CEE Centre for Young Black Professionals prepares Black youth for a bright future

BY PAUL JUNOR

It has been over ten years now that CEE Centre for Young Black Professionals has been making a positive impact on the lives of young people all over the Greater Toronto Area.

It was my pleasure to interview Agapi Gessesse, who has served as Executive Director since 2018. She shared with me exciting news, success stories, and interesting developments regarding the work of CEE Toronto. The acronym CEE stands for Career, Education, and Empowerment. Agapi shared a document with me titled, “Strategic Plan for CEE Centre for Young Black Professionals, 2017-2020.” I learned that this organization started as a project with the Black Creek Community Centre with start-up funds from United Way Toronto-York Region Challenge Fund in 2012.

This mission at the outset was to create an initiative dedicated to the economic empowerment of Black youth. Since then, it has grown by leaps and bounds to become an independent non-profit organization. This growth has seen the evolution of its mission to advance the economic and social development of Black youth facing multiple barriers to employment. They help youth achieve career development and job readiness using holistic, person-centered, and culturally relevant programs and services.

CEE began a strategic planning process in October 2016 to flesh out the details about the next three years of operations. This resulted in revision to its theory of change and updating of its mission and values statements. There has been a focus on two core areas since 2016: connecting youth opportunities and systemic and challenge for youth. CEE’s vision is to create a society and economy in which Black youth achieve financial prosperity and high quality of life for themselves and their families. They achieve this by collaborating with Black youth, their families, employers, and the broader community.

Agapi reminded me of the important core value of CEE:

• Person-centered work
• Strong partnerships
• Professionalism and commitment

CEE’s supporting values include the four specific areas essential to the work they do:

• Social justice
• Building community
• Anti-oppression
• Respect for diversity in Black communities

Agapi shared with me all the creative and innovative programs that are in place to reach high school students who are lacking in credits and need to gain them in order to graduate.

Anyone interested in the great work that CEE Toronto does check them out on social media.

Website: https://ceetoronto.org

Instagram: @CEEToronto

Facebook: @CEEToronto

Twitter: @CEE-Toronto