Our Mission
Sweet Generation RISE trains and hires young people from marginalized communities ages 16 to 24. We work with both high school students and disconnected out-of-school youth that have limited access to employment opportunities and training.
RISE serves economically distressed communities - our target communities encompass both under-resourced or under-performing high schools and high-need neighborhoods exhibiting poverty and resource deprivation.
By providing meaningful training in job-readiness, entrepreneurship and social-emotional development we support our participants in leading healthy, positive lives, reduce the risk of negative life outcomes and have tremendous positive economic impact on under-resourced NYC communities.
Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales
It is with heavy hearts that we announce that we closed our doors to Sweet Generation | RISE. We have tried our very best to weather the storm of the past two years and provide our customers and guests with delicious food and a welcoming destination to gather. But in the end, the long-lasting effects of Covid that plague our operation and industry (including rising costs and decimation of our wholesale and catering business) have made it impossible to continue.
"This experience has helped me immensely, from teaching me how to master recipes, to enhancing my self-confidence"
-Nicole, 17, Summer 2016 Intern
Hakeem learns how to scale breads
Intern Graduate Lisbeth leading a new intern cohort workshop
Summer 2015 cohort!
Intern Graduate Lisbeth baking for The Pope
Food Handler's certificate!
Curtis, from Boys Club of NY, scooping red velvet cookies
Lobi, from Cypress Hills' Young Adult Internship Program, serves cupcakes
Shamel gets support studying for his SAT exams
Youth Interns Ready To Work!
Jason, Boys Club of NY Intern, working the counter
Interested in partnering with us?
We work with a variety of programs serving youth ages 16-24. Our partners must have an established internship program that include compensation for participants (either monetary or school credit). It is our goal to provide young people with real world experience, and we believe compensation for their work is not only the right thing to do, but helps teach responsibility and financial management.
Looking for a donation?
We get a very large number of donation and sponsorship requests and have a rigorous review process to determine which organizations and events we are able to support in this way. While Sweet Generation would love to be able to donate to all organizations doing mission driven work, we are currently not accepting inquiries for donations.