About UCAN & YLA

Held annually in June, the Youth Leadership Awards is UCAN’s flagship fundraiser that celebrates the academic and personal achievements of UCAN’s outstanding youth. Each year, seven exceptional young people are recognized and receive scholarships for higher education.

This year, as we look forward to celebrating 25 years of stability and growth. it is gratifying to know that we have rewarded outstanding youth around Chicago with scholarships. We continue to provide them with opportunities and exposure to excel as great leaders in our community.

UCAN remains focused on our vision that youth who suffer trauma can become our future leaders. We do so by building strong youth and families through compassionate healing, education, and empowerment. Founded 154 years ago as a Civil War orphanage, UCAN is one of Chicago’s oldest yet most innovative social service agencies.

UCAN has grown into a multifaceted social service organization serving and impacting over 9,100 youth and families each year. We help our youth reach the Power of their Potential by strategically developing a holistic, lifelong relationship with everyone.

We believe that our inspiring programs help to break cycles of violence and abuse while instilling a powerful sense of hope for the future. Our team strives to support our young people and advocate for change by providing essential services to communities in need. For example, UCAN therapists host virtual sessions for our youth; our residential programs continue to provide shelter and direction, and our violence prevention and intervention team is ever present in the streets with a laser focus on reducing gun violence.

For more information about UCAN, please visit https://ucanchicago.org/.