The Social Impact Accelerator is a free, virtual program where you’ll develop the tools to foster positive change in the world around you. We are excited to add a new rung to the AMIGOS Leadership Ladder and support your development as a young leader throughout this program.
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The Social Impact Accelerator is a virtual, bilingual program that builds off your previous AMIGOS experience. Through this action-focused accelerator, you will bring ideas to reality by implementing a service project in your community. You’ll reflect on challenges facing your own community, brainstorm solutions, engage with stakeholders, and implement an impactful service project. Through the process, you will draw on lessons from your time in AMIGOS and the experiences of young people throughout the region tackling difficult social challenges.
The Social Impact Accelerator is underwritten by the generous support of Capital Plus Financial. As a community development financial institution (CDFI), Capital Plus Financial provides capital to markets identified as underserved by the community. Capital Plus Financial focuses on homeownership in these underserved markets which will result in positive economic and social impact to the community. This partnership between AMIGOS and Capital Plus Financial is an exciting step for both organizations to further their commitment to communities in Texas, across the United States, and the region of the Americas.
The Social Impact Accelerator is donor-supported, which means it is free to join! You are also eligible for a baseline of 30 service hours. It is designed to be self-paced and flexible so that you can fit it into your own schedule.
Through online modules, live workshops, mentorship, and peer collaboration, you will connect with a network of changemakers across the Americas. Additionally, you will have the opportunity to participate in the bilingual AMIGOS Week of Action where you can kick off your project’s implementation while practicing your English or Spanish.
By the end of the Social Impact Accelerator, you will have begun implementing a project that directly benefits your community, which you will showcase at the Social Impact Summit. Volunteers who complete the program will receive $500 of financial assistance to use towards a future AMIGOS program!
Applications for 2021–2022 have closed. Check back this summer to apply for the 2022–2023 class!
Be a changemaker in your community! Design and put into practice a service project that addresses the needs of a community you care about most while utilizing what you learned in your virtual or in-person cultural immersion experience.
The Social Impact Accelerator is open to high school students in the U.S. or Latin America who have already completed an AMIGOS program, either virtually or in-person.
The application for the Social Impact Accelerator will help you start thinking about the community you want to serve and its different needs. Once applications are received, a diverse group of AMIGOs stakeholders will review and select the volunteers for the 2021 cohort! This is a competitive selection process and spots are limited.
This project will be done individually, but your cohort and mentors will have your back every step of the way. You can also work with a local organization!
Yes, collaborating with a local organization is a great way to gain insight from professionals working on issues related to your project. For example, if you want to help alleviate poverty in your community, you can connect with a local food bank for support and to hear their experience. However, solely doing community service at the organization (e.g. volunteering 3 hours of your time at the food bank) is not considered a complete project. In the case that you are already working or plan to work at an organization, you could consider creating a service project alongside the work that you do.
This program is designed to be flexible and self-guided so that it can fit easily into your schedule. The projected time commitment is 7-8 hours per month, which is broken down into workshops, small group and mentor meetings, and asynchronous work. There will be one, 2-hour workshop per month in addition to a 1-hour meeting with a small group of members in your cohort once per month. The workshops and small group meetings are required. The 1:1 mentor meetings are optional and are available through sign-up. While there is a timeline for the program, asynchronous work can be completed whenever you have time in your schedule.
The workshops will be held on Wednesday evenings once a month.
Expect to work 2 hours a week, whether that is the 2-hour workshop, 2-hours of asynchronous work, or 2-hours of small group/mentor meetings.
To give an example, the cohort has the 2-hour workshop in the first week, so you decide not to do any more work that week. The next week, you decide to do 2 hours of asynchronous work. The third week, you have your small group meeting and a 1:1 mentor meeting, which takes about 2 hours in total. After receiving feedback from your meetings, you decide to work 2 hours on your project in the fourth week, which makes 8 hours for the entire month.
A project and its implementation can take many forms. Here are a few examples:
Welcome to the Social Impact Accelerator! We will hold a short kickoff meeting to review the timeline and expectations of the accelerator so that we are ready to get started during our first workshop.
We will hit the ground running in our first workshop on October 6 where you will meet your cohort and begin exploring your project. In addition to the first workshop, you will get a chance to meet with your small group for the first time and sign up for a 1:1 mentor meeting. Throughout the month, you will also work through Design Thinking modules 1 and 2 to help you define your community and its needs.
