The WellCare Health & Life Skills Award - Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta
The Bike Safety Course focused on three important areas of development:
1. Experience and exposure to the joy of bike riding and physical activity;
2. Skills and knowledge about bike riding such as proper use of safety equipment or how to ride without training wheels and
3. Softer social-emotional skills such as perseverance and resilience (e.g., getting back up when you fall off your bike).
For three days a week, members were exposed to and educated about choosing proper and appropriate bike equipment (helmets, clothing, knee pads, and bike sizing). The members were encouraged to think critically about when and where they bike and were given a safe space at the club to do this. They also learned the fundamentals of bike riding and many kids bike for the first time. The careful watch of staff who are there when the training wheels come off and let go of the handles for the first time are an instrumental part of the program as they provide a safe and supportive environment.
Like all BGCMA clubs, Mimms Club participates in BGCMA’s youth outcome survey and the FitnessGram. According to youth outcome survey data:
• 53% of Elementary members at Mimms were more physically active than their peers across other BGCMA Clubs (51%).
• Improvement in rates of physical activity was nearly double than that of their peers (33% in the fall to 53% in the spring versus 44% to 51% across BGCMA).
• Similar gains were measured in the Aerobic Capacity of Elementary members at Mimms. 82% of Elementary members at Mimms ended the school year in the healthy fit zone after only 73% of them did beginning in the school year.
These statistics are even more impressive when you consider that Elementary aged members across BGCMA experienced a slight decline in the proportion of them in the Healthy Fit Zone for Aerobic Capacity (73%).
While the statistics point to our desired outcomes in Healthy Lifestyles, the outpouring of parent support cannot be overstated. Parent Krystal Thomas stated that she “was so excited about the bike program because her 7yr old Club member hates being outside and is rarely involved in physical activity but, this program was such a success in getting her exposed and excited about being active, healthy and willing to have fun.”
Character & Leadership Development Award - Boys & Girls Clubs of Chattahoochee Valley
The purpose of “It Takes a Village” is to provide our teen members the opportunities to develop positive behaviors and life strategies which include, (1) opportunities for education, (2) mentoring, (3) conflict resolution skills/training, (4) safety, (5) engagement of teens and their families, and (6) develop a life-long commitment to community-based initiatives. The program is designed to get contributing members to understand the importance of community service work, and the experiences that they attain from such work can make a difference to others and their community as well. The program dynamics help build our members’ understanding of their competence; leading to more self-confidence and becoming an inspiration that can spread to their peers, family members, and community.
The program participants meet two to three times weekly to fulfill the long list of targeted community obligations. First, the “It Takes a Village” participants engage in big brother/big sister mentee relationships with younger members that attend our 6-12 year-old partner club. Our teen members are paired with pre-selected members and engage them twice weekly in conversation, homework help, and just hanging out to give our younger members another positive influence from a mentor with whom they come in contact with almost daily. The teens contributed to this movement by taking their mentees fishing several times during the spring and summer seasons to help build the bond with their mentees. Members in the program also are required to participate in several community service activities, such as Help the Hooch, where our teens help keep our community clean by getting up early on Saturdays to pick up trash around our river walk area. Our members have also participated in being in the stands for the Georgia Special Olympics to give them a broader view of members in our community, which are no different from others but have distinct challenges. The trip to the Olympics helped our members value the power of words and the problems bullying presents to others. Our teen members selected Muscogee Manor Nursing Home to adopt and visit weekly to help build a relationship with the older members of our city, and learn the importance of respecting elders who have paved the way for many of them to pursue academic, economical, and political aspirations. The “It Takes a Village” program members also helped one of our partners with Boys & Girls Club, United Way, deliver book bags, folders, pencils, and paper to area schools for the annual “Stuff the Bus” campaign. Our members arrived at the Boys & Girls Club at 7:00 AM during an off week of the summer program to volunteer with this program. This shows the dedication that our members have to making a positive impact in their community.
The participation in this program continues to grow as our teens gain knowledge and make decisions to undertake many distinct challenges within the community.
Conduct is measured through visible interaction with participants as well as through the use of conduct reports delivered on their report cards. Participants in the program are required to sign the “Positive Behavior” contract which sets forth rules and regulations for remaining a viable member of the group. Providing children with the opportunity to develop positive behaviors is the foundation of most efforts to prevent youth crime and violence, and in turn increase self-efficacy and positive self-esteem. Members have also increased attendance in Keystone and Torch Club meetings, with many new participants wanting to join and participate in civic and community activities. Using tools such as the parent survey about our youth’s involvement in remaining free from contact with judicial and legal systems, making good decisions questionnaires, and parent programming surveys are indicative of the strength of our program. The program’s overall positive impact is seen in all of our members, as the inappropriate behavior in The Club has almost entirely diminished from this same period last year.
The Arts Award - Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta
BGCMA is committed to serving the youth who need us most and these youth typically come from communities that are underserved and schools that are in desperate need for arts education where there is otherwise none.
The Lawrenceville Boys & Girls Club fills the arts education gap for Lawrenceville Teens through the Cyber Echo program. The purpose of the program is to help create and foster a community of youth voice through the creation of multimedia that deliver powerful and positive messages that empower Teens and reflect their culture. Cyber Echo champions and epitomizes the concept of youth voice. Young people need to be able express themselves in healthy and productive ways. They want a chance to be heard and have their perspectives valued. Cyber Echo is not just about creating media, but involves many group discussions about Social Responsibility, Character Development, Leadership Skills, & Media Literacy. Cyber Echo often draws the creative types and helps them to gain the confidence to come out of their shell, become leaders, and spokespersons for their generation through the incredibly influential platforms of music, video, & spoken word.
Cyber Echo met once per week during the school year, and activities were centered on media literacy. Critical analysis of existing media messages present in contemporary art and music occurred through ‘Think Tank’ group discussions and one-on-one meetings. The creation of positive media messages occurred through writing workshop sessions, song-writing sessions, music production and performance, and audio engineering. Reflection, celebration and appreciation of the media created by participating teens took place in culminating events throughout the year. Some of these culminating events included publishing creative writing in BGCMA’s Marel Brown creative writing journal, submission of art to Image Makers, musical performances at BGCMA events, entries into BGCMA’s Teen Poetry Slam, and uploading of music videos to YouTube.
Cyber Echo has made a positive impact in the life of teens at the Lawrenceville Club. The Lawrenceville Club participates in BGMCA’s annual outcome assessment process in which members complete reliable and validated surveys that measure academic and character & leadership developmental outcomes and overall club experience. The findings from these surveys revealed that high school teens at the Lawrenceville Club reported substantially higher levels of learning engagement (a key indicator of Academic Success) than teens across BGCMA. Additionally, these same teens from Lawrenceville reported higher levels of character & leadership outcomes (Self-Concept, Social Competence, Empowerment, and Social Responsibility) than teens across BGCMA. For instance, teen members at Lawrenceville volunteered in their community at higher levels than their peers across BGCMA (82% vs. 76%).
Cyber Echo impacted the overall club experience for teens at the Lawrenceville Club. Using a Club Experience survey, BGCMA can to determine and compare the experience of our club members across the organization. Cyber Echo positively contributed to the overall experience of teens at Lawrenceville. A significantly greater proportion of teen members at Lawrenceville reported an Optimal Club Experience (89%) than High School members across BGCMA (65%).
While these quantitative findings are impressive, qualitative data collection coming from focus groups with teen members revealed that Lawrenceville teens attribute much of their great Club Experience and success to Cyber Echo. Teen members shared that they started attending the club and even continued attending the club mostly due to the Cyber Echo program. Specifically, it is also important to note that Lawrenceville’s current Youth of the Year and their previous Youth of the Year who served as the 2016 Youth of the Year for the state of Georgia, have acknowledged that their participation in Cyber Echo provided them with greater confidence, social awareness, and helped them express themselves in a more positive manner.
Education & Career Development - Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany
Albany, affectionately referred to as “The Good Life City,” is a vibrant community steeped in opportunity for its citizens, but is not without its share of challenges. Building upon this foundation of program success, during the 2015-2016 Afterschool Program, Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany implemented a program that would not only provide theoretical information on college and career readiness, but would provide real world experience and exposure while encouraging academic success and civic engagement. The Work-Based Learning
Over the course of this comprehensive, collaborative program, Club members participated in weekly Teen Nights held Monday – Thursday from 6 pm – 9 pm nightly. During Teen Nights, members participated in mandatory programs such as Diplomas 2 Degrees, Money Matters, and Career Launch. Additionally, members were required to maintain a minimum grade point average of 2.5, complete 100 hours of community service, complete 100 hours of on the job experience in their assigned internship/apprenticeship. At the end of each nine weeks, CTAE Club members who met the attendance, grade point average, community service and internship/apprenticeship minimum received a $125 stipend. At the end of the fourth nine weeks, 12 grade CTAE Club members successfully meeting their quarterly requirements received a $500 scholarship.
To encourage success in the Work-Based Learning program, Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany provided quarterly community service opportunities, for program participants, as well as supplemental internship experiences. Work Based Learning participants hosted College Weeks at their respective Clubs, participated in various college-based field trips, and served as tutors and peer mentors to younger Club members.
Our annual youth outcomes survey illustrates many positive findings from participation in Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany’s Work Based Learning program:
• Among our teenaged members, 95 percent expect to graduate from high school, and 90 percent expect to complete some post-secondary education.
• At least once per year or more, 78 percent of Club teen members volunteer in the community, and 69 percent of members participate in Club-based service.
• More than 60 percent of Club members participate in physical activity 5 or more days a week, and 100 percent of Club members have abstained from marijuana use.
Of the twelve high school seniors enrolled in the Work-Based Learning program: 100 percent graduated from high school; 10 successfully enrolled in college and/or technical school; one joined the Air Force; and one is gainfully employed and intend to enroll in technical school in spring 2017.
Overall Work-Based Learning participants:
• 100 percent maintained an overall grade point average of 2.5 or higher.
• 100 percent successfully completed the required minimum of 100 internship/apprenticeship hours, with 11 participants successfully completing their hours by the end of the third nine weeks grading period and 14 continuing to intern at the Club during the 2016 Summer Enrichment Program.
• 11 members exceeded the required minimum of 100 community service hours by an additional 96 hours.
• 83 percent met the required Teen Night participation minimum of 2 nights per week.
As a result of the successful inaugural implementation of the Work-Based Learning program, Boys & Girls Clubs has recently begun the second implementation of the program Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany prides itself on its history of transforming lives, and has a bold plan for helping even more youth in our community achieve great futures.
Program of the Year Award - Boys & Girls Clubs of Chattahoochee Valley
The Empowered Youth of Columbus (EYC) Program is a 21st Century Learning Program. Through our targeted programs and partnership with this program, the East Columbus Boys & Girls Club has been able to provide additional programming and resources to our club members. Through this program can support our club members in several ways:
• Academic Support: Through this dynamic partnership we are able to provide a certified teacher to our club members. This teacher is able to provide instruction to our club members and also offers time to tutor our club member in areas in which they need additional support. The teachers use the data provided from the Report Cards and Progress Reports to provide support to the students in areas that they identify as challenging, in addition to areas that are identified through several streams of data that are provided. BGC staff works with EYC teaching artists to provide members with the ultimate education experience, from creating videos, learning about science, to writing scripts and producing plays.
• Art & Cultural Enrichment Support: The program provides a Teaching Artist to come into the club. We have been able to expose our youth to several art forms. We have provided our youth with Drama Classes, Hip-Hop Dance, Zumba, and Painting & Drawing Lessons from professional artists, along with many other Art & Performance mediums. We partner to showcase our members’ talents to their parents and the community, through a fall and spring art exhibit that features the talents of our youth.
• Resources: The EYC Program has provided Boys & Girls Clubs with an opportunity to offer both tangible materials to club members that might not otherwise be available to them. We have been able to enhance our overall programming as a result of this program. We also have been able to provide youth with educational field trips, family engagement opportunities, and science experiences as a result of this partnership.
The effectiveness of this program is determined through the use of Data. We have several statistical summaries that have been used to address the effectiveness and success of this partnership. Through the partnership with EYC, we have seen positive increases in different areas of our students and their academic success. Last school year, 59.8 percent of the club members enrolled in the program saw a growth of a full letter grade in the subject of math. And, 62.2 percent of club members had a letter grade change in the subject of reading. Not only did we see dynamic increases in student achievement, but we also saw that our club members’ attitudes toward school changed and their teachers took note of this improvement, as well. Our data revealed that 79 percent of members have improved their behavior in class. The other way we measure the impact of the program is through testimonials. The Head Tutor for the EYC Program submitted several “Moments that Matter” statements to provide detail around the experiences of our club members throughout the program, last year.