Grantee Database
Rise Up Industries
Grant Year
2026-27
Grant Program
Arts and Youth
Award Amount
$18,750.00
Project Description
With support from the California Arts Council, Rise Up Leadership Academy (RULA), a gang prevention program, will expand access to local art institutions, creative/cultural expression, and social-emotional learning for youth at risk for gang involvement in San Diego’s City Heights neighborhood.
In partnership with the San Diego Museum of Art, RULA students will participate in three Saturday art workshops through the museum’s Art Express! initiative, which provides transportation, admission, and hands-on art experiences for the City Heights community. During RULA’s after-school and summer programming, students will also participate in weekly art classes, including a minimum of 10 museum-developed art activities that bring arts education directly to youth onsite.
By removing barriers to arts access, this project will foster healing, self-confidence, social-emotional growth, and positive peer collaboration among historically under-resourced youth vulnerable to gang involvement.
Organization Summary
Rise Up Leadership Academy (RULA)
RULA is RUI’s prevention strategy to work toward dismantling the intergenerational gang involvement cycle in San Diego. Launched in 2024, this program empowers at-risk youth from fifth grade through high school in a long-term, after-school and summer program. RULA operates from City Heights Recreation Center nearly every weekday of the year, as well as occasional Saturdays, and currently supports students from Rosa Parks Elementary and Clark Middle School. RULA’s goal is to prevent at-risk youth from gang involvement by strengthening their positive attachments to self, peers, and community. RULA aims to support at-risk youth in paving foundational and empowering pathways toward being leaders of their own lives and achieving their future life goals.
RULA’s approach incorporates these key prevention components: improved supervision, interpersonal skills training, peer relationship-building, safe recreational spaces, and academic engagement. Each student has access to 1,000+ annual hours of services and activities, including: art activities (weekly); sports and recreation (daily); homework support (daily); skill building (biweekly); guest speakers (monthly); community engagement (monthly); mental health support with an associate clinician (weekly); and silent mentorship (daily, with weekly staff debriefs).
RULA uses art experiences and education to empower and uplift youth as leaders and creative thinkers while strengthening connections to peers, community, and a sense of self – protective factors that can reduce the likelihood of gang involvement and increase belonging and agency.
Reentry Program
RUI’s first program, the Reentry Program, launched in 2016. The program empowers formerly gang-involved justice-impacted citizens in gaining access to 3,000+ hours of comprehensive, wraparound services including employment, job training, case management, tattoo removal, counseling, mentoring, education assistance, financial literacy, life skills, work ethic development, and ultimately job placement. All services occur onsite at our San Diego facility.
Organization
Rise Up Industries
Address
5275 MARKET ST STE 1
SAN DIEGO
92114-2215
County
San Diego
Region
Far South
Website
