Youth Voice
Students should have meaningful ideas, responsibilities, and choices throughout the program.
About the Fellows Program
Helping Young People Grow Into Leaders.
The SGAP Fellows Program gives teenagers opportunities to build useful skills, work with mentors, collaborate with other students, and create projects that address real issues.
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Our purpose
Why the Fellows Program Exists
The Fellows Program is designed to help young people move from learning about leadership to practicing it. Fellows work with other students, receive guidance, and apply their skills through real projects.
Fellows move from identifying a sustainability problem to proposing ideas, working in teams, receiving mentor guidance, and presenting a student-led project to an audience.
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Give students meaningful leadership opportunities.
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Connect young people with mentors and professionals.
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Help fellows develop practical, transferable skills.
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Encourage students to create positive community impact.
The Fellows Program gives young people meaningful responsibility while providing the structure and mentorship needed to turn sustainability ideas into action.
SGAP Fellows Program
What guides the program
The Values Behind the Experience
Fellows are expected to communicate, collaborate, show empathy, accept accountability, and contribute consistently to their project teams.
Teamwork
Fellows learn how to listen, share responsibilities, and work with people who have different experiences.
Action
Learning should lead to a project, solution, campaign, or other meaningful response.
Reflection
Fellows examine what worked, what changed, and what they would improve next time.
Program goals
What Fellows Should Gain
The program is designed to help students build practical leadership skills through sustained teamwork and real project responsibilities.
Stronger Leadership Skills
Fellows practice responsibility, decision-making, communication, and initiative.
Real Project Experience
Students learn how to research a problem, plan a response, complete tasks, and explain results.
Meaningful Connections
Fellows meet motivated students, mentors, professionals, and community partners.
Greater Confidence
Students become more comfortable speaking, sharing ideas, and taking responsibility.
Community Awareness
Fellows learn how local and global issues affect different people and communities.
Future Direction
Students gain exposure to careers, organizations, and possible future areas of study.
Program support
How SGAP Supports Fellows
SGAP mentors and other sustainability mentors provide feedback and guidance while fellows retain responsibility for most of the planning and implementation.
Structured Learning
Fellows participate in workshops, discussions, activities, and guided project sessions.
Mentorship
Students receive advice, feedback, and professional perspectives from mentors and speakers.
Team Support
Fellows work with peers who can share ideas, divide tasks, and help solve challenges.
Feedback
Teams receive guidance as they develop, improve, and present their projects.
Measuring impact
Program at a Glance
Each cohort is structured around a small group of students, two project teams, regular meetings, and approximately six months of sustained work.
Exact dates for the next cohort will be announced.
15
Approximate students per cohort
2
Sustainability project teams
4
Approximate hours per week
6
Approximate months in the program
People behind the program
Meet the Team
Include the staff members, advisors, or volunteers directly involved with the Fellows Program.
Program Leadership
[Team Member Name]
[Job title and two sentences explaining this person’s role in the Fellows Program.]
Program Support
[Team Member Name]
[Job title and two sentences explaining this person’s role in the Fellows Program.]
Mentor or Advisor
[Team Member Name]
[Job title and two sentences explaining this person’s role in the Fellows Program.]
Community support
Partners and Mentors
Only include organizations that have given SGAP permission to be listed as official partners.
[Partner Name]
[Explain how this organization supports the program.]
[Partner Name]
[Explain how this organization supports the program.]
[Partner Name]
[Explain how this organization supports the program.]
[Partner Name]
[Explain how this organization supports the program.]
Student perspective
The Program Through a Fellow’s Eyes
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Fellow Experience
[Fellow Name]
“Replace this with a specific quote explaining how the program affected this fellow.”
[Write a short introduction explaining what this student worked on and what they gained from the program.]
Clear information
What Applicants Should Know
Applicants should understand the program’s location, commitment, cost, and eligibility before applying.
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Eligibility: Students in grades 7–11 may apply. The program is currently available only in Montgomery County.
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Time commitment: Approximately four hours per week, including sessions, team meetings, communication, and project work.
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Cost: The program is free. Teams may apply for grants to fund project expenses.
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Program format: Larger sessions are held at The Arc Montgomery County, generally every two weeks. Project teams coordinate additional meetings around their schedules.
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Application deadline: The next application deadline will be announced.
See the Program in Action.
Explore real fellow stories and projects to understand what the experience can look like.