Amanda Shabowich (she/her/hers) is a 30-year-old lifelong Boston resident, who serves as the Director, Youth and Young Adult Pathways at United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley. From 2021-2023 she served as a member of the MA LGBTQ Youth Commission. From 2019-2022, she served as a Youth Transition Funders Group (YTFG) Economic Well-Being Youth Fellow.
After dropping out of high school, Amanda attended BDEA, which provided her with a supportive environment, including the flexible schedule she needed to work overnight while earning a diploma. After graduation, Amanda was offered an internship at the school, as a teacher’s assistant, her first formal experience working with young adults. In this role, Amanda provided one-on-one support, designed and facilitated lessons, and assisted with post-graduate planning.
In April 2015, she became an advocate for resources for out-of-school youth, planning and hosting youth-centric events, and building partnerships with other youth-serving organizations across the city with Youth Voice Project. Amanda has spoken about her work across the country, as well as designed and led workshops on the importance of amplifying youth voice through storytelling, self-care and healing for opportunity youth, designing inclusive youth programming, and inter-generational relationship building. In 2017 she was recognized by Mayor Walsh and the Aspen Forum for Community Solutions for her local and national leadership. Since joining United Way in 2019, Amanda led a collective impact effort funded by the state’s investment of over $1 million by providing individualized coaching to 18-24 year olds in subsidized housing across Boston.
