Shine Together Celebrating Young Moms at Its 11th Annual Luncheon

Shine Together Celebrating Young Moms at Its 11th Annual Luncheon

Shine has awarded more than $39,000 in Educational Scholarships

and direct support to young mothers since 2022

(Milpitas, CA) — Shine Together has awarded over $24,250 in scholarships to young mothers over the past year, as well as $14,761 of direct assistance, for a total impact of $39,511. During Shine’s 11th Annual Scholarship Luncheon, to be held on Thursday, May 18, at Palo Alto Hills Golf and Country Club, we will celebrate young moms accomplishing their goals in pursuit of a post-secondary education. Every year, Shine provides scholarships to graduates of its Teen Success program in support of their post-secondary educational goals.

“We look forward to honoring these inspiring, hardworking moms as they take the next step in their education journey,” said Sara Reyes, Executive Director of Shine Together. “Most of all, we want to celebrate them and all that they have achieved so far, against the odds. Some of the moms we work with will be the first in their families to attend college. It’s a very exciting milestone.”

Participants of Shine Together’s Teen Success program receive ongoing peer support as they finish their high school education while raising a young family. 87% of Shine participants have graduated from high school or are on track to do so, compared to only 38% of young mothers nationwide.

“Shine has been a huge help to me and my babies since the day I joined, whether it be providing support, helping with diapers, or making sure I’m keeping up with school,” said Shine participant Chyann Wilson. “Everyone at Shine is very friendly and welcoming and that’s what makes it perfect for the mothers that need help.”

About Shine Together

Established in 2011, Shine Together is a nonprofit organization that supports and guides young mothers on a pathway to prosperity. Working toward breaking the intergenerational cycle of poverty faced by young families, Shine helps young mothers advance their education, build life and career skills, and nurture their children’s positive development, through one-on-one coaching, peer learning groups, and community workshops. Formerly known as Teen Success, Inc., Shine rebranded in 2022 and has impacted the lives of over 1,600 young mothers and their children. shinetogether.org

 


Shine Together's Ribbon Cutting Event in Fresno!

We’re excited to let you know that after 10 years of service to young mothers and their children as Teen Success, Inc., we are transitioning into a new chapter for our organization as Shine Together (Shine)!

Our new name—Shine Together—reflects how we support moms today as we help guide some of them through their teen years and others through their early twenties. We would be honored to have you join us in our Ribbon Cutting Event for Shine Together, Inc. and learn more about the services we offer.

Learn more about the event here.


Shine Together's Ribbon Cutting Event in Sacramento!

We’re excited to let you know that after 10 years of service to young mothers and their children as Teen Success, Inc., we are transitioning into a new chapter for our organization as Shine Together (Shine)!

Our new name—Shine Together—reflects how we support moms today as we help guide some of them through their teen years and others through their early twenties. We would be honored to have you join us in our Ribbon Cutting Event for Shine Together, Inc. and learn more about the services we offer.

Learn more about the event here.

 


Shine 11th Annual Luncheon

Shine Together Celebration

We are proud to announce Shine Together's (formerly Teen Success)11th Annual Luncheon honoring young mothers!

We are coming together to celebrate post-secondary scholarship recipients' successes and to thank our donors/partners for making those and many other program successes possible. As we continue the legacy of the Teen Success Program, within Shine Together, we are also excited to share about the additional services to young moms.

We look forward to having you join us in our efforts in making a difference, supporting education, and helping young moms and their children in our community shine. When young families can shine, we can all Shine Together.

If you have any dietary restrictions, please reach out to Deyanira Tellez at [email protected]!

Learn more about the event here.


Fox40 News covers Mother support program changes name to Shine Together Inc.

Sacramento Valley Regional Director for Shine Together Inc. Niki Singleton discusses the reasons behind the program’s recent name change from Teen Success Inc.


Young Parenthood in California

IMPACTS OF TEENAGE PREGNANCY AND YOUNG PARENTHOOD

Young parenthood in California

In 2020, the expected number of pregnant and parenting teens and young women in California could fill both San Jose State and San Francisco State University campuses – but without support, less than 38% of these young women will finish high school, let alone college.

