In July 2004, twenty individuals dedicated to uplifting the lives of youth gathered in Lake Tahoe, California to participate in the first Youth Empowerment Seminar (YES!) teacher-training program in the United States. As a result of this training, the YES! program was launched as a small youth community development initiative, with programs taking place during school and summer vacation.

The YES! program began to engage with schools in the fall of 2005. In Los Angeles, New York, San Jose and Chicago YES! was offered as an extra-curricular activity both in school and after school. These YES! programs were successful, with students reporting increased mental focus, improved academic performance, greater ability to manage anger and emotions, improved relationships with their teachers, parents and peers, improved sleep and a host of other benefits.

Since 2004, the YES! for Schools social emotional workshop has been delivered to over 79,000 students. In the 2013-14 School Year, YES! began implementing a daily breathing intervention in select schools. Currently, nearly 9,600 students in 8 schools are utilizing YES! restorative practices on a daily basis. Our primary programming areas are NY/NJ, Chicago, Milwaukee, San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles & Pomona.

As a result of the great success and rapid growth of the YES! program, the leadership of IAHV inquired into how to create a sustainable, scalable impact on the lives of youth. In response to this question, IAHV conducted its first YES! teacher-training program for public and private school teachers in July 2011. Additionally, IAHV developed a student mentor and leadership program that builds on the life-skills and leadership skills learned in YES!

As YES! for Schools grows we continue to explore program development and partnerships to create a sustainable impact that uplifts the lives of youth..