Education empowers us to build vibrant communities

Between the ages of twelve and fifteen, young people begin to leave childhood behind and develop and consolidate fundamental concepts about their identity and the role they will play in society. Not yet in the fullness of youth, individuals in this age range are sometimes referred to as junior youth.

The Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program is founded on the idea that, to help these young people achieve their full potential, education must address both their intellectual and spiritual development. Junior youth groups help young people develop their spiritual qualities, intellectual capacities, and potential to serve society. In groups, they are accompanied and motivated by an older youth mentor, referred to as an animator, to serve their neighbors, families, and friends, and to contribute to the well-being of the community.

Junior youth groups are usually weekly sessions that incorporate workbooks that develop literacy and powers of expression through stories and activities, as well as community service projects, art, and friendship-building games and activities.

The spiritual and moral education of children is a vital issue for all of society. Although parents and family have the greatest responsibility for children, children are also the trust of the community. Their well-being and moral development is the shared concern of all of us.

Children’s classes offered by the training institute are open to all children in a neighborhood. The classes promote virtues ​​and capabilities that help children grow up free from prejudice, recognizing the unity of humanity and appreciating everyone’s innate dignity and nobility.

Bahá'u'lláh, the Founder of the Bahá'í Faith, calls us to consider one another as “the fruits of one tree, and the leaves of one branch.”

In study circles, groups of friends meet to study passages from the Bahá'í Writings and perform acts of service. Through this study of the sacred Word and action, members of study circles develop capacities that allow them to contribute to the material and spiritual well-being of their community. 

Many study circle participants go on to themselves become teachers of children’s classes, animators of junior youth groups, or tutors of study circles as part of the institute process. Others host devotional gatherings where friends and neighbors come together to pray and have meaningful conversations. In time, groups of friends might undertake projects of social and economic development in response to the unique needs of their neighborhood or social circles.

Summer of Service is a region-wide program that invites youth over the age of fifteen to an intensive month of study, service, arts, and fellowship. The program’s aims are twofold:

• To ensure that youth across the region are advancing in their study of institute materials and in their personal spiritual growth

• To help them build capacity for service through helping to form and facilitate children’s classes and junior youth groups in neighborhoods across the Northeast

Participants of the program feel transformed in their capacity to contribute to their communities, grow in their understanding of profound spiritual concepts, and learn to set goals and make plans for their future with increased confidence and assurance.

The Year of Service program is open to all high school graduates and college students and will run from August 2026 to May 2027.

Youth will have the opportunity during their year of service to advance in their study of institute materials, serve in a neighborhood alongside a team of friends, participate in and facilitate spaces such as junior youth camps and children’s festivals, and visit other neighborhoods and clusters to support their community-building efforts.

Participants will receive one-on-one mentorship support to think about their educational and career goals. The program will also organize visits to places of historical significance around the region and country.

While not a program of the Regional Training Institute, the Institute for Studies in Global Prosperity (ISGP), a sister agency, offers a series of seminars for university students and young professionals that complement the training offered by the sequence of courses. 

A description from ISGP’s website on these seminars is included below. To learn more, visit the ISGP website. 

As part of its efforts to build capacity in individuals and to create spaces for learning about the betterment of society, the Institute offers a sequence of annual seminars designed to accompany university students through four years of university studies. Each seminar is approximately ten days long.

The purpose of these intensive seminars is to raise the consciousness of youth about the importance of engaging in action and discourse directed towards social change; to develop their capacity to reflect, to analyze, and to learn from action; to explore elements of a conceptual framework for contributing to the advancement of civilization; to provide them with tools to understand and analyze the culture in which they are immersed as well as the content of the university courses they are studying; to help them assume ownership of their education; and to assist them in their efforts to acquire the kind of knowledge that will enable them to live fruitful, productive and meaningful lives.

Seminars for college students in the northeast region are held each year at Green Acre Bahá’í School.