Change Makers

Change Makers

Where today’s students become tomorrow’s civic problem-solvers.

Change Makers Academy is Universally’s flagship program for 8th–12th grade students, designed to build civic capacity by equipping teens with the tools, experiences, and confidence to identify community challenges, work collaboratively, and design actionable solutions. Through immersive after-school sessions and intensive summer academies, participants learn to connect civic knowledge with real-world practice, developing leadership, social awareness, and a strong sense of purpose.

The program emphasizes systems thinking, constructive dialogue, and hands-on engagement with government, nonprofit, and business partners to address community issues. Students learn to see connections across sectors and perspectives, practice co-creating solutions, and produce capstone projects that demonstrate both civic understanding and practical impact.

Ultimately, Change Makers prepares young people to lead with integrity, communicate across differences, and strengthen the civic fabric of their schools and communities.

How It Works

(1) Learn the landscape: Students explore real issues affecting their communities—from local environmental challenges to social or economic concerns—through guided lessons and discussion.

(2) Collaborate across perspectives: Teams work together to analyze causes, test ideas, and practice consensus-building and dialogue across differences.

(3) Design solutions: Each group develops a capstone project that includes an actionable plan for positive change.

(4) Lead and transform:  Participants implement or pilot their projects as enhancements to existing programs, services, or community initiatives. Through guided reflection and dialogue, they examine how these experiences reshape their understanding of leadership, identity, and what it means to contribute meaningfully to American life, culminating in digital reflections that tell their story of growth and civic purpose.

(5) Stay connected: Alumni join a growing Change Makers network, continuing their efforts through follow-up sessions, mentorship and internship opportunities, and community events that highlight progress and collective impact.

Outcomes

Participants

  • Improve their ability to analyze community issues and propose real solutions.

  • Strengthen teamwork, consensus-building, and communication skills.

  • Report higher civic confidence and sense of agency.

  • Complete actionable capstone projects with community benefit.

  • Alumni continue collaborating on projects and forming new partnerships.

Change Makers prepares a generation not just to understand their communities, but to shape their future together.

If you would like to bring Change Makers to your school or community, reach out to info@universallyinc.org