History: In 1999, the United Teen Equality Center (UTEC) was first established from an organizing movement by young people to develop their own teen center in response to the gang violence during that time. The initial planning of UTEC dates back to 1997, when the Downtown Neighborhood Association (DNA) and the City of Lowell’s Streetworker Program were propelled by a group of teenagers who stressed that there was no place to “hang out” in the downtown area. During this time, there was a high incidence of gang violence between Latino and Southeast Asian youth and, as is today, the downtown area was regarded by teens as the one true “neutral zone,” a safe environment where they can freely socialize without fear of any gang or “turf” associations. As such, both partners quickly realized the need for UTEC to be located in the heart of downtown Lowell. However, after initial funding, UTEC still faced the formidable question of finding a suitable and affordable facility.

After searching for nearly a year without success, UTEC decided to ask the downtown churches for help and quickly discovered that the 6,000 square foot old parish hall of St. Anne’s Episcopal Church was a perfect match. To complete the mix of talent, experience and resources necessary to get the center up and running, UTEC asked Community Teamwork, Inc. (CTI), Greater Lowell’s community action agency, to act as its financial agent. In agreeing to do so, CTI brought a wealth of experience in program management and fund development. As a result of the City’s first partnership between a City agency, a neighborhood association, a local church, and a non-profit management and service provider, UTEC opened its doors in March of 1999.

After celebrating 5 years at this location, UTEC moved to a new temporary location (106 Merrimack Street) in June of 2004 as a result of St. Anne’s need to expand their own religious programming. Having launched a major community rally with over 200 people in attendance, UTEC is now in the process of searching for a new building to purchase as UTEC’s permanent home.

Recent Accomplishments: Since UTEC’s establishment nearly five years ago, it has achieved great success in establishing itself as a sustainable organization, both financially and programmatically. In 1999, UTEC started with one grant, a volunteer staff of three, and an annual operational budget of $40,000. In 2000, with an operating budget of $75,000, the Board hired UTEC’s first Executive Director as their only full-time paid staff. Today, with over 25 diverse funders (private, city, state, and federal), UTEC has an annual budget of $850,000, nine full-time paid staff, and eight inter-related departments within the organization. And equally exciting, we have recently gained our own 501(c)3 status (September 2003) while also maintaining our current relationship with CTI as our fiscal sponsor.

Over the past year, we have seen many accomplishments. Some can be seen through changes in the individual lives of our teens, while others are evident in our program outcomes or life on the street. Today, we now have an active membership of nearly 1,000 young people with 18 different programs and classes offered during the course of every week. This past year represents a particular milestone in building the foundation for youth-led organizing with a focus on systemic change. Most recently, our Video Production Program has been using filmmaking as a tool for creating social change projects, recently completing PSAs that were used as part of a voter organizing campaign specifically targeting young people ages 18-23 (see all videos at www.utec-lowell/media). Teens in our Leadership Team also created a 60-second PSA advocating the need to increase funding for summer jobs.

And one of our largest milestones occurred this past October. Our youth organizing group sponsored Lowell’s first ever Youth Candidates Forum (see news clippings) where all 15 City Councilors attended this forum to hear the concerns and topics that teens identified after months of outreach. The event was a huge success with nearly 250 youth in attendance and served as a solid foundation for building more specific issues-driven organizing campaigns. The success of these and other activities prove that these teens can excel in non-traditional, multi-cultural learning environments.