Youth4AM’s “Leadership Program” is a 5-year leadership development program for high school students looking to learn managerial, interpersonal, and public speaking skills. While volunteers work together to manage a “business” in the form of a SHSAT tutoring camp, they not only earn community service hours but also valuable soft and hard skills that are applicable in college and beyond. Starting out as teacher assistants, students take on senior roles like managers or directors as they progress through high school and take on more responsibilities. Below is a comprehensive outline of the program that describes each role and our past leaders!

Current Leadership (Summer 2023)

  • Program Manager: TBA
  • TA Directors: TBA
  • Admin Manager: TBA
  • IT Manager: TBA
  • Academic Manager: TBA
  • Marketing Manager: TBA
Position Requirements Description Skills Learned (Cumulative)
TA
High School Freshman and Sophomores
  • Assist instructors during live sessions and manage students’ attendance and class behavior
  • Tutor students in ELA and/or Math and evaluate their performances before providing feedback for improvements weekly
  • Create weekly score reports for parent
  • Time Management (Learn to adjust to increased responsibilities and how to prioritize tasks)
  • Communication (Learn business etiquette and writing in emails, letters, etc.)
  • Interpersonal (Learn to develop listening skills and work in a team setting)
  • Public Speaking (Classes with experienced professors and presentation assignments)
  • Organization (Creating presentations, lesson plans, and homework plans)
  • Hard Skills (Excel, Google Sheet, data analysis)
TA Leader
High School Sophomores (if they performed well previously) and Juniors

Assume responsibility for two roles: TA Leader and Project Team Member

TA Leader
  • Allocate and oversee the work of a group of 5-10 TAs and their students
  • Responsible for keeping their group on task and evaluating and providing feedback for TAs and students weekly
Project Team Member
  • Collaborate with project team members to complete team deliverables
  • Leadership (Combination of being responsible and having organization skills and interpersonal skills)
  • Conducting Meetings (Learn to create meeting agendas and hold efficient and effective meetings)
  • Conflict Management (Understand how to resolve issues between students, TAs, and parents in their group. 
  • Feedback (Learn to review and critique content)
  • Organization (Including working with spreadsheets)
TA Manager
High School Juniors (if they performed well previously) and Seniors
  • Includes: Academic Team Manager, Marketing Team Manager, IT Team Manager. Funding Team Manager, and Future Team Manager
  • Lead project team with TA Leaders as team members
  • Train and guide TA Leaders in their responsibilities
  • Leadership (Expand on leadership experience as a TA Leader)
  • Strategical Thinking (Learn to think ahead, manage deadlines, and keep track of team progress)
  • Project Management (Learn to organize, communicate, and execute projects with a team efficiently)
  • Program Logistics (Begin working with program leaders in planning for overall administration)
TA Director
High School Seniors, College Students
  • Oversee all TAs, TA Leaders, and TA Managers for all program logistics 
  • Manages team projects
  • Report to Project Directors
  • Leadership (Expand on leadership experience as TA Director)
  • Program Logistics (Take a bigger part in program planning and execution, including events, recruitment, etc)
  • Communication (Greater degree of communication with all positions)
  • Taking Initiatives (Learn to make appropriate decisions, oversee projects, and ensure the program runs smoothly)
Program Director
College Students
  • Oversee program logistics by collaborating across teams and NYRA staff to ensure consistent communication and maximize efficiency
  • Manage TA Leadership Team and Project Teams by delegating responsibilities and providing feedback to successfully run Youth4AM
  • Leadership (Expand on leadership experience as Program Director)
  • Program Logistics (Take a bigger part in program planning and execution, including events, recruitment, etc)
  • Communication (Greater degree of communication with all positions)
  • Taking Initiatives (Learn to make appropriate decisions, oversee projects, and ensure the program runs smoothly)

Testimonials

It’s rare to see many like-minded driven individual working together, but I was able to experience this through Youth4AM. It was extremely rewarding to work with Youth4AM tutors and supervisors who work to positively impact the Asian American community and support the culture of paying it forward!
Kristie
Program Director - Cornell University
"As I read more about [Youth4AM’s] history and their mission, I realized that our values of diligence and self-improvement align. I saw myself thriving in a meritocratic environment where I could assist students and grow as an individual. Over the past 6 weeks, I learned many applicable soft skills, namely leadership and teamwork… I have felt myself gain confidence and grow into a leader."
Jacky
IT Manager - Stuyvesant High School
"In these last 6 weeks, I experienced how it feels to be a teacher and I realized why teachers like teaching in general. It’s because seeing someone’s growth is a feeling unmatched by any other. Students may have initial struggles with solving certain questions and, as their TA, it’s my duty to teach them a strategy so that next time they would be able to do it by themselves. Seeing this idea come to reality through my students’ improvements in their homework and mock tests makes me feel extremely proud."
Nicholas
Teacher Assistant - Hunter College High School
"Seeing how much effort the students have put to improve their SHSAT score, it has inspired me to work hard this summer as well. It was through this program that I have once again learned the balance between work and break and the power of time management. These 6 weeks have been an enjoyable opportunity and I will miss this experience once the school year starts again."
Kevin
TA Assistant - Bronx High School of Science
"At the time, there was much controversy surrounding legislation to ban the SHSAT. As an Asian American student at a specialized high school, I've been looking for ways to help my community. Throughout the course of the program, my responsibilities included moderating the morning teaching sessions with Mr. Gregory and working with my fellow TAs to help students review homework and mock tests."
Kira
TA Assistant - Queens High School for the Sciences at York College

Past programs

Youth4AM 2020 Program

At the center of Youth4AM’s projects is project management. Led by seasoned corporate executives and entrepreneurs, incoming TAs learned about the characteristics and qualities of a leader and how to manage big projects more efficiently. The powerpoint below covers the fundamental steps of project management: Planning, Allocation, Execution, and Evaluation. Leadership attributes such as being responsible, committed, reliable, and taking initiatives are emphasized as well.

Project Management Powerpoint

Academic                      Future Conference                  IT                     Communication             ADMINISTRATION
Youth4AM 2019 Program
Source: Sinovision net

Past Leadership

SUMMER 2022
  • Program Manager: Edward Wu (Stuyvesant High School)
  • TA Directors: Jefford Shau (Stuyvesant High School), Ethan Lam (Stuyvesant High School), Anna Fang (Stuyvesant High School), Eric Shau (Carnegie Mellon University)
  • Admin Manager: Stanley Zheng (Stuyvesant High School)
  • IT Manager: Shanell Zou (Stuyvesant High School)
  • Academic Manager: Zihan (Max) Zeng (Stuyvesant High School), Emily Hsu (Bronx High School of Science), Sabrina Chen (Stuyvesant High School)
  • Marketing Manager: Priscilla Xu (Bronx High School of Science), Katherine Zhao (Stuyvesant High School)
Summer 2021
  • Program Directors: Kristie Chu (Cornell University), Clara Lam (Carnegie Mellon University)
  • TA Directors: Matthew Hui (Cornell University), Edward Wu (Stuyvesant High School), Ethan Lam (Stuyvesant High School)
  • Admin Manager: Jefford Shau (Stuyvesant High School)
  • IT Manager: Jacky Chen (Stuyvesant High School), Eric Shau (Carnegie Mellon University)
  • Academic Manager: Matthew Hui (Cornell University), Edward Wu (Stuyvesant High School)
  • Marketing Manager: Vicky Liu (Stuyvesant High School), Priscilla Xu (Bronx High School of Science), Katherine Zhao (Stuyvesant High School)
  • College and Career Development: Ethan Lam (Stuyvesant High School)
Fall 2020
  • TA Directors: Matthew Hui (Cornell University), Edward Wu (Stuyvesant High School), Ethan Lam (Stuyvesant High School)
  • Admin Manager: Jefford Shau (Stuyvesant High School)
  • IT Manager: Jacky Chen (Stuyvesant High School), Eric Shau (Carnegie Mellon University)
  • Academic Manager: Matthew Hui (Cornell University), Edward Wu (Stuyvesant High School)
  • Marketing Manager: Vicky Liu (Stuyvesant High School), Priscilla Xu (Bronx High School of Science) 
  • Future Conference: Ethan Lam (Stuyvesant High School)
Summer 2020
  • TA Directors: Clara Lam (Carnegie Mellon University), Kristie Chu (Cornell University)
  • Academic Managers: Matthew Hui (Stuyvesant High School), Edward Wu (Stuyvesant High School)
  • Marketing Managers: Melanie Ng (Harvard University), Vicky Liu (Stuyvesant High School)
  • Future Conference: Ethan Lam (Stuyvesant High School)
  • IT Manager: Jacky Chen (Stuyvesant High School), Jeanna Chen (Brooklyn Tech), Eric Shau (Carnegie Mellon University)
Summer 2019
  • TA Director: Kevin Chen (Cornell University)