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ClubTech
Through Club Tech, and thanks to a more than $100 million donation from Microsoft,
BGCA is providing Clubs with the tools to make Club members and staff effective
technology users.
In 2007, long-time supporter
Best Buy Children’s Foundation
joined forces with BGCA and Microsoft to equip America’s youth
with essential digital literacy skills.
Clubs receive a comprehensive package of the latest Microsoft products – a combined
$88 million software gift. With another $12.3 million in cash, BGCA has developed
technology programs that will give members basic computer skills; introduce them
to digital movie making, music making, photography, graphic design and Web development
through
Digital Arts Suite and Festivals;
and guide staff in using technology to enhance all program offerings. Club Tech
also includes extensive technology training opportunities for Club staff at all
professional levels.
These initiatives emphasize community mobilization and family involvement as
strategies Clubs can use to better serve more young people and broaden the impact
of all Club programs.
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Embracing
Inclusion
This initiative provides Clubs with resources to enhance their services to youth
with disabilities within fun, safe environments. According to the U.S. Census
Bureau, nearly 13 percent of young people ages 6 to 14 have a disability (2001).
Unfortunately, many of these young people have limited access to after-school
programs that provide engaging, enjoyable opportunities for social and personal
development. BGCA is working with Kids Included Together (KIT) to provide Club
professionals and volunteers with effective strategies, tools and best practices
for recruiting more youth with disabilities and serving them more effectively.
Funded by Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation. |
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Latino
Outreach Initiative
Boys & Girls Clubs play a critical role in providing young Latinos with opportunities
to succeed. By engaging Latino youth and families through word-of-mouth referrals,
face-to-face contacts, community collaborations, special events and targeted
programming, Clubs give young Latinos access to interest- and need-based programs
to help them develop leadership abilities and strong decision-making skills.
BGCA offers professional training and mentoring for Club staff in the area of
Latino cultural diversity. Funded by The Goizueta Foundation, Hispanic Scholarship
Fund, UPS Foundation and Turner Broadcasting System Inc. |
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Targeted
Outreach Strategic Approaches
In response to the number of youth gangs growing in cities and expanding to suburban
and rural communities, BGCA has developed a special gang prevention and intervention
initiative targeting youth ages 6 to18. Through referrals from schools, courts,
law enforcement and community youth service agencies, the tested and proven Targeted
Outreach program identifies and recruits delinquent youth, or those
"at risk" of delinquency, into ongoing Club programs
and activities. This initiative is sponsored by the Office of Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice. |
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Teen
Initiative
Teens are not simply “older children;” they have reached a developmental stage
that requires a different strategic approach to recruitment, retention, marketing,
staff interaction, space utilization and programming. In addition, the needs
and developmental abilities of younger teens (13 to 15) vary from those of older
teens (16 to 18). The Teen Initiative provides program resources, grant funding,
training and technical assistance to Club staff and boards so they can deepen
their impact with teens in their communities and serve them more effectively.
Funded by Taco Bell Foundation. |
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Family
PLUS (Parents Leading, Uniting, Serving) Initiative
Family PLUS (Parents Leading, Uniting, Serving), is a model
for Boys & Girls Clubs wanting to implement family support
activities into their Club’s programming. This model
introduces Clubs to factors affecting the family unit and
methods of collaborating with community organizations to
provide parents and caregivers with resources. The
initiative is sponsored by the
Kimberly-Clark Corporation with a 5-year, $7 million grant
to Boys & Girls Clubs of America. To learn more about Family
PLUS, visit
http://familyplus.bgca.org.
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Youth
for Unity
To help educate young people across the country about
the importance of tolerance and diversity, Boys & Girls Clubs
of America has joined forces with The Allstate Foundation to
develop Youth for Unity, a diversity education program
designed to combat prejudice, bigotry and discrimination. Youth
for Unity is the umbrella title for a comprehensive set of
programmatic interventions that will allow Clubs to help members
appreciate and understand our society’s diversity, recognize
unfairness and take personal leadership in confronting bias.
Under this initiative, an additional diversity module will be
developed for the Street SMART Program. |
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An evaluation funded by the Kellogg Foundation found Clubs in non-traditional locations were a resource for under-served communities.
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