Welcome
Advancing Communities Together, Inc. (ACT) is a California based, 501 c(3) non-profit organization. ACT was founded as a non-profit in 2011. ACT began operating its core program, Antelope Valley YouthBuild, in 2007 in collaboration with AV Champions. Advancing Communities Together's main focus is to break the cycles of poverty, violence, incarceration and high school dropouts by supporting, building and transforming the lives of young people, their families and communities through leadership development, academic growth, positive community impact, personal accountability.
In collaboration with various community partners, ACT looks to support young people as leaders of today, building for tomorrow! Our purpose is to assist young people and community members in transforming their lives through providing academic and career readiness opportunities. As well as build and nurture the spirit of young people and the communities they reside in through social justice, advocacy and agents of change
Antelope Valley YouthBuild
Antelope Valley YouthBuild is a leadership development program that offers opportunity youth from the ages 16-30 an accredited high school diploma through our education partner Youthbuild Charter School of California. Our purpose is to offer youth a safe, supportive, and structured learning environment as well as helping them rebuild their communities and their lives. Participants spend six to twenty-four months in our program dividing their time between hands-on construction learning utilizing Building & Trades Multi-Craft Core Curriculum (MC3), career training, and project-based learning.
Palmdale Dream Center
Since opening our doors, we have accepted young adults who may have been emancipated. Aged out of the foster care system, and/or lacked positive support systems, who in their efforts to thrive found it difficult to succeed in society. The current goal of Palmdale Dream Center Representatives is to deliver supportive services to these young adults while they seek success and productivity as the integration into their community and the greater society. This transitional housing facility offers weekly and monthly activities and workshop opportunities while maintaining a positive environment where these young adults can build the support systems and skills necessary for individual and societal growth.
ACT Apprenticeship Readiness Program
Advancing Communities Together Apprenticeship Readiness Academy trains youth in construction related to building and trades which will benefit disadvantaged/underserved populations within the Antelope Valley service area. The training will offer the participants an opportunity for "mortgage paying" salaries, career growth, and full benefits. ACT Apprenticeship Readiness Academy construction skills training will implement North America Building And Trade's - Multi Craft Core Curriculum (MC3) in partnership with:
Los Angeles/Orange County Building and Trades Council, which will provide networking for apprenticeship school tours, guest speakers from trades, and pathways for placement opportunities.
ETA - Elevated 2 ACT
Elevated to ACT is a mentoring and support program. We focus on 3D "Decisons Determine Destiny" which is our group mentoring program. The concept of this program is "Building the Bridge". Our personal bridges are built on making good decisions that anchor and support our Life Plans. This allows for one to be resilient to overcome personal obstacles, choose supportive personal associations that nuture our stregnths and allow for transformation to take place; good decisions are influenced by many factors that surround us and we are personally accountable and responsible (Respond to YOUR ability) for prioritizing them based on our Life Plans.
CO ACT
CO-ACT is an extended branch of ACT dedicated to providing quality opportunities, training and workforce development navigational services for residents of the Denver, Colorado area looking to establish careers in Building and Trades. We currently collaborate/partner with various community serving organizations focusing on re-entry population, underserved communities and others, including Colorado Building Trades Council and NABTU (North American Building Trades Union)