Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA) Youth Inc
Every child deserves opportunity
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
SmartStart Elementary Education Program
Each year HOLA’s SmartStart program serves over 60 boys and girls, ages 7-11. SmartStart provides academic and tutoring support, helping youth to develop solid reading, writing, math and study skills. In addition, SmartStart staff further support the students and families by attending parent conferences, individualized education program (IEP) meetings and student success team (SST) referral meetings. Attending these meetings allows SmartStart staff to create learning centers that address students’ individual needs.
SmartStart offers a creative environment in which learning is fun and where students begin to see learning as an inherently rewarding, lifelong process. SmartStart is deeply committed to supporting the development of young children as caring, good human beings, as well as scholars. SmartStart’s staff believes that children work harder, achieve more and treat each other with a higher level of dignity when their efforts are visibly and consistently encouraged and valued. SmartStart provides meaningful lessons that address California State Standards and a nurturing community designed to promote the best in our students.
Program Goals:
Improved academic performance
Increased confidence in self-expression
Ability to work well on a team
Bridges Middle and High School Education Program
Recognizing the critical need to support students through the difficult transition between middle and high school, Bridges uniquely spans 6th-10th grade and integrates academic and enrichment offerings, leadership-building, near-peer mentorship, and a focused college prep curriculum that encourages students to begin planning their own college and career maps and includes creating A-G course completion plans, visiting college campuses and introductions to the college application process.
Each year, the program serves almost 80 sixth, seventh and eighth-grade students. In addition to providing academic support, HOLA Bridges students participate in a variety of activities, including music and dance instruction, sports leagues, digital media, photography, conflict resolution and science clubs.
HOLA’s high school juniors and seniors participate in LEAL (Learn, Empower, Aspire, Lead) programming as part of the College and Career Success Program, the capstone of HOLA’s college access and success pipeline. As they continue to participate in academic and enrichment classes, HOLA's juniors enroll in SAT/ACT Prep courses and career readiness workshops, while seniors are paired with dedicated volunteer mentors who work closely with them through the college application and selection process.
College and Career Success Program
The mission of the College and Career Success team is to create a space where HOLA students and alumni are encouraged to cultivate their resiliency and self-efficacy skills. The program aims to empower high school students and alumni to define their own definitions of success and forge their own career pathways.
To accomplish these goals, HOLA alumni are provided holistic supports to facilitate student persistence through the education pipeline. To address the needs in our community, the College and Career Success team provides individualized and intensive support for HOLA alumni. These supports include academic advising, professional development, financial aid advising, financial support through our in-house scholarship program, and empowerment through socioemotional development. The program supplements on-campus resources by providing alumni with toolkits, resources, and opportunities to build their professional and academic identities.
Visual and Performing Arts Programs
Youth Orchestra and Music Department
HOLA’s thriving music department provides over 200 youth with the exceptional opportunities to discover the beautiful world of music through orchestra, private and group music lessons, as well as, choir and a rock band. Through a formal partnership with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, 180 of HOLA’s youngest musicians have the opportunity to participate in a full-youth orchestra program, inspired by the Venezuelan El Sistema youth orchestra
initiative. Students in Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA) spend more than 15 hours each week in ensemble-based rehearsals and intensive music classes. All students receive exceptional instruction from highly professional musicians and also benefit from strong academic support and homework assistance.
Visual Art Department
Each quarter, over 200 students participate in 26 different visual art
classes that follow a multi-level class structure that builds and advances with each successive session. This format provides the young artists with the opportunity to not only progress in their skills, but to build strong and lasting mentor/student relationships with their instructors. Currently, HOLA offers free classes in over 16 different art forms that include: a new public art project, ceramics, painting, drawing, screen printing, car design, printmaking,
photography, architecture, and fashion design. In an effort to broaden students' appreciation for the arts and expose them to a variety of art forms, throughout the year staff engages youth in cultural field trips to museums, art institutes, private art collections, art studios and cultural landmarks and also curates four art shows featuring student art work.
Athletics Program
Each year, 1,800 youth with limited access to athletic activities and safe spaces to play now have the opportunity to participate in free team and individual sports that include: soccer, basketball and flag-football leagues and clinics, as well as swimming and tennis lessons, weight training and yoga classes. Through positive instruction, students are learning the importance of teamwork, diligence, good sportsmanship and an education, while being offered a healthy alternative to negative peer pressure and gang involvement.
Where we work
External reviews
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of donations made by board members
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Other - describing something else
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of first-entry undergraduate program students who identify themselves as 'visible minorities'or 'non-white'
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
College and Career Success Program
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Total dollar amount of scholarship awarded
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
College and Career Success Program
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planHow we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Tech literacy varies from household to household so we are constantly evolving the ways we ask.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA) Youth Inc
Board of directorsas of 03/14/2024
Board President Tom Riccard
President, Modern Finance
Board Vice President Yvonne Mariajimenez
Deputy Director, Neighborhood Legal Services
Alan Adelman
Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer
Chris Robichaud
PMK*BNC
Mitchel Moore
Founder of HOLA
Steven Hauser
Wagner Foundation
J. Warren Rissier
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius
Stuart Koenig
Leech Tishman Fuscaldo & Lampl, LLC
David Dalton
David Dalton Associates, Inc.
Tony Brown
Heart of Los Angeles
Glenn D. Gritzner
Mercury Public Affairs
Peter Schube
Ladder & Light, Inc
Alison Whalen
Formerly of Irell & Manella, LLP
Yvonne Mariajimenez
Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County
Tom Riccard
Modern Finance Company
Steven Cooper
Dew Point Capital
Ray Daryabigi
San Diego Padres
Daniel Floyd
Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc.
Mary A. James
Everychild Foundation
Mauricio Oberfeld
Dugally Oberfeld, Inc.
Paul Schaeffer
Mandalay Entertainment Group
Lisa Shapiro
Former Attorney
P.J. Shapiro
Johnson Shapiro Slewett & Kole, LLP
Sara Mijares Del Fium
SoCal Gas Company
Dr. Gerardo Moreno
UCLA
Debra Dougall
Educational Instructional Services
Fernando Ledezma
LAUSD
Zach Woolridge
J.P. Morgan Private Bank
Carmen Pilao
Board Fellow
Ailen Salazar Bravo
Board Fellow, Ernst & Young
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 03/14/2024GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.