Pima County is home to thousands of youth and for some, staying in school can be difficult. The Tucson-based nonprofit “Youth on Their Own” (YOTO) has been assisting homeless teens from across Pima County for the past 30 years. Alexis Westmiller is one of those teens, who recently graduated from Palo Verde High School. [...]

As the world gears up for the Summer Olympics, local roofers and builders invite the public to join in as they prepare to “Go for the Gold” with a charity bowling tournament to benefit Youth On Their Own. “This is a lot of competitors who come together for a good cause, kind of like [...]

When Benjamin Carnahan was 15-years-old, he says he ended up living by himself on the streets. “I was kind of lost,” he said. “I didn’t have any plan, I was just going day by day, doing my thing. I wasn’t in school for two years unfortunately.” He eventually went back to school and learned [...]

The number of homeless students in the United States has doubled in the past decade. During the 2013-14 school year, more than 1.3 million students were homeless, a 7 percent increase over the previous school year, according to a new report by the advocacy group Civic Enterprises and the polling firm Hart Research Associates. [...]

Grant Program Connects Homeless Youth to Higher Education and Employment On June 14th, Youth On Their Own (YOTO) launched a new summer program called JAG Works, designed to provide career and college readiness programming to homeless and at-risk youth in Pima County. Through the JAG Works model, youth work to achieve improvement in academic [...]

“My sisters and I were going hungry. We lived off of ramen noodles for weeks at a time; we didn’t know what my mom did with the EBT money for food. We became fatigued and skinny. During those weeks of living in paranoia, my mom acted like life was dandy, still buying liquor and [...]

In May 2016, Youth On Their Own received the GuideStar Platinum rating for its commitment to program impact and overall organizational transparency. This is an upgrade from the Gold rating, which the agency received back in 2014. The GuideStar program is made up of bronze, silver, gold, and platinum participation levels that reward nonprofits [...]

Skyler Azrael has lived in group homes and on Tucson streets for five years since he said his mom kicked him out of the house. Today, he’s 21 years old and spends his days in downtown Tucson. At night, he sleeps where he can. “I just find the most safest spots, where I won’t [...]

Jesus Valenzuela was summoned to the Desert View High School principal’s office at lunchtime Wednesday, and he was somewhat concerned. The 18-year-old senior, a captain on the boys basketball team, was told he needed to tell administrators about his recent trip to Washington, D.C., where he was recognized as a Horatio Alger Association National [...]

A group of Arizona mayors is warning of “disastrous” economic consequences in the billions of dollars if the number of Arizona students graduating from high school does not increase from the current one in five, but these 15 city leaders from around the state have committed to do more than sound an alarm. They’re [...]