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As we embrace a new year, let’s together resolve to end an old crisis: the staggering number of MCPS students who are failing. The Black and Brown Coalition invites you to join together in demanding [...]

Study Bubbles are proving to be bright lights in an otherwise dim school year for teens struggling to learn virtually. In partnership with the City of Gaithersburg and the Identity-run Wellness Centers at Gaithersburg and [...]

At the end of 2020 and into the new year, Identity trained and deployed 72 teens and young adults as Safety Ambassadors. These young people, members of five Identity-run youth centers, completed 40 hours of [...]

Telemundo Washington, DC's Heroes Entre Nosotros (Heroes Among Us) segment honored Identity staff member Yoicy Quintero and Identity volunteer Luis Cortés for their service to their new community with Census information outreach.

A national incubator that supports education innovation to address school inequities is drawing attention to the Black and Brown Coalition. Validating the wisdom of the community to know what they need, Seek Common Ground funded [...]

WAMU 88.5 reports that Black, Brown and low-income students burdened with economic worries and household duties during the pandemic are experiencing "adultification," the expectation of taking on responsibilities usually managed by adults, citing UMD researchers [...]

Gianiree never imagined her Identity internship would lead to testifying in front of the Maryland General Assembly, but there she was on March 9th, confidently speaking out in favor of the Hunger-free Campus Grant Program. [...]

Dear Friends, Today – in the wake of recent acts of hate and violence against people of Asian descent, the Identity community expresses our solidarity with the Asian American Pacific Islander community and promises to [...]

COVID-19 devastated the youth and families in our client community, and for a year, Identity has sustained an unprecedented response to stave off hunger, homelessness, disconnection and despair. Read about how neighbors helped neighbors and community helped community, [...]

Identity Executive Director Diego Uriburu is featured in a May 11 report from WUSA9 about Identity's work to help unaccompanied minors fleeing violence. According to the report, county officials expect 3,000 undocumented children to reach [...]

A May 12 WAMU report in DCist about outreach efforts to encourage COVID-19 vaccinations highlights Identity's work: In Montgomery County, door to door outreach by trusted case workers from Identity....helped to increase testing rates among [...]

A May 23 story from WTOP featured Identity teens: There’s a new mural in Glen Echo Park in Montgomery County, Maryland that celebrates both the 100th anniversary of a famous carousel and a protest that [...]

The Cider Mill Tenant’s Association hosted a community picnic on June 26, and Identity’s Youth Safety Ambassadors pitched in to help distribute food and spread the word about the Latino Health Initiative’s Proyecto Bienestar (Our [...]

On July 6, WAMU 88.5 interviewed two Identity youth, Paola and Stefano, who are part of our Safety Ambassadors program, about their work to get more people in our community vaccinated. In Montgomery County, the [...]

One parent called it “refreshing”, another said it “helped us release many things from our hearts that caused us pain”. They are talking about the new Cafecito por la Tarde program for parents with students [...]

We are so proud of Identity’s Finance Director, Tatiana Murillo, one of only eight women featured in Bethesda Magazine’s article on Women Who Inspire. Tati inspires us every day with her passion for the [...]

We are honored to share that Identity received a letter from The White House recognizing us for outstanding work enabling our community to get vaccinated and protected against COVID-19. President Biden writes, “Your efforts are [...]

From NBC4 Washington: Report Finds Montgomery County Students Fell Behind After Year of Virtual Learning A new report shows many local students have fallen behind in school since the start of the pandemic. Montgomery County [...]

US Representative Jamie Raskin (8th Congressional District) recognized Identity’s Executive Director Diego Uriburu as a Montgomery County Local Hero in the last week of Hispanic Heritage Month. Diego shared that the same potential he saw [...]

The teens in this video are Identity Safety Ambassadors, helping Montgomery County’s Salud y Bienestar (Our Health and Wellbeing) project reach young Latinos by starring in this social-media PSA. Identity’s youth Safety Ambassadors train and [...]

