Our city is filled with the need for change. The change starts with hope, hope that our tomorrow will be better than our today. Yesterday’s mistakes don’t go away, but we give them life when we stand still. We dwell in them when we let them become who we are. Today is your future. Change your situation by investing in yourself. Take away the power from your past by making a choice, right here, right now, to give new life to your future.  The power is yours, the choice is yours. Nothing will ever change the past, but one small step can change your future.

Who We Are

Changing Perceptions, a non-profit organization, whose mission is to build a bridge of hope and opportunity for at-risk youth before they are expelled from the school system or become a product of the penal system.

Our core values are: Accountability, Discipline, Commitment, Family/Community, and Growth

Changing Perceptions is offering you the tools you need to build a new future…the skills, the foundation, and the opportunity to make your tomorrow better than your today. Welcome to the journey…

What we do

This program targets individuals ages 13-17 years of age. We aim to create a culture of success and not victims by providing the tools needed to make decisions where participants become accountable to themselves and their actions, while also taking ownership of their lives.

We give at-risk youth the opportunity to invest in themselves by offering :

• Group mentoring (one-to-one available on case-by-case basis)
• Group sessions (Responsibility of One’s Action, The Importance of Attitude, Community Responsibility, The Importance of Controlling How You Are Perceived)
• Community Service Projects
• Tools and Resources for parents on engaging in their child’s success.

Changing Perceptions was formally birthed in 2024 by Glen “Blue” Clayborn.  Blue is a native of Memphis, Tennessee, with a proven track record of helping released felons re-enter society.  In this role as re-entry specialist and supervisor, he became a mentor to his peers and also became a Certified Forklift Instructor, Certified Training Systems Instructor for TPC Systems, and Employee Retention Specialist for several Memphis non-profits.  He developed, documented and refined instrumental training and mentoring programs in collaboration with re-entry programs throughout the city.  In early 2023 he conceived of, and decided to develop Changing Perceptions as a mentoring program for at-risk youth.  He believes his energy is best spent working with young men at risk for “following the path I once traveled.”  As a faithful man of God he believes his role is; to help these men find a solid purpose in life, to help them realize a better future, to help them make intelligent decisions, and to help them attain the skills they need to accomplish their goals.