Youth First Community of Promise

Youth First is Committed to Enriching the Lives of Youth

For over two decades, Youth First has been helping at-risk and underserved middle and high school youth in Andover, Anoka, Coon Rapids and Ramsey identify their personal challenges, develop skills to overcome them, and envision a future beyond their struggles today. Our vision is to build our youth for the future where they are more likely to succeed academically, socially, and civically, regardless of perceived or actual boundaries.  

We are mission focused and one of our core strengths lies in being recognized as a safe place for ALL youth and their families in the community. Across all our programs, we work to remove barriers and prioritize creating a nurturing, inclusive environment that supports learning, personal development, and access to a variety of resources including basic needs items. 

Our focus is to guide youth in developing essential skills needed to transition successfully into the next step of their lives and positively instill values of social responsibility, healthy living, and cultural appreciation and acceptance. 

Our mission is to ensure youth have five fundamental promises they need to succeed:

1. Caring Adults
2. Safe Places
3. A Healthy Start
4. Effective Education
5. Opportunities to Help Others

By experiencing these 5 specific promises, youth are 5 to 10 times more likely to succeed as students, citizens, parents, and employees.

These are OUR PROMISES. By ensuring that youth are given the opportunity to consistently experience these promises, Youth First and its supporting members are building a future where youth are more likely to succeed.