Assessment of Youth Development Programs

Sunnyside Community Services (SCS) is a nonprofit organization located in Western Queens that provides a continuum of services to members of all ages in its local community and the broader NYC metro area. SCS requested a Capstone team to evaluate the effectiveness of its two youth development programs - College Readiness Program (CRP) and Grounded and Positioned for Success (GPS). The team first interviewed both internal and external stakeholders, participated in strategic planning meetings with SCS Management, and conducted focus groups to gain a better understanding of SCS’ approach to youth development and how they can be more effective. Next, the team conducted an assessment of the programs, an environmental scan of the competitive landscape, and looked at research on national best practices. The team’s final report focused on strategic recommendations to assist SCS in the determination of the best program model to serve their target youth population in the future.