There are expected to be 62,405 pregnant and parenting young women under the age of 22 in 2020 in California (California Department of Health). This is equal to the entire student populations at San Jose State AND San Francisco State  (https://www2.calstate.edu/csu-system/about-the-csu/facts-about-the-csu/enrollment). Without support, less than 24,000 of these young mothers will graduate high school and less than 2,000 will complete college by age 30.

Why resources for young families are imperative

Pregnancy at a young age diverts a mother’s/family’s resources to caring for a child. Young mothers choose to sacrifice what little opportunities/resources they may have to meet their child’s basic needs, including their high school education and dreams of going to college. In many cases, they do not know what resources are available to them and they do not have a strong community to shoulder the burden of the sacrifices (leaving school, working multiple jobs) they are making for their child. 

Teen Success is the resource and support system they need to reimagine their life with their children. When young families are supported with access and connections to opportunities, they are able to break the cycle of poverty.

Teen pregnancy disproportionately affects young women of color. 2 out of 3 three babies born to teens in California are born to Latinas (National Center for Health Statistics) and low-income teens make up 83% of teens who give birth (California Research Bureau). While the overall teen pregnancy rate in the United States has dropped, there remain communities and neighborhoods where teen pregnancy rates remain high. These are predominantly under-resourced communities of color.

The young women Teen Success, Inc. works with come from low-income communities. 94% of them are women of color and many are from immigrant families. In addition to the challenges and stigma associated with being a young mother, Teen Success, Inc. members are faced with further complexities including housing instability; limited access to healthcare and reproductive health information; emotional and physical violence in their homes, relationships and communities; lack of access to affordable childcare; and racism and discrimination.

EDUCATION IS THE KEY

Research shows teen mothers who are able to remain connected to their high schools have better long-term economic outcomes for their families, and their children have better behavioral, social, and academic development. Teen Success, Inc. helps its members stay engaged in school, graduate, and persist through post-secondary education.

Education is Teen Success, Inc.’s highest priority for teen moms because it is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty. Studies show that when a mother attains higher levels of education, the better her children’s educational outcomes will be.

(Source: National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. “Why It Matters: Teen Pregnancy and Education,” March 2010.)

IMPROVING FUTURES FOR YOUNG FAMILIES

Teen Success, Inc. empowers young women who become mothers in their teens to achieve their full potential in school and as parents, so two generations thrive. We believe that education is the key to maximizing each young woman’s potential and making our communities strong. We know that when young mothers are given the right supports and access to opportunities, their families, our neighborhoods, and entire communities are strengthened.

Our two-generation approach involves partnering with young mothers to heal trauma, build skills and a growth mindset, and address the barriers they face to being successful in school and in life. We support young mothers in finding solutions to challenges in order to achieve the following goals:

  • Complete high school and obtain a post-secondary degree or certificate
  • Develop the knowledge and skills to nurture their child’s positive development

With this program, Teen Success, Inc. is creating a pathway out of poverty for two-generations, young mothers and their children. Learn more about the Teen Success, Inc. Program.


Celebrating 10 Years of Empowerment

We are proud to celebrate 10 years of empowering young mothers this year! Over the last 10 years Teen Success, Inc. and its incredible supporters have impacted the lives of over 1,600 young mothers, and their children.

On March 31, 2022, we celebrated our 10th Anniversary together online.

If you missed the event, watch it now. And if you would like to contribute to the future success of young mothers, click here to make a donation now

https://youtu.be/K2nP8sH3JVM

We hope everyone enjoyed the program and felt inspired by our speakers: Author of Pregnant Girl and CEO of Generation Hope, Nicole Lynn Lewis; winner of The Hon. Teresa Guerrero-Daley Inspiration Award, Viviana Arenas; former California State Senator and Founder of Teen Success, Inc., Becky Morgan; Board Co-Chair, Madonna Bolano; and our supporters Frank Daley, Ana Robleto, and Brian and Amy Smiley.

Most importantly, we hope that we’ve reinvigorated our community to support young mothers and their children as we move into the next decade (and beyond!) under a new name, Shine. 

Teen Success, Inc. will always be part of our legacy and you'll continue to see both Shine and Teen Success in our communications while we transition.

We are so proud of how our community has served as Teen Success, the partnerships we've built, and most importantly, the impact that we've had on the lives of young mothers and their children. We look forward to continuing this momentum and to carry on our mission:

Shine/Teen Success, Inc.'s mission is to create economic advancement for multiple generations, by partnering with young mothers to further their education, build life and career skills, and nurture their children’s development.

