Development will become a board function, with programming handled by a professional staff member
PROM NIGHT | Youth attending a previous Gayla Prom stop dancing long enough to smile for the camera. Previously presented at SMU by Resource Center Dallas, the prom now comes under the purview of Youth First Texas.
DAVID TAFFET | Staff Writer
taffet@dallasvoice.com
Officials with Youth First Texas have created the new part-time position of youth program coordinator, and the board hopes to fill the job before the end of January.
The new hire will be responsible for program development, implementation and evaluation.
The agency, which serves LGBT youth up to age 22, currently has no employees.
Sam Wilkes had served as director of development and administration, but that position has been eliminated.
In announcing the change, the YFT board called the staff restructuring a reflection of its stronger commitment to core programs.
“We really found that even though we have a program committee, we need a dedicated person,” said YFT Board Co-Chair Chris-James Cognetta.
He said the agency is looking for someone who has experience in youth work, preferably with the LGBTQA community. Other preferences include someone with an education or programming background and who is bilingual.
“We’ve had an influx of LGBTQA Hispanic youth,” Cognetta said.
Most of the Hispanic youth who attend are fluent English speakers, but their parents primarily speak Spanish. He said that it is important to welcome parents having trouble accepting their child’s sexual orientation or gender identity and to answer questions they may have.
“It makes a huge difference when we have a bilingual staff member,” he said.
Development will be taken over by a committee chaired by the treasurer, currently Kevin Mackenroth, and will include two other board members.
“The plan is to launch a sustained giving program from individuals and corporations, and include estate planning,” Cognetta said. He said this was the first time the agency has tried this approach.
Cognetta also said that YFT is in good shape financially.
“We’re going into the first quarter with 30 percent more income than we expected,” he said. “We’re putting more money into programming in 2012 than ever.”
Cognetta said that the core programs will continue. Education instruction includes health and nutrition classes as well as helping youth obtain GEDs or get into college. One of the agency’s recent success stories is a student who applied to Southern Methodist University with the help of YFT, and who is now a pre-law and pre-med student there.
Other YFT programs include the big group on Thursday nights, the gender identity group, self-defense class and Friday night family dinner.
The center maintains a food pantry for emergency situations for youth living on their own.
“We move them over to the SNAP [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program] food stamp program,” Cognetta said. “But we fill the gap until we can get them into that.”
YFT is also trying to take over planning and organizing for the annual GAYLA prom, which has been held at SMU in May in recent years. Cognetta said the new programming director would take over handling the project, which was dropped by Resource Center Dallas.
“We’re looking for volunteers to pull it together,” Cognetta said.
Also, Cognetta said he hopes the new staff member will do more outreach to schools and gay-straight alliances and do “gap analysis” to determine who and what areas are underserved.
“I want to see the center open every evening at 4 and every Saturday night,” Cognetta said.
Currently, YFT is open Tuesday through Friday at 6 p.m., Thursday at 5 p.m. and every other Saturday evening. Cognetta said that many youth go home after school and don’t get out again. Opening earlier would serve more people, he said.
“Finding volunteers who will be there at 4 is a challenge,” Cognetta acknowledged. He said finding a group of people to each devote one Saturday a month to opening the center will likely be easier.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition December 16, 2011.
