AIWA believes in a culturally, linguistically, economically inclusive society, yet immigrant women and youth often face barriers to active participation within the broader society.

That’s why we developed a leadership program that empowers immigrant women and youth to develop and take their leadership skills and knowledge to scale.

Community Transformational Organizing Strategies (CTOS) provides immigrant women and youth with the resources, tools and knowledge to be progressively and systematically more involved in AIWA and social justice work, and more civically engaged. This model helps us track our members’ leadership development progress, evaluate and improve our programs, and set goals for the organization. The model is based on a series of steps, each of which indicates a higher level of involvement for women or youth in our organization and a growth in their leadership skills. The seven stages of development are:

Knowledge of program

AIWA informs immigrant women and youth about AIWA projects, activities, and services

Participation in program

Immigrant women and youth participate in AIWA’s social events and outreach activities

Self-education

Immigrant women and youth come together, share information and experience, and learn about their rights as workers, women, and immigrants through the literacy programs and workshops

Leadership training

Immigrant women and youth acquire leadership and advocacy skills through their participation in the Introductory Leadership Training and Asian Youth United.

Active involvement

Immigrant women and youth strengthen their leadership by participating in planning and implementing AIWA projects through committees: community based participatory research, grassroots campaigns, policy advocacy and other member defined projects

Leadership in AIWA

Immigrant women and youth exercise their leadership skills and knowledge as Board Members, Peer Trainers, Peer Teachers, Peer Coordinators, and youth core leaders and trainers.

Leadership in community and the broader society

Women and youth demonstrate their leadership in the workplace, their ethnic communities, and the broader society