UTEC

UTEC's mission and promise is to ignite and nurture the ambition of our most disengaged young people to trade violence and poverty for social and economic success. Founded in 1999 by youth in Lowell, UTEC now serves impact young adults living in Lowell, Lawrence, and Haverhill, MA. UTEC’s nationally recognized model begins with intensive street outreach and gang peacemaking, reaching out to our most disconnected young adults to meet them “where they are.” Each young person in our target population (ages 17-25, with a history of serious criminal and/or gang involvement) receives up to three years of intensive case management. UTEC provides paid work experience through our social enterprises within a transitional employment framework. We provide alternative education through tutoring, HiSET/GED preparation, and dual-enrollment opportunities to earn community college credits. Social justice and civic engagement are embedded in all programming, with special emphasis in our organizing and policymaking work, locally and statewide. UTEC’s three primary outcomes are: reduced criminal involvement, increased employability, and increased educational attainment. Driven by evidence-based data, the recidivism rate of UTEC-enrolled young adults averages less than 20%, compared with a statewide average above 50%.