Community Board 11 to expand outreach for Yankees Youth Leadership Award; deadline unsettled

Community Board 11’s Education, Culture and New Services Committee on Nov. 6 moved to begin expanded outreach for the Yankees Youth Leadership Award, a program that honors five local young people at a Yankees game and provides each a $750 stipend.

Committee Chair Alex Ellison said the board selects five winners who “get to go out on the field before the game,” and noted the award’s financial stipend: “They also get a $750 stipend,” he said. Ellison described the basic eligibility as young people who live in the district or perform community service there and are nominated by local organizations.

Members confirmed the program is aimed at people roughly ages 14 to 20 and noted that nominees generally must document about 50 hours of leadership or volunteer work. “I'm not exactly sure what's required to win the award, but I do know that I think it culminates all in a event today at Yankee Stadium,” said Herbert Norad, a committee member.

The group spent much of the meeting identifying outreach channels. DO Taylor, the committee secretary, and other members recommended contacting neighborhood organizations and parent coordinators in Pelham Parkway, Morris Park and Van Nest; civic groups such as Bronx House; local schools including Bronx Science; and neighborhood associations including the Friends of Pelham Parkway and the Pelham Gardens Neighborhood Association.

Cynthia, a committee member who offered to redesign promotional material, said she would produce a simpler flyer for print and social media: “I was gonna do an updated flyer that's a little less busy,” she said, and offered to circulate a version via Canva for committee review.

A gallery speaker urged posting flyers in public libraries and contacting local outlets such as the Norwood News, the Bronx Voice and the Bronx Times to reach parents and grandparents. “Maybe posting them in the libraries to attract parents, grandparents, and kids,” the speaker said.

Committee members also discussed which organizations can sponsor nominations. Participants said the award requires a sponsoring nonprofit and that some nominations may need to come through after-school programs or other nonprofits rather than from individual family members. One committee member summarized: nominees should be “selected by nonprofit organizations from our district,” and the committee asked that materials emphasize that requirement.

There was not a single, final deadline set during the meeting. One participant said the deadline has been Feb. 7 in the past; Cynthia recalled February 28. Members said dates have varied by year and agreed to confirm an official deadline as part of the follow-up outreach.

The committee asked members to share contact lists and circulate the flyer offline; several members volunteered to reach out to partners including college pathway programs and Project Club Clemente. No votes or policy decisions were taken; the meeting concluded with a motion to adjourn that was seconded and the chair announcing the end of the meeting at 7:35 p.m.

Next steps: the committee will finalize the application deadline, circulate the redesigned flyer and contact list, and begin outreach to nonprofit sponsors and local schools to solicit nominations.