Youth Violence Prevention Center - Kansas City (YVPC-KC)

Sept 2026

In-person 

Wednesday, September 2, 2026
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm

The upcoming ThrYve Systems and Youth Collaborative meeting will be held at Juniper Gardens Children's Campus. Refreshments will be provided.

Location:

Juniper Garden Children's Campus
444 Minnesota Avenue, Suite 300,

Kansas City, KS 66101

Visitors may park in the City Lot #4 located southeast of the CCKC Building.

Please do not park within the circle lot directly outside of the building - these spaces are reserved for Project Eagle parent pick-up throughout the day. 

Exaunce is entering the 9th grade at Harmon High School. While he is not currently involved in any sports, he enjoys exercising, staying active, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

One of Exaunce's favorite memories from this summer was visiting Worlds of Fun with ThrYve. It was his first time ever going, and he had an unforgettable experience. Looking toward the future, he plans to continue participating in the PAL program, earn his learner's permit and driver's license, and work toward getting a great job.

Diego is entering his junior year (11th grade) at Sumner Academy and has been involved with the ThrYve program since his freshman year. Throughout his time in the program, he has grown into a positive role model and a natural leader among his peers, consistently setting a great example through his attitude and actions.
Diego's favorite sport is soccer, and he proudly plays for the Sumner Academy soccer team. His favorite summer experience was attending the ThrYve Boys to Men Camping Trip.
As he begins the new school year, Diego is looking forward to meeting new people and continuing to grow both academically and personally.

Kaliyah is entering the 10th grade at Wyandotte High School. She has been involved with ThrYve since the 8th grade and has continued to stay engaged in the program and its opportunities.

Outside of academics, Kaliyah enjoys swimming, painting, and dancing. One of her favorite ThrYve memories is participating in Youth Entrepreneur Exchange (YEE), where she enjoyed making new friends and connecting with other youth.

As she begins the new school year, Kaliyah is most excited about joining the Wyandotte High School swim team and becoming more involved at school.

Mateo is entering his junior year (11th grade) at Sumner Academy and has been involved with ThrYve since his freshman year. He enjoys being an active participant in the program and values the opportunities it has given him to grow, build friendships, and develop as a leader.

A dedicated student-athlete, Mateo's favorite sport is soccer, and he proudly plays for the Sumner Academy soccer team. His favorite extracurricular activity is being involved with ThrYve, where he has built lasting connections and participated in meaningful experiences.

This summer, Mateo made unforgettable memories attending the ThrYve Boys to Men Camping Trip and traveling to Puerto Rico through the TRIAD Zion Leadership Program. As he starts the new school year, he is most excited about making new friends and meeting new people.

The KU Big Ideas Incubator, a collaborative initiative between the KU Office of Community Impact, AAI, and Jayhawk Extended Learning, helps you turn promising ideas into services and solutions that support communities, schools, youth, and families.

Through a year of coaching, mentoring, professional learning, and hands-on development, six selected teams will strengthen their ideas, test them with potential users, and build a practical plan for bringing them to market. Participants will also receive a $1,000 sponsorship at the conclusion of the program to assist in bringing their idea to scale.

We’ll select the first six participating projects in early October.

ThrYve Youth Advisory Board and Youth Leadership Team member Donovan Richardson recently gained workforce and community engagement experience while supporting the 2026 Big Heart Youth Tournament in Kansas City, Missouri. The event brought together more than 300 youth athletes from across the metro area to compete while promoting teamwork, sportsmanship, and community pride.

Through a partnership with Cerise Hall and the Youth Entrepreneur Exchange (YEE), Donovan assisted with event operations and developed valuable skills in customer service, leadership, and workforce readiness. We are proud of Donovan for representing ThrYve and grateful to YEE for creating meaningful opportunities that prepare youth for future careers and community leadership.

The 2026 Boys 2 Men Camping Trip was a powerful experience for our ThrYve youth focused on leadership, brotherhood, and growth.

Through outdoor activities and meaningful fire-circle conversations, our young men explored the RISE principles, with a strong focus on integrity, and applied the 3 C’s—Character, Commitment, and Consistency to think intentionally about their future career paths.

Experiences like this continue to shape confident, purpose-driven young men.

ThrYve and YVPC-KC recently hosted their first-ever Girls Empowerment Camp at Basswood Resort, bringing together six young participants for a memorable "glamping" experience focused on friendship, creativity, and personal growth.

The camp featured a variety of activities, including bracelet making, tie-dye, fishing, swimming, campfire s'mores, and cooking together. Throughout the experience, participants built confidence, strengthened connections, and created lasting memories.

The camp was a meaningful opportunity to empower young girls, foster leadership, and encourage positive relationships in a fun and supportive environment.

