Isla Vista Youth Projects held a community briefing and logo unveiling last week at their Children’s Center to celebrate its new name, LEAP, which stands for Learn. Engage. Advocate. Partner.
LEAP, formerly IVYP, is a nonprofit organization in Isla Vista that provides family development resources for underprivileged Santa Barbara County babies, toddlers, children, and youths.
The organization prides itself on providing affordable childcare, running a healthy food pantry, and has the only diaper bank in Santa Barbara County providing more than 100,000 diapers.
It’s these types of services that led the organization to choose a name that better reflects its expanding reach.
“We felt that people misunderstood who we are and what we do. And that meant that fewer families were getting their needs met. We envision a community where children are loved, valued, and respected, and families are supported to reach their highest potential,” said Lori Goodman, Executive Director of LEAP.
LEAP is the second-largest employer of UC Santa Barbara work study students, only behind UCSB itself, and while Isla Vista is where the organization is rooted, IV only makes up 20% of the population the nonprofit caters to. About 60% of clients are in Goleta and 20% are in the rest of the county.
“This is an organization that is integral to our community and does a lot of good work with us,” said Goleta Councilman Kyle Richards.
“It is a model for those partnerships not only with the City of Goleta but with other organizations and the outreach and commitment that it has to serving the broader community and bringing people together.”
The ceremony was filled with speeches and awards presented by different elected officials and representatives from their offices to celebrate the organization’s new name and to recognize the work that LEAP has done for the county.
Students who are part of the pre-kindergarten program ended the event by unveiling the new logo and briefly speaking to the crowd about what the program means to them.
Ernesto Centeno Araujo is a Noozhawk contributing writer and UC Santa Barbara student.