YouthBuild Waukegan‘s Rios receives award

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Karen Rios, director of YouthBuild Waukegan, was awarded the 2024 Rising Star award at YouthBuild USA’s National Directors Association meeting in May in Washington, D.C.

Each year, the global nonprofit’s six individual Directors Awards celebrate program leaders across the YouthBuild movement who demonstrate an impact at their local program, support their students in achieving their ambitions and provide leadership for the entire YouthBuild network. Rios and five program leaders in other categories were honored before a crowd of 148 of their peers.

The Rising Star award recognizes Rios for taking the helm of YouthBuild Waukegan during pandemic lockdowns, her ability to expand student enrollment during that time (and since), as well as the energy and new ideas she brings to the fold. Her calming, competent leadership will shape YouthBuild Waukegan – and the greater YouthBuild movement – for generations to come.

Rios joined YCC as program director in 2020. She has more than 20 years of experience working with community-based, social service organizations and is passionate about ensuring that people have the resources they need to succeed. She earned her bachelor’s degree in political science and international studies from Iowa State University and her master’s degree in business administration from Aurora University.

Rios was excited to join the YCC team and have the opportunity to serve youth who are in the process of transforming their lives.

“I am deeply honored to receive the Rising Star award,” Rios said in a news release. “This recognition is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire team at YouthBuild Waukegan. Our mission to empower young people and provide them with the tools they need to succeed is more important now than ever. I am grateful for the opportunity to lead such an inspiring group of individuals and to be a part of their transformative journeys.”

YouthBuild Waukegan is one of more than 280 local programs around the world that partner with opportunity youth – young adults between the ages of 16 and 24 who are neither in school nor employed – to build the skill sets and mindsets that lead to lifelong learning, livelihood and leadership.

In YouthBuild programs, opportunity youth pursue their education, prepare for future careers and grow into community leaders, building brighter futures for themselves and their neighborhoods. Responding to the urgent need for knowledge, training and opportunity, YouthBuild primarily serves young people who lack a high school diploma and financial resources.

“YouthBuild students around the world are able to reinvent themselves because of the love, support and quality education and training they receive from their local program,” said John Valverde, president and CEO of YouthBuild USA. “Program leaders foster community and opportunity for the young people they serve, transforming lives and communities every single day. We celebrate these honorees for contributing so greatly to the YouthBuild movement.”