Institute for Leadership Education Advancement (I-LEAD)

Since 1995, i-lead has worked as an innovative and impactful force for improving quality of life and economic equity in underserved communities in southeastern pennsylvania.i-lead helps low-income clients transcend the primary barriers faced by working adults when pursuing Education, workforce skills, and economic opportunity: time, cost, preparedness, and lack of familiarity with Education and workforce development systems. Nearly 90% of i-lead's clients are women of color between the ages of 25 and 50; more than 50% have children at home. Since its inception, i-lead has helped more than 1,400 nontraditional adult learners earn workforce competencies aligned with higher Education credentials leading to improved economic opportunity. I-lead also works intensively with local partners to develop strategies to overcome the barriers to career development and higher Education attachment confronting system-involved youth. In Pennsylvania, approximately 1,100 youth age out of the foster care system annually. Most often they leave the system with few financial resources, limited educational achievement, and consequently, very limited employment opportunities. 95% will leave the system with no source of income. Though some will have stable relationships with supportive adults, the majority do not. As they emerge from care, many confront challenges such as unplanned pregnancy, involvement with the judicial system, homelessness, and addiction. Nearly half of Pennsylvania's foster care youth remain unemployed four years after aging out of the system.