We invite you to learn more about our brand transition here: teensuccess.org/shine

BONUS

The Ultimate High School Playlist By Teen Success
10th Anniversary Celebration Playlist Curated by Teen Success Guests and Supporters

Check out this playlist curated during the event by our guests. There's a little bit of everything in here and songs that span decades of high school memories. If you'd like to see the list of songs, download it here.

Let us know in the comments what your favorite high school song was or your favorite moment from the event!

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2tsl366gKZlTdLI4wFwTL0

How Do Moms Hear About Teen Success?

We often share how one of the services Teen Success, Inc. provides to our participants is access to resources and opportunities as our participants often don’t know what programs are available to them. But then, how do pregnant and parenting young women find out about the Teen Success program in the first place?
 
Advocates at Teen Success work hard to network and create relationships with local nonprofit, health, and civic community agencies. These relationships are crucial to spread the word about the availability of the program to the young women+ who could benefit from it. Of the participants in the program, 39% are referred by Social Services and schools, and another 12% are referred through a healthcare provider.

Young mothers who are already in the program are important sources for referrals. They become advocates themselves, telling their peers to connect with Teen Success and try out the program. Participants in the program make up 17% of all referral sources. Having a young mom’s stamp of approval is the utmost compliment and the warm invitation to join shows a potential participant that she is not alone in her parenting journey.

We partner with schools and community agencies to host peer learning groups in the community spaces our young families are already at. Doing so make the transitions between life activities easier for moms and their children. It allows Teen Success to have a regular meeting place, space for supplies, and an appropriate extra space for childcare while moms learn together.

Our model and referral structures are built to partner with young families in the areas where they live – we come to them. We work to ensure we are imbedded in the community, from hiring staff who are from the same communities to making sure our program locations are accessible to the young families we work with. This creates a safe space for young women to discuss the challenges they are facing as mothers and students, learn to advocate for themselves, and develop parenting skills so their children can also grow and thrive.
 
We are able to support the young families in our program because of our incredible program partners, including those who provide space for Peer Learning Group, Bring Me a Book who provides free books for all our participants, and the organizations and donors who provide diapers and wipes for our participants, including Help a Mother Out, Fresno County Food Bank,  local community groups like Hands4Hope-Youth Making a Difference in El Dorado Hills, and other caring community members.
 
By partnering with other organizations and imbedding ourselves in the community, we are supporting young families in a way that works best for them. If you or anyone you know serves young women+ who are parents, please tell them about Teen Success. Anyone can get in touch with us via our contact page, agency referral, or self-referral page.


Partnering With Resilient Young Mothers

Every month, we have the opportunity to share stories of successes and challenges that our participants face. As well as the individual stories of our participants, we also wanted to share more information on who are the young mothers and children of Teen Success, Inc. as a whole.

The young women in our program are strong, resilient and determined. As well as being mothers, they are students, workers, artists, and social justice activists. Their children range in age from newborns to 8-year-old kids. Our moms want them to succeed at every stage in their life and to share their passion for education.

Young mothers face some of the most significant barriers to success. In addition to the challenges and stigma associated with being a young mom, Teen Success, Inc. participants are faced with further complexities including housing instability; limited access to healthcare and reproductive health information; emotional and physical violence in their homes, relationships and communities; lack of access to affordable childcare; and racism and discrimination.

We serve communities where teen pregnancy rates remain high despite the downward trend across the nation. Young parenthood disproportionately affects young women of color. Although poor and low income teens only make up 40% of the adolescent population, they account for 83% of teens who become young parents.

Download

What Challenges Do Young Mothers Face?

The young women we serve face some of the most significant barriers to success – poverty, childhood trauma, housing instability, family and relationship violence, lack of access to affordable childcare, and the stigma of being a young mom.

Nationally, only 38% of young mothers graduate from high school and less than 3% finish college by age 30. ​Adding to a young mother's challenges are the environmental, social, and systemic factors that make it harder for them to chart a path to the life they envision for themselves and their children.

25% of our participants are or have been in the foster care system 54% are the child of a teen parent  42% have previously been suspended or expelled from school​ 92% are experiencing poverty 23% have an IEP at school to support individual education needs

Partnership With Young Families Leads to Results

Education is the key factor in breaking the intergenerational cycle of poverty faced by young families. Teen Success, Inc. partners with young mothers to complete high school and a post-secondary degree that leads to a living wage, and nurture their child’s positive development to ensure the success of the whole family.

