YouthBuild—leadership, service and belief in the immense potential of young people,” said John Valverde, president and CEO of YouthBuild Global. “Over the past two years, these leaders have invested deeply in their own growth and one another. Their leadership will have a lasting impact on the YouthBuild network and the young people they serve every single day.”
With love and respect, YouthBuild partners with opportunity youth to build the skill sets and mindsets that lead to lifelong learning, livelihood, and leadership. At more than 340 YouthBuild programs around the world, young people who are out of school and out of work reclaim their education, gain job skills and credentials, and become leaders in their communities.
To date, YouthBuild has partnered with more than 220,000 young people to dedicate over 52.5 million hours of service benefiting rural, urban, suburban, and tribal communities. YouthBuild Global — the headquarters for the YouthBuild movement — unifies and partners with this expansive network of YouthBuild programs. From training, technical assistance, capacity building, and innovative program enhancements to leadership development, financial stability, and narrative change and public policy, YouthBuild Global serves as a convener, collaborator, and catalyst for the entire YouthBuild movement. YouthBuild strives to create a world where all young people are seen for their potential and power to transform themselves and their communities.
For more information about YouthBuild Global and the YouthBuild movement, visit YouthBuild.org.
(Photo submitted by Climb CDC)
