Justin Harrison | On The Move

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Member for: 1 year 51 weeks

*My Story

I am

I man who’s is compassionate, caring and concerned about the social welfare of people both in my community and globally.

I earn my daily bread

Directing teen services for the San Francisco Boys and Girls Club at Columbia Park.

How my leadership has changed as a result of OTV

On The Verge has given me a clearer sense of my leadership strengths as well as helped me to cultivate my own passions. Becoming more aware of those two areas has completely shaped my life the past three years.

Where I’ve come from and where I expect to be in the next 3-5 years

I’ve come from being a college student with very little direction to being a professional and a leader in the world of Bay Area non-profits. In five 3-5 five years I expect to be an attorney involved in some form of public interest law and highly involved with local politics.

My story of impact

In thinking about my impact I should first clarify that I view the entire San Francisco Bay Area as my community and Alameda, California as being my immediate community. It’s important to clarify that because I work in both communities. In my profession I work with teenage youth in the Mission District of San Francisco. The work I do with youth is around helping them become the best that they can be in the world while also providing a safe space for them to be in. I run leadership programs, academic development programs and safe haven programs for the youth that come to the Boys and Girls Club Teen Center. For many youth the Boys and Girls Club is their only support network in all of those areas.

In my immediate community I serve on the Board of Directors for a local non-profit called Alternative in Action which serves hundreds of youth in a multitude of different venues. My impact there comes from the time I spend helping to raise funds, strategic planning I participate in and general support. Although, I’m not involved in direct service with this organization I believe that what I give helps them to sustain the amazing work they do with young people. In addition I’m currently a prospective board member for the Alameda Social Service and Human Relations Board. I feel that this role will help me impact the city of Alameda’s policy on social services and work towards a more socially just world starting at the municipal level.

On The Verge has played an incredibly important role in my professional and personal life. The leadership skills that I have now and that I am currently using were only discovered and refined as a result of my participation in OTV. The relationships and networks I have now are also directly correlated with OTV and how I learned to create and cultivate them. On The Verge has given me the tools to get here to where I am but sustaining myself and my work will take constant reflection, support from my personal community and the continued relationships with individuals like myself who are working to make a difference in the world.