Partnering with Communities to Transform Career and Education Systems
At the LANL Foundation, we believe every young person in Northern New Mexico deserves the chance to thrive. Discovering their passions, building skills, connecting with mentors, and shaping their future. Our Policy & Impact work strengthens the systems that connect young people, especially those facing the steepest barriers to success, to pathways to opportunity in Northern New Mexico
Why This Matters
New Mexico has one of the highest proportions of young people who are neither in school nor working, often referred to as “Opportunity Youth”. In Northern New Mexico, young people face additional compounded barriers: poverty, underinvestment, racial inequities, and limited access to career pathways.
These barriers are not reflections of young people’s potential, but they are a sign that we need to change the systems that invest in and support them. When we invest Opportunity Youth and other underserved youth, we also invest in the economic and social wellbeing of their communities. Thriving youth fuel thriving regions.
Our Initiatives
The Policy & Impact Team at the LANL Foundation works with funders, community partners, and youth leaders to:
- Center youth voice and leadership in shaping policy and practice
- Expand equitable career and education pathways that open doors for opportunity youth and other underrepresented young people
- Leverage philanthropic collaboration to maximize regional impact.
- Strengthen systems alignment across public and private funders
Northern New Mexico Pathways to Opportunities Strategy Table
Led by the LANL Foundation, the Northern New Mexico Pathways to Opportunity Strategy Table expands opportunities for underserved youth and young adults in Northern New Mexico to attain the skills, work experiences, confidence, and social capital they need to secure employment and build their income to achieve economic well-being in their communities. A collaborative of 16 national, regional, and local philanthropic organizations, the strategy table is committed to creating brighter futures for young people in our region.
Members of the Strategy Table include:
- Annie E. Casey Foundation
- Anchorum Health Foundation
- Aspen Institute Forum for Community Solutions
- Cricket Island Foundation
- LANL Foundation
- Triad National Security, LLC., operator of Los Alamos National Laboratory
- Las Vegas New Mexico Community Foundation
- Los Alamos Community Foundation
- McCune Charitable Foundation
- New Mexico Foundation
- Santa Fe Community Foundation
- Taos Community Foundation
- Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
- Thornburg Foundation
- United Way of North Central New Mexico
- The W.K. Kellogg Foundation
Northern New Mexico Youth Fund
The Northern New Mexico Youth Fund was created by the Northern New Mexico Pathways to Opportunity Strategy Table to expand opportunities for young people to thrive in school, work, and life. The first pooled fund of its kind to be established in Northern New Mexico, The Youth Fund brings together philanthropic, state, tribal, and federal resources to support innovative Career Technical Education (CTE) and Work-Based Learning (WBL) programs for youth ages 13 to 29. These programs provide real-world skills, mentorship, and career pathways that lead to meaningful employment and long-term economic well-being. In addition to funding direct services, the Youth Fund invests in a regional resource hub to support grantees through implementation, shared learning, and securing sustainable funding so they can have a greater impact.
To date, the Youth Fund has raised over $2.1 million from 12 Strategy Table members and two state agencies. It has awarded grants to 19 school districts, tribes, and community-based organizations, as well as a central regional hub organization charged with providing direct support to grantees.
Organizations interested in contributing to the Northern New Mexico Youth Fund can contact Alvin Warren, Vice President of Policy & Impact at alvin@lanlfoundation.org.