The fun continues as we start the second workshop with a game night to get the creative juices flowing! This workshop on November 3 will get you started on the path of brainstorming project ideas and creating a prototype, which will help you prepare for the AMIGOS Week of Action. The Week of Action is a full week where you and others across the Americas will implement a one-time event related to your service project. This event can be anything you want it to be. Maybe you want to launch the website you have been working on, lead a socially distanced food drive, or organize a park clean-up with friends.
In your small group meeting and 1:1 mentor meeting, you will be able to receive feedback and support for your initial project design and event. During asynchronous time, you will work on your event for AMIGOS Week of Action and use the Design Thinking modules 3 and 4 to further help you navigate the process of ideation and prototyping.
This is an exciting month where your project starts coming to fruition! The third workshop on December 1 will be a space to get the last-minute details into place so you’re ready for the AMIGOS Week of Action. Additionally, you will complete the Design Thinking module 5 in order to test run your event before implementation. Get ready to shake out your preparation nerves because we are doing a full-cohort dance challenge!
As mentioned above, during the AMIGOS Week of Action, you will implement your event to kick off your service project. Throughout the rest of the month, you will get to meet with your group and mentor to discuss the successes and challenges of your event!
Be proud of what you’ve accomplished so far! In the fourth and final workshop on January 5, you will prepare for the Social Impact Summit where you get to share the progress and impact of your project and hear from the rest of your cohort about theirs. After the Summit, we will hold a graduation for everyone who completes the program where you will receive service hours and your $500 award towards a future AMIGOS program.
El Acelerador de Impacto Social es un programa virtual gratuito en el que desarrollarás diferentes herramientas para generar un impacto positivo dentro de tu comunidad. Estamos muy entusiasmados de continuar generando oportunidades para que los jóvenes sigan ascendiendo la escalera de liderazgo de AMIGOS y a la vez continúen desarrollándose como líderes.
El Acelerador de Impacto Social es un programa virtual bilingüe que se basa en tu experiencia previa con AMIGOS. A través de este acelerador, materializarás tus ideas y las harás realidad con la implementación de un proyecto de servicio para tu comunidad. Reflexionarás acerca de los retos a los que se enfrenta tu propia comunidad, aportarás soluciones, te involucrarás con los miembros de dicha comunidad y pondrás en marcha un proyecto de servicio que tendrá gran impacto. A lo largo de este proceso, sacarás provecho de las lecciones aprendidas mientras participaste en algún programa de AMIGOS y de las experiencias del resto de jóvenes de la región que posiblemente se enfrentan a diversos retos sociales.
El Acelerador de Impacto Social está respaldado por el generoso apoyo de Capital Plus Financial. Capital Plus Financial proporciona capital a los mercados identificados como desatendidos por la comunidad. Capital Plus Financial se enfoca en la propiedad de vivienda en estos mercados desatendidos, lo que resultará en un impacto económico y social positivo para la comunidad. Esta asociación entre AMIGOS y Capital Plus Financial es un paso emocionante para que ambas organizaciones promuevan su compromiso en las comunidades de Texas, los Estados Unidos y la región de las Américas.
El Acelerador de Impacto Social es apoyado por diversos donantes, esto significa que es gratuito. A través de tu participación podrás ganar un certificado que acredite horas de servicio comunitario (30 horas de servicio). Este programa está diseñado para ser autodirigido y flexible, de modo que cada uno de ustedes pueda adaptarlo a su propio horario.
A través de módulos en línea, talleres en vivo, tutorías y colaboración entre pares, te conectarás con otros líderes en toda la región. Además, tendrás la oportunidad de participar en la Semana de Acción Bilingüe de AMIGOS, donde podrás poner en marcha la implementación de tu proyecto mientras practicas tu inglés o español.
Al final del Acelerador de Impacto Social, habrás comenzado a implementar un proyecto que beneficiará directamente a tu comunidad, el cual expondrás en la Cumbre de Impacto Social. Los/as voluntarios/as que completen el programa recibirán 500 dólares de ayuda financiera para utilizarlos en un futuro programa de AMIGOS.
Sé un agente de cambio en tu comunidad. Diseña y pon en práctica un proyecto de servicio que responda a las necesidades de la comunidad que más te interesa, al mismo tiempo utilizarás lo que has aprendido en tu experiencia de inmersión cultural virtual o presencial con AMIGOS.
El Acelerador de Impacto Social está abierto a estudiantes que ya han completado un programa de AMIGOS, ya sea virtual o presencial.
La aplicación para el Acelerador de Impacto Social te ayudará a pensar en la comunidad a la que quieres servir y en sus diferentes necesidades. Una vez recibidas las solicitudes, personal calificado de AMIGOS seleccionará a los voluntarios para este programa. Este es un proceso de selección competitivo y las plazas son limitadas.
