Workshop Houston is a youth-driven community center where young people learn that education is the means to change their lives.  We work primarily with middle school students, a particularly vulnerable population that is right on the verge of deciding what kind of adults they want to become.

We have four programs -  the Middle School Program (creative skill-building and academic support for 6th-8th graders), the Third Ward Bike Shop (do-it-yourself bike repair for all ages), the High School Program (individualized projects and mentoring for 9th-12th graders) and the Summer Leadership Institute (academic preparation and service-based internships for 8th grade graduates and high school students) that are based out of our five shops. The shops are fully-equipped  resource studios where youth can access tools, instruction and equipment unavailable anywhere else.

The learning environment at Workshop Houston is transformative for our students - many of whom have had negative experiences in traditional educational venues - helping them find their own path towards educational attainment, expanded opportunities in their lives, and a definition of success that is based in values of life-long learning, community engagement, social justice and self empowerment.  Our after school and summer programs use the shops’ resources to bring education out of the classroom and into all aspects of students’ lives in a tangible and exciting way, as well as fostering a positive peer and mentor community that helps youth define and reach their goals in school and beyond.

In order to create this community, our programs stretch beyond middle school.  We serve people of all ages in the Third Ward Bike Shop and older students who have excelled in our Middle School Program through our High School Program and Summer Leadership Institute.  We believe this holistic approach to serving our core constituents is fundamental to the idea of education being expansive, relevant and community-driven.