Soto, Mercedes, 2007 March 2

Mercedes Soto, who grew up in Gary, Indiana, describes her involvement in LEAP since 1995. LEAP, Leadership, Education, and Athletics in Partnership, is a New Haven youth mentoring program that began 1992. She discusses her experiences working with displaced and unmotivated New Haven youth in both after-school and summer programs. She describes the visions, challenges, and rewards of interacting with and empowering young people. She talks about the skills she believes LEAP creates and enhances in New Haven youth, including those in leadership development and tolerance. She explains why she believes the experiential learning encouraged by LEAP is fundamental not only to an academic curriculum, but also to the development of the self. She talks about the relationship of LEAP and school systems, detailing the problems the organization has faced over the years. She describes the spread of LEAP into other surrounding cities, such as Hartford and Bridgeport. She talks about the challenges and rewards of continuing and expanding upon the strengths of the New Haven chapter. She shares anecdotes of people, events, and situations that she believes illustrate LEAP's role in enhancing relationships among and within youth, their families, teachers, administrators, and the community.

Interviewer: Howard, Meg