The mission of Join Hands ESL is to build personal relationships and walk in solidarity with children and families of greater East St. Louis as they strive to achieve their full potential and overcome barriers of poverty and racial injustice. We accomplish our mission through our youth programming, education advocacy, mentoring programs and the Ubuntu Center for Peace.
Every child in greater East St. Louis knows their beauty and value and has a pathway to achieve their dreams and potential.
We are committed to becoming a collaborative and inclusive organization that strives for equity and equal opportunity in all we do in order to be a catalyst for change in our community. We will work to create a welcoming environment for all; enable success for all; work constantly toward fairness, civility, and respect for all; and honor the rich mosaic of voices both within Join Hands and in the greater community.
To be relevant change-makers in our community and inspire deepened engagement and contributions, we will be intentional about building a Board of Directors and workforce, both paid staff and volunteers, that embodies the diversity of the community within which we serve; we will embed the pursuit of DEI in our organizational priorities; we will work to foster an organizational culture where each employee, board member, volunteer, and community member feels valued, supported and appreciated. And in keeping with our philosophy of solidarity rather than charity in the spirit of ubuntu, we will continue and strive to increase our work for racial equity and justice.
Join Hands is guided by the following organizational values:
