The purpose of this article is to explicate the benefits of engaging youth of color in a way that engenders a rights-based understanding of disparities. We also show how critical service-learning experiences can encourage students of color to pursue careers in applied and social sciences. The aims of this paper are met by briefly exploring the inequities presently facing communities of color; discussing the utility of engaging youth of color through critical service-learning opportunities; and the potential of experiential learning in motivating youth of color to pursue careers in STEM, health, and human service professions with a critical, rights-based lens.