This summer, our Youth Employment Experience (YEE) program focused on the World Cup, entrepreneurship, and technology! 🌎⚽💡Youth visited  Hammerspace Community Workshop and  Makerspace and Chase Bank, where they learned about entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and resources available to support their business ideas.

Youth worked in several groups, with each group receiving a theme from their instructor and developing their own unique business concept. They created branding, developed business plans, and even built AI agents to assist with their businesses. 🤖

To close out the program, each group pitched and presented their business in front of a panel of judges, putting their communication, creativity, and entrepreneurial skills into action. While YEE typically selects one winning business, this year two groups impressed the judges and were selected as winners! 🏆🏆

YEE gave our youth the opportunity to experience what it takes to turn an idea into a business while building teamwork, confidence, technology, and real-world career skills. 💚🧡

ThrYve’s first Talent & Art Show brought the Youth Advisory Board to the stage to share music, poetry, and real stories about violence prevention, hope, and change.

They didn’t just perform—they inspired.

Grateful for the community that showed up to support!

Our ThrYve Youth Leadership Team had an incredible opportunity to visit the University of Missouri–Kansas City (UMKC) on July 8th, 2026 for a day of learning, exploration, and inspiration!

Students participated in interactive economics workshops, toured the campus, connected with UMKC faculty and staff, and learned more about the many academic and career opportunities available through higher education. Experiences like these help our youth envision themselves on a college campus and take the next steps toward achieving their goals.

A huge thank you to the UMKC Department of Economics and all of our campus partners for welcoming our students and investing in their future. Together, we're helping the next generation dream bigger and lead boldly.

ThrYve Youth, enjoyed an successful day together at Urban Air in Overland Park. Our ThrYve youth took on obstacle courses, practiced trampoline tricks, battled it out in dodgeball, and showed off their slam dunks at Urban Air. Through every challenge, they encouraged one another, celebrated successes, and shared plenty of laughs along the way.

We wrapped up the adventure with pizza, snacks, and great conversations and ending the day with stronger connections and smiles all around. 

ThrYve youth wrapped up the summer with an exciting trip to Worlds of Fun! 🎢 Youth were incentivized for actively participating in ThrYve programs and opportunities throughout the summer. During the time, youth developed a rapport and enjoyed riding the rides, spending one-on-one time connecting with staff, and sitting down to eat together at the diner. It was a great way to celebrate their participation, strengthen relationships, and end the summer with fun memories!

The 2026 WYCO Substance Use Summit was held as an effort of the WYCO Recovery Collective and the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP): Behavioral Health Action Team. Dr. Watson-Thompson participated along with other collaborative partners including Max Mendoza (Heartland 180), Mary Beth Gentry (Young Women on the Move), and Angela Dunn (KCK Public Schools) on the State of Youth Substance Use in Wyandotte County. The panelists shared insights from their efforts working with young people and discussed the connections between. The summit provided an opportunity to learn from community partners, discuss current trends impacting youth, and strengthen collaborative approaches to creating healthier and safer communities for young people across Wyandotte County.

LEAD UP Achievers kicked off the 2026 LEAD UP Summer Academy at the University of Kansas! Students got a firsthand look at college life through dorm move-in, a welcome luncheon with Vice Provost Hodges Persley from the KU Office of Community Impact, a KU Admissions presentation, and a campus tour led by university staff. They also participated in interactive workshops focused on dreaming with purpose, personal growth, agility training and preparing for future success.

Achievers connected with current KU students during a student panel, gained valuable insight into college success, and participated in sessions focused on career pathways, leadership development, goal setting, and artificial intelligence.

A recent article, A Comprehensive Community Approach to Preventing Youth Gun Violence: A Longitudinal Study of the ThrYve Initiative, was published in the Youth Journal. The article examines the impact of the ThrYve Initiative, a comprehensive, community-based approach to preventing youth gun violence. Using longitudinal data, the research highlights how coordinated efforts among community partners, youth-serving organizations, and stakeholders can address risk factors, strengthen protective factors, and support safer, healthier outcomes for young people.

The findings underscore the value of collaboration, community engagement, and sustained investment in youth-centered strategies as key components of effective violence prevention.

📖 Read the publication

📰 Read the KU News Article

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Check out our ThrYve Calendar and Community Resource Guide

 ThrYve/YVPC-KC partners, please share your upcoming activities and events so we can include them on the partner events calendar.

PROJECT DIRECTOR

Dr. Jomella Watson-Thompson

MAILING ADDRESS

1000 Sunnyside Ave
4082 Dole Center
Lawrence, KS, 66045

#wethryve
(913) 897-8543
thryve@ku.edu
www.wethryve.org