Our Story
As an inner-city teacher with a degree focused in Political Science, Race Relations, and Sociology, Daisha Calliet has both felt and studied the effects of inequality in all aspects of life, notably education. Her calling came at just 15 years old, leading her to share her time and poetry with youth in afterschool programs and juvenile detention centers.
Now, at 25, being relatable and putting love first has continued to help her to reach kids in her own classroom who feel discarded by the system and burdened by inequality. That approach is what the Y.E.A program is all about.
The untimely death of her 18 year old cousin, Otis, due to gun violence was her final catalyst to create the Y.E.A program, and he the guiding star for its future.
Otis "Lil' Otis" Hixon
February 7, 1995 - April 1, 2014