Seventy newly arrived teens gathered at Montgomery College – Takoma Park Campus to talk with each other and trusted adults about their migration experiences and their dreams for a future in the United States. The [...]

COVID-19 devastated the youth and families in our client community, and since March 2020, Identity has sustained an unprecedented response to stave off hunger, homelessness, disconnection and despair. Read about how neighbors helped neighbors and [...]

On December 17, 2021, Diego received the Roscoe R. Nix Leadership Award, the County’s equivalent of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which honors individuals who over the course of their distinguished lives of community service [...]

Last week marked two milestone events in our pursuit of educational equity and excellence for children of Black, Brown and low-income families. Taken together, there was energy, engagement, and a sense of shared purpose to [...]

The Watkins Mill High School Wellness Center is the backdrop for a far-reaching Bethesda Magazine article, “The Young Arrivals”, about teen immigrants to Montgomery County, and their story is told in part through the eyes [...]

Identity youth shared their emotional and very personal stories of migration with Georgetown University’s Collaborative on Global Children’s Issues as the Collaborative launches a series discussions around Innovating Protection for Children, before, during and after [...]

90 percent report greater community connection and feeling welcome and respected More than 150 newly arrived teens, primarily from Central America, gathered at the Montgomery College – Germantown Campus for the second Newcomer Youth Leadership [...]

April 19th saw the launch of a new Lunch & Learn series hosted by Enlace, a joint project of Identity and the University of Maryland School of Public Health that links research and community to [...]

Identity is very excited to announce the opening of a new Wellness Center at Seneca Valley High School! The new center, provided in partnership with Montgomery County Department of Health and Human [...]

From hiking and zip-lining to gadget-making and team-building workshops, this year’s Spring Break was jam-packed with opportunities for Identity youth to have fun while developing new skills and making new friends. Students from Wheaton High [...]

Identity is excited to announce the official launch of Enlace, our joint project with researchers at the University of Maryland School of Public Health (UMD SPH). In Spanish, “enlace” means link or connection. We use [...]

This summer, Identity is running a wide range of activities for kids and their families, from sports and other fun outdoor events to skill-building workshops to give students the tools and support to help close [...]

Two sisters in Bethesda are sharing their passion for LEGO building blocks with Identity youth and enlisting other students across Montgomery County to help. Thanks to their efforts, Identity distributed 100 LEGO kits to elementary school [...]

Students connected to four Identity-run high school-based Wellness Centers swam, climbed and danced the night away from Friday November 11th at 7 p.m. to Saturday at 7 a.m. during a special “Lock-In” event planned with the [...]

The UMD panel at NCFR 2022, November 17th. Left to right: C. Andrew Conway, Amy Lewin, Kevin Roy, Jessica Moore-Solórzano, Martha Yumiseva. Identity’s Encuentros emotional support groups received increased attention in November 2022, as [...]

Montgomery County Public Schools are seeing a spike in the number of youth drug overdoses, according to Dr. Patricia Kapunan, medical officer for the schools– and Identity is hosting a series of bilingual conversations to [...]

Meet Amy Caballero, an intern with the mental health team at the Seneca Valley High School Wellness Center. Amy is working towards her Masters of Social Work at the Universities of Shady Grove, and thanks [...]

This year Identity is bringing Positive Youth Development (PYD) programs to even more students who need extra support to thrive in high school. We are now working in eight additional high schools through a Montgomery [...]

Identity Youth Rebound on Playing Fields
Interest in Identity’s Recreation Program is exploding, as Montgomery County middle and high school students are hungry for new ways to get active, connect with peers, and rebound physically and mentally after a long period [...]

“Thank you for helping us feel good and giving us the opportunity to express ourselves.” “I felt like coming to this event was very fun and also I felt better after sharing what I was [...]

Identity was honored to be inducted into the Gamma Zeta chapter of the Delta Omega Honorary Society at the University of Maryland School of Public Health. We are indebted to our UMDSPH partners, Dr. Amy [...]

