Community Youth Empowerment has organized a slate of workshops for this school year, covering everything from diversity to healthy relationships and financial literacy.

The organization aims to provide high school students with skills, knowledge and mentorship to help ensure youth success. The workshop series is open to middle and high school students, and isn’t restricted to Wareham students.

“It usually is a very interactive and engaging workshop with a guest speaker or someone who has expertise,” said Jowaun Gamble, the group’s founder. 

He said typical workshops start off with some time to settle in and get comfortable, often with a snack. Then, the guest speaker will share a presentation of some general knowledge or information, followed by small group discussions before the group comes back together for a larger discussion and questions and answers.

“We hope that the youth are engaged in the conversation as well, and they’re able to take some of the general skills or knowledge that we are providing them into their daily lives,” Gamble said. 

The material covered in workshops includes skills that students will need as they enter adulthood: financial literacy, goal-setting, schedule making, and some mental health awareness, among other topics.

“It’s not a classroom setting,” Gamble said. “It’s real conversations. And really, we’re looking for the students to tell us how they feel. We want to be the sounding board for students as well.”

Events are held every other Tuesday night at 7 p.m. at the Onset Bay Center, 184 Onset Ave. The entrance is up the concrete stairs at the rear of the building.

The topics are:

Oct. 5: Intro to CYE (with free food from Marc Anthony’s)

Oct. 19: Diversity and Inclusion

Nov. 2: Implicit Bias

Nov. 16: Hot Topic Discussion I

Nov. 30: Substance Abuse

Dec. 14: Mental Health Awareness

Jan. 4: New Year, New Me

Jan. 18: Healthy Relationships

Feb. 1: Nutrition and Fitness

Feb. 15: Hot Topic Discussion II

March 1: Automotive

March 13: Financial Literacy I

March 29: Financial Literacy II

April 12: Career Exploration

April 26: ALKU Professional Development

May 10: Career Fair

In addition to the workshop series, CYE will be hosting a trunk-or-treat event on Oct. 30 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Onset VFW at 4 Gibbs Ball Park Rd. CYE is looking for people to register their cars to give out candy. 

Gamble said that those interested in supporting CYE can spread the word to teens who might be interested in the workshops, make a donation, or reach out about volunteering their time by leading a workshop or serving as a mentor. Mentors must undergo a CORI check, finger-printing, and an interview. 

For more about CYE, visit the organization’s Facebook page or email warehamcye@gmail.com.