Our Vision
Young Dreamer Network
Expand...Connect...Inspire...Act
Imagine a world full of dreamers.
What would it be like if children from incredibly underprivileged communities grew up believing they could achieve whatever they wanted? That they could change the world and become like their greatest heroes? That they might be the next Mandela, Oprah or Bono? Or that they might find a cure for AIDS, lead a mission to Mars or reverse the effects of global warming? What would it be like if these children were led out of their communities and introduced to the world? If they were taught that what seems impossible is possible and that everything in their imagination can become a reality?
What would our world be like?
The University of Dreams Foundation seeks to answer that question through its Young Dreamer Network.
Through a well structured, multi-year curriculum that includes life skills and inspirational content taught by in-country teachers and mentors, community service, local and international travel, and annual retreats, the program will introduce young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to the idea of becoming a dreamer. The program will ultimately serve to expand the minds of the youth, connect them with peers from communities all over the world, inspire them to discover their passions and the role they want to play in the world and, finally, set them on a path of action.
Expand
Delivered by trained in-country professionals, the 4-year program will be open to young adults, ages 13 to 15, in various impoverished communities throughout the world such as Ghana, Guatemala, Costa Rica, India, and even San Francisco, New York City and Chicago. It will not replace, but rather supplement and enrich, the students' academic schooling. Students will receive English language training. Local and international service projects will be designed to provide for experiential learning as well as first-hand exposure to the world. Coursework will promote leadership development, foster self-discovery and lead students to identify their strengths and cultivate their passions.
Connect and Inspire
Students from the various schools will remain connected and interact with each other via the Internet. An annual conference will be designed to gather the students together to educate them with each other's lives and expose them to different perspectives beyond their own. Extraordinary Dreamers from around the world such as political leaders, entrepreneurs, athletes, humanitarians and authors, will inspire the youth with their personal stories, while serving as examples that "heroes" were also once just children with dreams.
Act
The Young Dreamer Network will open a door to the world for these students and empower them to walk through it to take on a significant role in moving their communities, as well as the global community, forward. A new generation of leaders will emerge and bring changes that will make our world a better, more fulfilling place.