REAP Celebrates 25 Years Advancing Equity Across the Northwest
- Portland Observer
- 2 hours ago
- 4 min read
Breaking barriers and building young leaders
What began in 2001 as a bold vision to amplify youth voices has materialized into one of the Northwest's most impactful youth serving organizations. This year, REAP celebrates 25 years of breaking down systemic barriers, developing young leaders, and fundamentally reshaping how schools and communities support students across the region.
From its Portland roots, REAP has grown into a regional architect of change, now serving more than 1,800 students annually across 30 school sites and 14 school districts spanning 5 counties in Oregon and Southwest Washington. The numbers tell a powerful story: 87% of the students REAP serves represent culturally diverse and historically underserved populations, including significant numbers of immigrant and refugee youth navigating complex educational systems.
"Twenty-five years ago, REAP set out with a simple but powerful belief: that every young person, regardless of their zip code or circumstances, deserves access to opportunities that ignite their innate ability to solve problems and unlock their leadership potential to help them thrive," said Dr. Levell Thomas, CEO/Founder, and Mark Jackson, Executive Director and co-founder of REAP. "As we celebrate this milestone, we're not just looking back—we're building toward the future. The future is now."
That future-focused vision has been REAP's hallmark since day one. REAP has built a comprehensive, leadership-centered model that addresses the whole child through four interconnected pillars of impact.
At the heart of REAP's work is its flagship leadership development program, Solutions, which empowers youth to become proactive advocates for themselves and leaders within their school systems and communities. This isn't about teaching students to follow—it's about igniting them to lead, to question, to innovate, and to transform the systems around them.
The evolution is remarkable. From 2001 to 2004, the organization launched student leadership programming focused on youth voice and advocacy. By 2005-2009, REAP had expanded into multiple school districts, introducing Black Studies leadership models and regional civic engagement initiatives. The 2010-2014 period saw the launch of signature programs including Purpose Events and the Reflections program, along with youth-led forums, mayoral debates, and state-level advocacy efforts. From 2021–2023, REAP Created and expanded its Clinical Behavioral Health Program, marsharling the statewide Black Youth Suicide Prevention Coalition and growing its Young Entrepreneurs Program. By 2024–2026, REAP deepened state partnerships with OHA and ODE; YouthSave training expansion; Ignite Training for educators and continued regional systems impact.
REAP's academic support and mentorship pillar recognizes that students facing systemic barriers need more than tutoring—they need advocates, mentors, and culturally responsive programming that honors their identities while building pathways to success.
The Reflections program provides intensive mentoring and proactive support for youth navigating disciplinary challenges, intervening before students fall through the cracks.
Meanwhile, Renaissance, Sojourn, and Journey Academy offer culturally responsive programming and targeted academic support designed to ensure durable pathways toward cultural identity and graduation.
Understanding that educational equity must connect to economic opportunity, REAP created the Young Entrepreneurs Program (YEP), which functions as a business incubator for students. Here, young people don't just learn about entrepreneurship—they become entrepreneurs, developing real businesses, managing finances, and building confidence.
Equally important is REAP's Ignite Team, which delivers educator training and coaching for school administrators and educators. By working directly with educators and administrators, REAP helps create school environments where equity isn't an add-on—it's embedded in the culture.
Perhaps no expansion has been more critical than REAP's Clinical Behavioral Health Program, launched in 2020 as the pandemic exposed and exacerbated mental health challenges facing young people. This division provides direct, no-cost, trauma-informed counseling to students who might otherwise go without support.
REAP's leadership extends far beyond individual counseling. The organization leads the Black Youth Suicide Prevention Coalition (BYSPC) and several youth-led councils in direct partnership with the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) to inform statewide policy. This is systems change at its most optimum—young people with lived experience working directly with state agencies to shape policy that will protect future generations.
Additionally, REAP facilitates YouthSave, a specialized suicide assessment and intervention training program for school staff and community providers, equipping adults with tools to recognize warning signs and intervene effectively.
REAP's impact isn't confined to the Pacific Northwest. In 2020, even as the organization rapidly adapted to meet student needs during COVID-19, REAP launched the REAP International School of Bamako in Mali, West Africa, demonstrating the universality of REAP's model and its founders' commitment to educational equity as a global imperative.
The organization's 25-year trajectory—from local youth initiative to premier regional architect of educational equity and economic mobility—reflects both the urgent need for this work and the power of REAP's leadership-centered approach. In an era when educational inequity threatens to widen, when mental health challenges among youth are at crisis levels, and when economic mobility feels increasingly out of reach for many families, REAP stands as proof that sustainable, systemic change is possible.
For the 1,800-plus students REAP serves each year, the organization isn't just a program—it's a lifeline, a launching pad, and a community that sees youth potential and invests in their success. For educators and administrators, it's a partner in institutional transformation. And for the broader community, REAP is a model of what's possible when we commit to equity not as a checklist, but as a practice.
As Thomas and Jackson remind us, the future is now. And if REAP's first 25 years are any indication, that future is bright with possibility for every young person who walks through their doors.
For more information about REAP's programs and 25th-anniversary celebrations, contact Crystal Alexandar at 503-333-6774 or crystala@reapusa.org.
