BroSis Torchbearer Institute
Our Results:
With roots in Harlem and a reach around the world, we serve as a national model for social justice education. We train school and community-based educators across the country on our pedagogical approach to youth development.
OVER THE PAST TWO DECADES:
Educators Trained
ORGANIZATIONS
YOUNG PEOPLE Served
THE TORCHBEARER INSTITUTE OVERVIEW:
OUR WORK
Building on more than 20 years of training initiatives, we’re now launching the Torchbearer Institute to elevate and expand our legacy of impact across the country and around the world.
As a professional development hub offering training, coaching and programmatic resources, the Institute develops educators and youth workers to be Torchbearers in their own communities- illuminating opportunities for young people to discover their own paths to liberation.
From local organizations to national nonprofit networks, and from individual classrooms to large school districts, we guide trainees in adapting our model to provide transformative programming for young people.
By joining the Torchbearer Institute’s professional community, you’ll gain tools to strengthen your programming and deepen your impact. Together, we’re ensuring more young people have the support they need to build the future they want to see.
OUR IMPACT
Over the last two decades, we’ve trained over 3,000 educators at more than 300 organizations to adapt BroSis’ youth development model to their local contexts. Collectively, these educators have supported 25,000 young people across the nation and world. Over the past ten years, training participants have rated their experience an average score of 4.9 out of 5.
Through personalized coaching, we’ve guided leaders to launch effective school and community-based youth programs in NYC, Washington D.C., Boston, Bermuda and Brazil.
We have shared nearly 5,000 copies of our curriculum and published two anthologies of youth voices.
Together, these tools offer educators a wealth of actionable insights to improve their practice and amplify their impact.
OUR OFFERINGS :
TRAINING
We also develop customized training to support specific organizational needs. Training topics include holistic youth development, culturally relevant education, restorative justice practices, youth organizing and more.
COACHING
RESOURCES
We’re constantly expanding our resource offerings to reflect the latest social issues and teaching strategies. In addition to our print curriculum and anthologies, our online curriculum database includes a wide range of resources, including icebreakers and bonding activities, youth workshop lesson plans and project-based learning guides.
MORE INFORMATION
To get more information on our Torchbearer Institute contact us at [email protected]
Torchbearer Institute trainings are adapted to each organization’s needs and can cover a range of topics, including:
- “Rites of Passage” youth programming that supports the development of a strong ethical and moral code
- Youth organizing programming
- Culturally relevant education
- Holistic youth development
- Restorative justice practices
- Curriculum and workshop development and facilitation
- School and organizational culture building
- Youth leadership development
“THE QUALITY OF THE INSTRUCTORS/FACILITATORS WAS SECOND TO NONE. THE CONTENT WAS DELIVERED IN AN EASY-TO-UNDERSTAND MANNER, AND EVEN THOUGH THIS IS AN AMBITIOUS PROGRAM. THE INSTRUCTOR GIVE YOU CONFIDENCE THAT IT IS POSSIBLE TO IMPLEMENT”.
“THANK YOU FOR RENEWING MY SENSE OF PURPOSE AS AN EDUCATOR”.
ADVANCING RESTORATIVE JUSTICE IN NEW YORK CITY SCHOOLS
BroSis helped the NYC Department of Education envision a school model that would integrate the BroSis Rites of Passage program into the school day, ensuring all students can experience the program throughout their years in high school.
BroSis provided training and coaching over the course of the first year, and BroSis alumni were hired as support staff in each school.
Crediting the BroSis model with creating a supportive school culture rooted in restorative justice, one school achieved:
WITHOUT A SINGLE STUDENT SUSPENSION.
%
FOUR-YEAR GRADUATION RATE.
%
OF GRADUATES FROM THE FOUNDING CLASS GAINED COLLEGE ACCEPTANCE.
OPENING OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUTH LEADERSHIP IN BOSTON
Through our long-standing partnership with the Charles Hayden Foundation, we provided professional development to eight Boston schools seeking to better support Black and Latinx young men.
Through this training, educators learned to implement our Rites of Passage model. Throughout the first year of implementation, we also hosted monthly coaching calls to provide guidance in the areas of curriculum development, workshop facilitation and participant retention.
Within five years, coaching participants launched an independent 501c3 with full-time staff and amplified impact.
%
OF PILOT PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL.
YOUNG MEN PARTICIPATE EACH YEAR, BUILDING SKILLS TO TRANSFORM THEIR FUTURES AND COMMUNITIES.
EMBOLDENING YOUNG MEN OF COLOR IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
In partnership with schools across Washington D.C., BroSis has provided guidance in designing and launching a city-wide initiative to better support young men of color.
BroSis has helped develop a program model and provided trainings for 22 educators from six schools over the past two years.
TRANSFORMING LIVES IN BAHIA, BRAZIL
BroSis co-founder, Jason Warwin, provided professional development support to a group of four Brazilian educators.
Rooted in the BroSis Rites of Passage model, these educators established a youth development program in Arembepe, Bahia, Brazil.
After more than a decade of programming:
%
OF PARTICIPANTS HAVE GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL.
%
OF ALUMNI ARE WORKING OR PURSUING ADVANCED DEGREES.
RESOURCES
Through our print publications and our extensive online curriculum database, we equip educators with tools for implementing BroSis’ best practices long term. Rooted in nearly 30 years of program experience and evaluation, we regularly update resources to reflect current events and equip educators with our latest and most effective strategies.
Our digital curriculum database contains hundreds of resources, including icebreaker bonding activities, workshop lesson plans and our content library. Through this database, training participants also gain access to a curated list of external resources and guidance for youth self-assessment, program evaluation and impact measurement.
BroSis’ curricular resources are highly regarded on a national scale. Reviews from leading educators, scholars and changemakers include:
