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What do we at Step It Up, Inc.?

When you were in high school, would you have benefited from having a support team in your life to help you discover your career goals and connect you with summer learning experiences in your chosen career field?

Would you have liked to have a safe adult give you advice about how to achieve your career goals?

Step It Up, Inc. programs guide youth in how to investigate, experience, and achieve their educational and career goals from ages 13 through 24. Our programs also help youth to feel empowered as they learn to believe in themselves and their own natural abilities. When our staff, supporters, business partners, and the community in general, show that we believe in them, youth learn to believe in themselves, and they succeed! We have a photo gallery of our program participants at our offices in the Lloyd Center Mall to share with you. The photo below shows our view of the mall.

SIU Office

Our Mission

Our mission is to inspire the belief that all young people deserve the chance to prove their abilities and achieve their career goals. We accomplish our mission by supporting high school students, and especially those of color and from lower socio-economic status, to achieve their education and career goals through participation in three youth workforce development programs. These programs follow best practice principals and include the Pre-internship Program, the Internship Program, and the Career Achievement Mentoring Program.

Each of these programs was developed, and is constantly being improved, to address the specific challenges students face today in achieving their education and career goals. These challenges are sometimes overwhelming and goals can appear to be unattainable, especially for students who lack access to career networks, mentors, and good employment opportunities.

  • Nationally, 88% of high school students who drop out have passing grades but are bored with school, see no reason to get a diploma, and need money (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation report 2006).
  • In Portland, Oregon, "only 57% of high school students who enroll in Portland Public Schools graduate." (Portland Schools Foundation, 2007)
  • Students of color and/or of lower socio-economic status are 'far less' likely to graduate high school than their counterparts."  (Portland Schools Foundation, 2007).
In order to support high school students who have professional career ambitions and are capable of achieving their career goals, Step It Up, Inc. recruits additional students every year for career opportunities and connections that will assist them in becoming confident and productive adults that add to the livelihood of our economy.


Step It Up, Inc. partners with the business community to connect students with real world work experience, interviews, and graduation support. The business community is the foundation of the success of our programs and the success of the youth they support. See a complete list of our Business Partners in the "Businesses" section of our website.