18 Degrees, Family Services for Western MA,  is offering additional programs for young people in the Berkshires. These programs are designed to guide young people to the resources, skills, and support to help them reach their goals. All of our youth programs aim to ignite young people’s creativity, support their ambitions, discover opportunities, and break down barriers so they can realize their dreams.

Our Safe Spaces programming expands our offerings for LGBTQ+ youth and their families. 18 Degrees provides a safe, inclusive, equitable, accessible, and healthy space for youth and young adults to live out loud and be their authentic selves. We offer four support groups: Live Out Loud Youth Project (2 sections, middle and high school), Young Adult Affinity Group- a group for young adults ages 18-30, and Families with Pride- a group for elementary school students and their families. In addition, we offer a parent education and support group, Parents/Caregivers Respecting Identities and Sexuality in Massachusetts or PRISM, which provides support, strategies, and education around LGBTQ+ topics. For more information regarding LGBTQ+-related groups, please contact Emma Lenski emlenski@18degreesma.org or 413-770-7121.

We also offer RAP, Inc. – an afterschool music production program, in which youth ages 12-18 can earn money for setting and achieving artistic goals! Youth will learn about music production, including song-writing, beat-making, and production techniques, as well as financial literacy through a partnership with Greylock Federal Credit Union. We have three iMacs equipped with Logic Pro X and all the necessary equipment to get started. For more information regarding RAP, Inc, please contact Trevor Wheelock at twheelock@18degreesma.org or 413-597-1259.