Mentor (youth: North Tempe - ASU area)

COMMUNITY PARTNER

Boys & Girls Clubs of the East Valley

ABOUT THE INTERNSHIP

Duties

Interns assist staff in providing specialized programs and activities such as daily physical activity, high tech computer labs, arts and craft, dance, music, tutoring, and field trips.

Our after school program has an average daily attendance of 110 youth from ages 5-18 years of age. We are looking for positive role models who can mentor while having fun and providing a safe positive expierence. Homework help, flag football, basketball, gamesroom activities are some of the fun activities you can be a part of. We also encourage service learning students to bring their skills  and interests to the Club and teach our kids new things. Past students have taught kids how to play guitar, sew, and art.

The participants in our Camps (Summer winter spring and fall breaks) at the North Tempe Club will be involved in a variety of programs and activities in six fun areas each day: Gameroom, gym, computer lab, performing arts, arts & crafts, and the Discovery Lab.  Kids are divided by age into groups of about twenty and assigned a group leader and counselor. 

There is dance, music, drama, art, sports, games, and skill building programs such as the BGCA SMARTMoves prevention and life skills family of programs.  There are field trips to fun places such as Amazing Jake’s, skating rinks, bowling, golf, etc. 

These action-packed weeks are something that no youngster should be without, and are greatly looked forward to by the families - especially those who have no other place to give their children a ‘break’ during the vacations.

Population served

Laird Elementary, next door to our club, has the largest ESL population in the Tempe School District, with over 40% having English as the second language.  80% of the students at Laird are on the free or reduced breakfast/lunch program.  Although there is a high concentration of students who have Spanish as their first language, there are also high numbers of students having a language other than Spanish or English as their first language, due to the high population of visiting professors/staff assigned to ASU, from other nations.

Community need/impact

Our program is the only youth/teen program for the residents in North Tempe.  This branch is open seven days a week, providing programs for residents that they cannot get elsewhere within the area.  ASU has been a valuable resource for recruiting volunteers to serve as mentors.  In North Tempe, over 48% of members come from single parent household, or household lead by extended family members or non-family members, with several members being raised by grandparents, and great-grandparents, by uncles and aunts, and neighbors.  Additionally, there are several youth going through transition due to the death (including suicide) of a parent or caregiver, and members who have recently been released from Child Protective Services custody or foster care.

Youth and teens participating in our Summer Day Camp are able to learn about positive decision making, how to say no to peer pressure, facts on substance use and abuse as well as the effects on the mind and body. Learning Center activities educate and inspire members to value free enterprise, business, and economics to improve the quality of their lives.