LAYC's Upward Bound Director Receives Social Justice Award from Dartmouth College

Paul Holzer, who has worked with the Latin American Youth Center since 2002 and who currently directs the center's Upward Bound program, was honored recently by Dartmouth College for his leadership and commitment to social justice.

Holzer received a Martin Luther King Jr. Social Justice Award, which recognizes Dartmouth alumni and current staff, administrators and students who have contributed significantly to peace, civil rights, education, public health, environmental justice or social justice.

Since graduating from Dartmouth in 2000, Holzer has dedicated his professional life to social justice issues. Before joining LAYC in 2002, Holzer trained formerly homeless adults in New York City to work as employees at a Ben & Jerry's scoop shop run by the Times Square Jobs Training Program.

In 2002, Holzer moved to DC to become a GED instructor, education coordinator, and curriculum developer for LAYC's YouthBuild program. He helped successfully transition YouthBuild from an LAYC program to a public charter school, serving as a founding Board member of the YouthBuild Public Charter School. Holzer continued teaching during YouthBuild's first year of operation as a charter school, before shifting into his current role in the fall of 2006.

Today, Holzer is LAYC's director of higher education, overseeing four college preparatory programs for the center, including LAYC's Upward Bound program, which helps high-school students become the first in their families to go to college. Upward Bound offers students academic skill development, college counseling and support, assistance with college, financial aid and scholarship applications, and motivation in order to excel in all aspects of their lives. Students meet on Saturdays during the academic year and participate in a six-week program on the George Washington University campus during the summer. Currently, there are 70 students in LAYC's Upward Bound program.

LAYC Executive Director Lori Kaplan said, "This award recognizes in a formal way what we at the Latin American Youth Center are lucky enough to see every day: Paul is a remarkably talented, committed person who cares deeply about helping young people. He is a gifted teacher, a wonderful listener, and someone who is trusted by students of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to help them figure out the path ahead. Congratulations Paul on your well-deserved award."

Holzer also oversees the following LAYC programs: Bard College, a college-level Humanities course for adult learners; Individual Development Account, a matched savings program for students pursuing post-secondary education; and LAYC's participation in the New Futures Scholarship Fund, which provides resources for low-income youth who are pursuing college, community college, or non-college certification programs.