Anne's Haven ~ Women's Incubator and Community Peace Center

Peacebuilders: A Free Teen Leadership and Community Service Program!

Peacebuilders is a high school community service program that will introduce high school students to peacebuilding while giving them the opportunity to strengthen their leadership and teamwork skills by collaborating with their peers to create and implement community service projects.

The program will run from February-April 2026, with weekly sessions on Wednesdays from 6-8 pm at Anne’s Haven. The first part of the program will feature 4 hybrid panel discussions in February. They will cover the following topics:

1. Community/coalition building and leadership (February 4th)
   
2. ·Peace education/ nonviolent communication (February 11th)
   
3. Restorative justice/ Creative Strategies for Peace (February 18th)
   
4. Dialogue/ intercultural communication (February 25th)
   

Each panel will consist of 2-3 speakers from prominent organizations, including BUILD Chicago, the Chicago Commission on Human Relations, Solidarity Heals, and Community Leadership Fellows.

Then, from March-April, students will work in teams to design their own community service projects and, with the guidance of mentors and the help of Anne’s Haven, bring them to life.

Besides raising students' awareness of the importance of peacebuilding and honing their leadership, teamwork, and conflict resolution skills, this program will look great on their resume and will give some students the chance to fulfill their community service requirements for graduation!

Check out our program flyer...

And Videos from Jacopo DeMarinis, the program director, and Jodi Kay, the program co-director! 

Conozcan a Jacopo DeMarinis, el director del programa, y Jodi Kay, la co-directora del programa!​

• Los estudiantes tendrán la posibilidad de obtener hasta 30 horas de servicio comunitario: 24 horas serán en persona y hasta seis horas podrán ser fuera de Anne's Haven. Los estudiantes deben informar sobre las actividades realizadas y el tiempo dedicado para su aprobación.
  
• Los paneles al comienzo del programa son una parte importante de nuestro programa, ya que inspirarán a los estudiantes a pensar de una manera creativa sobre la gran variedad de posibilidades que ofrece el servicio comunitario. Los estudiantes también aprenderán sobre la construcción de paz, un campo y una práctica de suma importancia en el mundo actual, y establecerán contactos con panelistas de organizaciones destacadas, como BUILD Chicago, la Comisión de Relaciones Humanas de Chicago, Essential Partners, Solidarity Heals y Community Leadership Fellows.
  
• Los programas que diseñen los estudiantes se llevarán a cabo en Anne’s Haven, en su escuela o en la comunidad. Si se realizan en la comunidad, Jacopo estará presente durante todo momento. Jacopo también estará presente en Anne’s Haven. Incluso si se realizan en su escuela, Jacopo estará presente durante toda la ejecución del proyecto.
  
• Los estudiantes se prepararán durante seis semanas para su proyecto de servicio comunitario, el cual tendrá una duración de cuatro horas. Este proyecto puede consistir en un solo evento o en varios talleres/eventos, con una duración total de hasta cuatro horas.
  
• Los estudiantes se dividirán en grupos de cuatro para desarrollar sus proyectos.
  
• Al finalizar el programa, se entregarán certificados de "peacebuilder" a los participantes, y cartas de recomendación a quienes las soliciten.
  
• Los proyectos de servicio comunitario de los estudiantes se promocionarán en las redes sociales de Anne's Haven.
  
• Nos enfocamos en fomentar la creatividad, el liderazgo y la comprensión de la construcción de paz en este programa.
  
• Los mentores brindarán consejo a los estudiantes una vez que hayan elaborado el plan para sus proyectos de servicio comunitario, y ellos recibirán apoyo durante las etapas de planificación y ejecución.
  
• Se reservará tiempo para que los estudiantes se conozcan y conecten mientras comen.
  
• Los estudiantes perderán su lugar en el programa si acumulan más de dos ausencias injustificadas.
  
• Si el estudiante prefiere que se le asigne un proyecto de servicio comunitario, también es posible. Ejemplos de ideas para proyectos de servicio comunitario que ofreceremos a los estudiantes incluyen:
  

1. Sostenibilidad ambiental: lanzar una campaña para fomentar la reutilización de utensilios entre sus compañeros y así reducir el uso de desechables en la cafetería, o colaborar con North Branch Natives para organizar un evento en Anne’s Haven que promueva la recuperación de plantas nativas en nuestra comunidad.
   
2. Justicia social: defender los derechos de los inmigrantes (por ejemplo, colaborar con la Coalición de Illinois para los Derechos de los Inmigrantes y Refugiados para impartir un taller sobre “Conozca sus derechos” en Anne’s Haven. Un representante de la ICIRR podría visitar Anne’s Haven para hablar sobre este tema).
   
3. Bienestar animal: organizar una colecta de alimentos para animales.
   
4. Construcción de paz: organizar grupos de apoyo o crear espacios para dialogar sobre temas difíciles.
   
5. Justicia económica: organizar una colecta de alimentos o elaborar una propuesta política para presentar a la representante estatal Lindsey LaPointe que aborde las necesidades de la comunidad.
   

Y Más Información…

​And Additional Info....

• Students will have the possibility to earn up to 30 hours- 24 hours will be on site and up to six hours can be offsite. Students will need to report what they worked on and the amount of time to have that approved.
• The panel discussions at the beginning are an important part of our program as they will inspire students to think creatively about the wealth of possibilities regarding community service. Students will also learn about peacebuilding, a field and practice which is so important in today’s world, and make connections with panelists from prominent organizations, including BUILD Chicago, the Chicago Commission on Human Relations, Essential Partners, Solidarity Heals, and Community Leadership Fellows.
  
• The programs that the students create will be held at Anne’s Haven, their school, or out in the community. If it is out in the community, Jacopo will be present for the duration of the time. Jacopo will also be present at Anne’s Haven. Even if it’s at their school, Jacopo will be present throughout the execution of their project.
• Students will prepare for their community service project for six weeks and they will create a four-hour community project. This project could be a single event or a couple workshops/events, totaling up to 4 hours. 
  
• Students will be divided into groups of 4 to create their projects.
  
• Certificates for peacebuilders will be supplied at the end of the program, and letters of recommendation upon request.
  
• Students’ community service projects will be promoted on Anne’s Haven’s social media platforms.
  
• We are focused on bringing creativity, leadership, and the understanding of peacebuilding to this program.
  
• Mentors will provide feedback to the students once they have come up with the plan for their community service projects, and they will be supported throughout the planning and execution stages.
  
• There will be time allotted for getting to know each other/connecting while students eat.
  
• Students will lose their place in the program if they have more than 2 unexcused absences.
• If the student would prefer to be given a community service project, that is fine as well. Examples of community service project ideas that we will provide to students include:
  

1. Environmental sustainability, including: Launching a campaign to encourage their classmates to reuse utensils to eliminate the need for disposables in the cafeteria or working with North Branch Natives to create an event at Anne’s Haven to promote the revival of native plants in our community
   
2. Social justice, including: Defending immigrant rights (for example, partnering with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights to deliver a “Know Your Rights” workshop at Anne’s Haven. A guest speaker from the ICIRR could come to the Haven to present about this topic)
   
3. Animal welfare, including: Organizing a food drive for animal food
   
4. Peacebuilding, including: Organizing support groups or creating space for discussion about difficult topics 
   
5. Economic justice, including: Organizing a food drive or creating a policy proposal to present to State Rep Lindsey LaPointe addressing the needs of the community.