Over 85% of our participants graduate high school or are on track to graduate when they complete the program. ​ 69% of participants are pursuing or have completed a post-secondary degree or certificate. ​ Teen Success, Inc. participants report reading to their children 16 minutes daily on average. ​ 85% of participants children are meeting their linguistic milestones.

The mission of Teen Success, Inc. is to create economic advancement for multiple generations, by partnering with young mothers to further their education, build life and career skills, and nurture their children’s development.


Julianna's Story: A Future Reimagined

Today, 22-year-old Julianna is confident as a mom and as a person, but she hasn’t always been that way. It has taken time, support, and encouragement for her to see herself for the amazing person she is. As a high school student, the world is hard enough, but Julianna's world changed dramatically and unexpectedly.

“My life changed directions [when I became pregnant] and I saw things differently. Now, I think, ‘How did I handle all that stress at 16’?”

At the time of her pregnancy, Julianna was a Junior in high school, and she was looking forward to going to college. She visited one university, but she felt like she didn't belong there as a mom.

Finishing high school was challenging and she felt like quitting many times. She returned to school while still breastfeeding her 3-month-old, Alana, and her only option was to pump in the school bathroom. After two weeks of the grueling work of pumping in an environment that didn’t afford her peace of mind, she stopped. Experiences like this made high school a constant struggle between the mother she wanted to be for Alana and the dreams she had for her education.

During this time in her life Julianna found Teen Success, Inc. Although Julianna’s world was shaken at the time of her pregnancy and after having her daughter, she took a leap of faith and joined the program in 2015. Teen Success, Inc. gave her a safe place to express herself and move through the challenges she was facing as a young mom going through school. “The [Advocates] were very motivating. When I thought, ‘Man, I can’t do [school] anymore.’ They said, ‘No, you’re smart. You can do this.” There were times she wanted to quit school and focus on working, but she found encouragement and support from the program Advocates and was inspired by the other young moms in her group. “I saw other girls who were doing [school and parenting] and I thought, ‘I can do it too.’” 

With support from her Advocates and a Teen Success, Inc. Scholarship, Julianna reimagined the future of her education and decided to attend Bakersfield College. During college, she started working at a local restaurant, where she’s a manager today, and took her classes in the evening. After two years, Julianna transferred to CSU Bakersfield with support of a second Teen Success, Inc. Scholarship. In 2021, she graduated with a Bachelor’s in Psychology and has been accepted into a competitive Master’s program in Counseling and Psychology at CSU Bakersfield. 

Even though Julianna started her journey as a mom differently than she’d expected, her daughter has been her motivation all along the way and she wants to be a positive role model for her. She deals with the same stresses and pressures most mothers do, like feeling like she’s spending too much time working on her studies and not with her daughter. These past years have been intense for her to try to balance it all. “I’m always telling [my daughter], ‘I have homework,’ when she wants to play and I feel bad,” Julianna says. “But now she tells her friends, ‘My mommy graduated college.’ I think she understands that it’s an accomplishment.” Although she made many sacrifices along the way, Julianna is happy to have received her degree and its comforting that her daughter is proud of her and looks up to her. 

Beyond High School

Julianna, like most of the young women Teen Success, Inc. serves, have to puzzle through paying for post-secondary education. Figuring out the myriad of services, requirements, scholarships and FAFSA is challenging and their Advocates are essential in helping them come up with a plan that works for their unique situations. Today, Teen Success, Inc. has expanded support for its participants who wish to further their educations by providing educational stipends. If you wish to lean more about this initiative, please click here.​

Julianna’s words of advice to other young mothers going through a similar situation are:

“You can do so much more than you think you’re capable of. Look at me, I didn’t think I’d get my B.A. or be going after my Master’s, but here I am. And if you’re a mom and you’re on the fence about the Teen Success program, trust the process, because now I think, ‘what if I hadn’t gone?’.”  

After she earns a Master’s, Julianna plans to become a licensed therapist and hopes to work with youth in school or in Juvenile Hall. She’s looking forward to getting married to her fiancé next year and Alana, now 5, will be starting Kindergarten in the fall.