Bay Area Urban Debate League (BAUDL)
The Bay Area Urban Debate League partners with Oakland and San Francisco public school districts to give high school students access to competitive policy debate, including the Julia Burke Debate Institute summer program. BAUDL runs a season of local and national-circuit tournaments and helps cover participation and travel costs to make debate accessible to under-resourced students.
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Sacramento Valley Model UN Conference (SVMUNC)
Sacramento Valley Model UN Conference is a free, student-led Model United Nations program serving public high schools across the greater Sacramento region, including the annual FranklinMUN conference hosted at Franklin High School in Elk Grove. Delegates debate global issues in committee simulations with support from college mentors including UC Davis Model United Nations.
San Francisco Youth Commission
The San Francisco Youth Commission is the city's official youth advisory body, made up of 17 commissioners ages 12-23 who advise the Mayor and Board of Supervisors on budget and policy decisions affecting young people. Commissioners are selected through a written application and interview process.
Building Young Entrepreneurs (B.Y.E.)
A Silicon Valley Center for Entrepreneurial Development initiative that equips African American youth in Silicon Valley with entrepreneurship skills, guiding participants from idea generation through researching, developing, and pitching a business for startup investment funding.
Girls Garage
A nonprofit design and construction school in Berkeley serving girls and gender-expansive youth ages 9-18, offering free after-school and summer instruction in carpentry, welding, architecture, and activist art/design-build projects. High schoolers (ages 14-18) can join multi-month after-school cohorts such as Advanced Design/Build and Design/Build fundamentals, culminating in real community-facing structures.
NorCal House of Chess
A Northern California chess organization that has run roughly 200 rated tournaments, including monthly Scholastic Quads (4-player mini-tournaments with trophies/medals) and FIDE-rated Swiss events open to K-12 students. Several partner clubs founded by former NHC students now run parts of the scholastic program and use proceeds for charitable causes.
San Francisco Amateur Astronomers
A community astronomy club based at the Randall Museum in San Francisco that hosts free public star parties, telescope viewing nights, and talks for all ages and experience levels. Students can attend events or join as members to learn observational astronomy alongside experienced amateur astronomers.