This Spring Break, Identity middle-school students participated in activities designed to give their science and math brains a workout while also exposing them to future education and career opportunities. Through a new partnership with Montgomery [...]

The Montgomery County Council marked World Refugee Day with a proclamation recognizing the “rights, needs and dreams of refugees” and the contributions of a coalition of organizations helping refugees in Montgomery County find hope and [...]

Budding entrepreneurs pitched their small business start-ups, from custom-made piñatas and mobile mani-pedis and pet grooming to catering and financial coaching, to a crowd of about 70 guests at the Bohrer Park Activity Center on [...]

Over 250 people celebrated the graduation of 67 Latino parents from Identity’s Parent Leadership Academy | Padres Latinos Conectados at the Silver Spring Civic Center on Thursday June 29th. It was an emotional experience for [...]

Identity youth and program facilitators showcased our Encuentros program in front of a national audience at the 2023 National School-Based Health Care Conference in Washington, D.C. Encuentros is our non-clinical peer-led emotional support program. Through [...]

Identity youth and program facilitators showcased our Encuentros program in front of a national audience at the 2023 National School-Based Health Care Conference in Washington, D.C. Encuentros is our non-clinical peer-led emotional support program. Through [...]

Designed with and for the Latino community, we are really pleased by the increased interest in our Encuentros model of non-clinical peer-led emotional support groups. On July 11, our Executive Director Diego Uriburu’s letter to [...]

Thank you to everyone who made sure 950 Identity students received new backpacks and supplies, so they were ready to learn on the first day of classes. Students in elementary school through high school plus [...]

We are excited to announce that Identity has been awarded two competitive contracts from the Maryland State Department of Education to provide 21st Century Community Learning Centers at two elementary schools with our Jóvenes de Mañana [...]

The newest Identity-managed Wellness Center is now up and running at John F. Kennedy High School where staff are working tirelessly to introduce programs and services to the whole school community. Students flock to the [...]

The power of a community to heal itself in a way true to its culture was the core of a public presentation hosted by Montgomery County’s Office of the County Executive, the Department of Health [...]

One hundred and thirty-seven new immigrant teens mostly came alone and as strangers, but they left with new friends and a feeling of belonging after participating in the Newcomer Summit/Cumbre. The March 14th Cumbre [...]

The youth mental health crisis among teens nationwide inspired The Annie E. Casey Foundation to produce a six-part webinar series to spotlight and share strategies to improve youth well-being – including an episode focusing on [...]

Young people across Identity experienced new adventures, had fun learning and made new friends during our Alternative Spring Break – turning what could be a risky and unsupervised time into a positive and enriching week. [...]

We are delighted to share that Identity Program Director Carolyn Camacho has been awarded the City of Gaithersburg’s Distinguished Friend Award for her longstanding service and significant contributions to the Gaithersburg community. The award was [...]

A series of focus groups of Latino teens, parents and educators in Montgomery County has revealed a troubling disconnect between the scope of the teen substance use problem and the tools to properly address it [...].

Young people from across Montgomery County joined Identity staff for a weekend retreat at NorthBay Adventure Camp in April 2024. Retreats are a powerful way to expose Identity youth to the healing power of nature. [...]

In June, 100 job-seekers and eight employers made real connections during Identity’s first in-person Job Fair. Employer representatives interviewed Identity youth and parents, with the help of our Workforce Development team, when needed for interpretation. [...]

Ileana V. says she has an “entrepreneurial soul”, as she always enjoyed working with customers and providing items that made them happy. “With Identity’s support I was able to learn new concepts to take my business idea to the next level. I appreciate every one-on-one and orientation, the assistance with classes, interviewing skills and constant support. I will be forever grateful.”

Youth Peer Leaders and Identity staff lit up the 2024 National Association for Community and Restorative Justice (NACRJ) Conference last week with an inspiring presentation on Identity’s youth Encuentros program, which supports and empowers teens...