GA's March 2022 Newsletter

Building Connections, Building Character

March 2022 Newsletter

2022 Spring Break Camps

Spring Break is almost here! This year, GA will host elementary, middle, and high school spring break camps at 9 locations across Miami-Dade and Broward Counties. All camps are free and will take place from March 21 – 25,2022.

To find out how to enroll youth, please contact us at info@myga.org.

Nailed IT DIY Studios

5139 North University Drive, Lauderhill, FL 33351

Open to middle school students

GA Central Office

6620 North Miami Ave, Miami, FL 33150

Open to BLOC middle school students

Grace Haitian United Church

6501 N. Miami Ave., Miami, FL 33150

Open to high school students

Horace Mann Middle School

8950 NW 2^nd Ave, El Portal, FL 33150

Open to Horace Mann students

Tabernacle of God

9201 NW 8 Ave., 33150

Open to GPS students

Homestead PAL

600 SW 14 Ave., Homestead 33030

Open to GPS students

Verde Gardens

12550 282nd St, Homestead 33033

Open to GPS students

North Miami Church of Nazarene

1195 NW 124th st, N. Miami 33161

Open to GPS students

Orchard Villa Elementary

5720 NW 13th Ave, Miami, FL 33142

Open to Orchard Villa students

Women's History Month

National Reading Month

For National Reading Month,

Gang Alternative, Inc. will celebrate by hosting a read-a-thon with the theme Read to Lead. Throughout the month, our budding leaders will be able to visit our lending library, give book “Shoutouts,” and have a chance to be recognized in our Reading Hall of Fame.

Additionally, we will be inviting GA staff and community partners to visit our Miami and Homestead sites to read sections of their favorite books with the participants.

If you would like to volunteer, please contact Jeanine Peterson at

305-967-4962 to schedule a time.

– Pillar of Service Spotlight –

Community Upliftment & Partnerships

For over a decade, Gang Alternative, Inc. has served as a community convener, bringing together leaders, youth, and a range of stakeholders to be agents of change. At GA, we facilitate knowledge sharing, inspire and advocate for action, and connect communities to missing resources and opportunities. We believe that stronger individuals make stronger families, which translates to stronger communities. Ultimately, it is only through collective action that true community-level change can be realized.

Services under our Community Upliftment & Partnerships

Pillar of Service include:

Conducting community needs assessments
Facilitating and leading drug-free community coalitions and collaboratives
Convening networks of service partners to offer wrap-around care coordination services
Leading the development of community action plans and strategies based on identified community needs
Convening thought leaders and industry experts to gain actionable insights and perspectives as a means of addressing critical issues and proposing potential solutions

Click to Learn More

Banning the Box

Gang Alternative, Inc. currently operates three re-entry projects to serve individuals who have had involvement with the juvenile and/or adult criminal justice systems. Through these projects, GA offers occupational skills training, free legal services, educational support, and other wraparound services.

Employment is a key component of our re-entry services and helps individuals develop prosocial relationships and provide for their families. Coordination between community service providers and employers is paramount to the reintegration of formerly incarcerated individuals into the workforce and neighborhoods.

Because of the stigma associated with having a background, nearly 75% of formerly incarcerated individuals are still unemployed a year after release. Yet research shows that employees with backgrounds are retained at a higher rate than those without backgrounds.

Our employer partners have created hiring practices inclusive of people with criminal records, a process called “Banning the Box.” These practices include eliminating criminal record questions on job applications and delaying criminal inquiries until later in the hiring process.

To learn more about how your business can begin “Banning the Box,” contact us at info@myga.org.

Check us out!

We spoke with Miami Times about how Bank of America's Neighborhood Builders grant will expand our workforce and career development programs for youth. “The grant funding that we received from Bank of America is going to be invested into our overall college and career development programming, which is the marriage of positive youth development and workforce,” said Icilda Humes, Gang Alternative Chief of Staff.

“It will allow us to bridge the gap and do a better job of guiding our young people who are already participating in various programs.”