PEACH (Promoting Education and Community Health)

PEACH (Promoting Education and Community Health) is a Black-owned Canadian non-profit organization that promotes education and community health in the Jane-Finch community. Through asset development, PEACH works to build resiliency of adolescent youth who have encountered a crisis in their education. These crises often have deep roots outside their schooling: racism, mental health, criminal justice involvement, violence in the community, family discord and substance abuse. Youth are much more than the challenges they face. We resist the “deficit model” that views youth as problems. PEACH provides relationships and experiences that reduce the impact of this adversity. Building assets and resiliency is the aim of all PEACH programming. We create conditions that youth need to bounce back from adversity, through positive activities and relationships. At PEACH, we set clear and consistent boundaries; set and communicate high expectations, teach life skills, provide caring and support, and provide opportunities for meaningful participation. Through research and experience, PEACH has developed a strong, respectful and coordinated web of education-promoting programs for youth who are facing multiple crises that derail them from their education. Youth enter our programs after negative and discouraging experiences with school, the youth criminal justice system and the police. They gain confidence and skills to re-engage with school and form higher expectations about their futures.

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