What is the CHEETA Project?
The Community Hope through Education Empowerment Training and Action (CHEETA) Project is a youth-designed and youth-led internship programof the Portland Housing Authority (PHA) Portland, Maine. It was created and developed by the youth who served as its original members & staff. Since its inception in 2010, it has evolved into an annual paid internship program for youth from low-income families. Over the course of 8 weeks in the summer, youth leaders work in teams to identify community challenges, research methods to impact the needs, and plan advocacy, activities, and initiatives to improve their communities. Throughout the process adult mentors provide training and coaching to support their individual and group goals. At the end of summer, youth reflect on the impact they were able to make on their community challenges. They also explore post-secondary options with college tours, resume development, and mock interviews.
Our Mission
The CHEETA Project is a community-based youth empowerment and skills development program seeking to promote social justice, equity, and diversity by providing service-learning projects and action-oriented activities and workshops. We empower youth to be leaders by facilitating hands on experience with community engagement, project development and management, budgeting, problem solving, and transferrable skills development.
Who We Serve
CHEETA works primarily with multicultural teens living in or around Portland public housing. Focusing on the issues of social justice and conflict transformation, teens from all of Portland’s diverse youth come together to plan and implement change in their community.
Our PartnersCHEETA would not be possible without the support from so many organizations and individuals. Funders over the years have included:
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Our Origins
The CHEETA Project was first developed in 2009 by Katherine Stitham as a pilot Project titled the Cultural Heritage Education and Empowerment Through the Arts (CHEETA) Project. This project was designed as a series of leadership workshops for refugee and immigrant youth which would culminate in a project proposal of the students’ making for a future program that was a direct response to their understanding of the community’s needs.
CHEETA operated over the summer of 2010 with support from the Alliance for Responsible Communities and the Portland Housing Authority, the CHEETA Project worked with 27 middle and high school students to develop a community needs assessment and to discuss topics such as the environment and sustainability, peace education, community and identity, equality and justice, human rights, and conflict resolution. At the end of the summer, four students took on leadership roles in the program and helped to implement the program outlined by the group.
In summer of 2013 the program expanded to Sagamore Village, Kennedy Park, and Front Street with workshops to develop youth leadership opportunities in those neighborhoods. With the expansion of the program under the auspices of the Portland Housing Authority, the CHEETA project now operates through the PHA Study Centers with an emphasis on summer programming & engagement.
CHEETA operated over the summer of 2010 with support from the Alliance for Responsible Communities and the Portland Housing Authority, the CHEETA Project worked with 27 middle and high school students to develop a community needs assessment and to discuss topics such as the environment and sustainability, peace education, community and identity, equality and justice, human rights, and conflict resolution. At the end of the summer, four students took on leadership roles in the program and helped to implement the program outlined by the group.
In summer of 2013 the program expanded to Sagamore Village, Kennedy Park, and Front Street with workshops to develop youth leadership opportunities in those neighborhoods. With the expansion of the program under the auspices of the Portland Housing Authority, the CHEETA project now operates through the PHA Study Centers with an emphasis on summer programming & engagement.
