THRIVE Fellowship
Launched in 2018, the THRIVE Fellowship is a privately funded community leadership/civic engagement initiative designed in partnership with Cities United, an organization created by mayors across the U.S. to stop the loss of life due to violence. It is funded by the William R. Kenan Jr. Charitable Trust, a private foundation that awards grants to educational and social justice initiatives in communities throughout North Carolina, New York, Florida, Kentucky, and beyond.
The Office for Safe and Healthy Neighborhoods lead the inaugural cohort in cooperation with partners such as New Legacy, HEAT Time, the Louisville Urban League, and 15,000 Degrees. Fellowships were offered to young Black men between the ages of 22 and 26 with misdemeanor convictions resulting from current or previous involvement with the criminal justice system. Recently, the first four THRIVE Fellows successfully completed the program resulting in life-changing achievements, which included college work; lobbying in Washington, D.C., through #cut50, a national effort to reduce the prison population while making communities safer; and full-time employment.
The fellows worked as Metro employees through their training on topics including civic engagement, leadership development, case management and workforce training.
While the inaugural cohort is complete, we encourage you to check back for future announcements about THRIVE.
For more information about the inaugural cohort, click here.
