About Major Minor

Major Minor is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 2017, dedicated to empowering youth by applying their personal strengths to real-world challenges.

We encourage youth to shape global discourse and leadership through our professional enrichment programs. Looking ahead, we will establish an annual youth-led forum to foster civil and diverse dialogue through panel discussions, as well as youth-created art, literature, and film — cultivating confidence, presentation, and active listening skills.

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Our programs and initiatives:

  • Created by Executive Leadership Coach Lynn Blades, this 9-module enrichment program is designed to reinforce and teach diverse young leaders how to leverage their personal strengths before entering college or the workplace. The program equips students with the skills to build equity and leadership in a collaborative, creative environment. Designed for advanced students and young people eager for self-development, its modules foster conscious self-discovery through real-world applications. As it expands, the program will be integrated into schools, classrooms and community spaces year-round as our signature offering—seamlessly complementing the annual forum.

  • The future annual 4-day forum will consist of youth-leadership panel discussions on a range of globally relevant topics. This exchange of views and ideas will build confidence in leadership, presentation and listening skills. Art, literature and film will also be used as creative catalysts to open up a broader approach, while corporations, local businesses and companies will be invited to mentor, host and introduce forum participants to their businesses and potential internship opportunities.

  • This future program will explore essential entrepreneurial personality traits and outline the step-by-step process required to build and sustain a thriving freelance career.

  • In February 2020, Major Minor partnered with Columbia University's non-profit Double Discovery Center. Together, we implemented Eyes Wide Opened You.nique, an enrichment program anchored in developing students' six signature strengths to improve learning and personal growth. This dynamic learning platform fostered genuine teacher-student engagement, honored individual interests, learning styles and needs, and helped students understand themselves and their role in society.

    The 12-module program was attended by freshman and sophomore students from various local New York City public schools, including A. Philip Randolph, Frederick Douglas Academy, Global Learning Collaborative, and Manhattan Center for Science and Mathematics. 

    Note: This pilot, in-person program ended during the pandemic, but helped set the stage for other Major Minor Initiatives.

Vision & Impact

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  • We aim to encourage our partners and sponsors to place eligible youths into internship programs within their companies or communities. These internships will provide practical experience in a professional setting. Participants will learn to transfer what they’ve learned through our programs, confidently applying their knowledge to their daily lives.

  • Major Minor's long-term goal is to mentor and create global representatives who, in turn, will become mentors to future students. We aim to hire qualified youth who have come through the organization to assist with managing the annual forum and related yearly events.

  • As Major Minor grows and attracts corporate partners and sponsorships, programs and workshops will be implemented based on what we learn from the talented young people who participate in the forum. These may include workshops such as Creative Communication and Science & Technology in Art and Film, and programs such as Career Mentorship, Entrepreneurship and a Major Minor Book Club.

  • We aim to implement our signature program, the Grant Legacy Leadership Program in schools, classrooms and community spaces throughout the United States, providing a natural compliment to a future Annual Global Youth Forum to be held in Harlem, NYC where students will exchange views and ideas, building confidence in leadership, presentation and listening skills.