Students, Parents, Administrators, and Program Staff Celebrate First Year of LAYC’s After-School Programs at Wilson Senior High School and Deal Junior High

There was lots of dancing on June 7 at Wilson High School Library as the inaugural class of LAYC’s after-school program at Wilson High School and Deal Junior High celebrated the end of the year and showed off some of the moves they had learned as part of LAYC’s new after-school program for recent immigrants and other newcomers to the DC school system.

Four dance performances, including belly dancing, break dancing and Afro-Caribbean dance, highlighted the happy gathering, which was attended by students, parents, Wilson Principal Dr. Stephen Tarason, Wilson Director of Academic Development, and LAYC Board Member Alex Wilson, Mercedes Lemp, Director of the Mayor's Office on Latino Affairs (OLA), and LAYC Chief Operating Officer Anita Friedman.

Last fall, with support from DC’s Department of Human Services, the Office on Latino Affairs and Marriott Foundation, LAYC began working with students at Wilson High School and Deal and MacFarland Middle Schools to provide English assistance, homework help, and other educational, recreational, and leadership opportunities to students identified by the DCPS Bilingual Education Office as Non-English Proficient or Limited English Proficient (NEP/LEP).

Students participating in the after-school program split their time between homework and enrichment activities, which included dance, web design, and art programming offered through LAYC’s Art & Media House. Click here to read more.

Community Garden at Center for Educational Partnership is Up and Growing

Lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, beans, and strawberries from the Center for Educational Partnership’s Community Garden are now being sold on Thursday afternoons at the Riverdale Park Farmer’s Market.   During the first week of June, more than $140 worth of fruits and vegetables were sold.

The Community Garden is exactly that – a garden at the Center for Educational Partnership, where anyone from the Riverdale community can plant fruits, vegetables, or flowers in the spring and summer.  The garden was launched this spring and builds on the gardening and nutrition program offered last summer to William Wirt students as part of a summer enrichment camp operated by LAYC’s Maryland Multicultural Youth Centers and the University of Maryland’s Engaged University.

Check out the farmer’s market and see what’s growing in the Community Garden.

Ribbon is Cut at LAYC’s New Home for Young Women

“Thank God, we accomplished this dream.”

With those words from Radio El Zol’s morning host Pedro Biaggi, the ribbon was cut on LAYC’s new bilingual residential home for young women in DC’s foster care system.

The recently renovated row house on 15th and Irving St, NW, called Casa Zol, and furnished by Marlo Furniture, is the only bilingual residential facility for young women in DC's foster care system. Six young women, ages 16-21, who are referred by DC’s Child and Family Services Agency will call Casa Zol home beginning this summer.

Biaggi, host of “Pedro Biaggi en la Mañana” on Radio El Zol, broadcast his show live from the ribbon-cutting, giving his audience the opportunity to listen in on the celebration and to learn a bit about the youth homelessness problem in the District of Columbia.

Through LAYC’s Teen Bridge Program at Casa Zol, young women living in the home will build the work and life skills they need to transition from foster care to independent living. The facility is staffed around the clock and will offer its residents educational and employment assistance, counseling, case management, and other services. Click here to read more.

You can help furnish Casa Zol! Click on the image below or here to see our Wish List.

Independent Living Program Building Important Life Skills

A recent evaluation of LAYC’s Independent Living Program (ILP), administered by LAYC’s Learning and Evaluation Division, found that residents in the program are building skills in key areas such as money management, job seeking, educational planning, and interpersonal behavior.

The Independent Living Program provides a safe, stable home-like environment for six males in the foster care system, ages 16 to 21.  Residents learn the life skills needed to acquire their own housing and live on their own by age 21 or earlier, depending on their individual development.

By conducting a skills inventory every six months on each of the residents, the program tracks skill levels – from basic to intermediate to advanced to exceptional -- across 18 categories. The 18 categories include job maintenance skills, pregnancy and parenting, knowledge of community resources, educational planning, and health.

In the most recent assessment, the six residents collectively advanced five or more levels in 50% of the categories.  The largest gains were seen in the interpersonal skills and education planning categories.  In the interpersonal skills category, 60% of residents were at the basic level at the initial assessment, while 40% were at intermediate.  Six months later, 50% of residents had reached the exceptional level and all residents (100%) were at or above intermediate.

Steve Chaplain, who leads LAYC’s residential team, said, “It’s gratifying to see borne out in the skills assessment what we see everyday working with these young men: they are making important progress building the skills, habits, and behaviors that they’ll need to successfully live on their own in the future.”

Youth living in LAYC's transitional and independent living programs participated in a reception on Capitol Hill on July 24th following the congressional hearing regarding re-authorization of the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act.

LAYC’s First-Ever College Day Draws Educational Institutions and Enthusiastic Youth

Around 300 youth involved in the DC Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) and LAYC Upward Bound gathered at George Washington University’s Marvin Center on Friday, July 13, 2007, for LAYC's first College Day. Monica Fernandez, LAYC In-School Program Coordinator, and Stanford University interns Gilbert Dueñas, Andrew Lomeli, Sergio Rosas, and Edgar Chavez organized the event.

With about 25 higher education institutions in attendance, the college fair exposed youth to a variety of community colleges, vocational schools, and four-year universities. Representatives for scholarship opportunities, such as the Hispanic Scholarship Fund Institute, and other youth programs, such as LAYC Focus on Kids, also hosted booths at the fair. Tonya Asmar, an Admissions Counselor from Southeastern University, DC, acknowledged that there is an awareness gap for some youth – “Some kids don’t even know what a Bachelor’s degree is.” – but once representatives provide info and initiate conversations, “Then the questions come.”

Three ongoing workshops, accommodating up to 50 youth each time, covered key topics: What is College, Paying for College, and Surviving College. One youth workshop facilitator from Stanford University shared his view that a key questions about college was what “being educated” meant. He said it meant “being able to change your surroundings.”

Leaving the What is College seminar, Carolina Ramos of Bell Multicultural Senior HS and Madeleine Ramirez of High Point HS in Maryland were confident. Their high schools had prepared them well to go to college, they said. They understood that college would help with careers and quality of life. “[With college], you get a better everything,” they laughed.

Amid the energetic noise of the college fair, LAYC Chief Operating Officer Anita Friedman reflected on the opportunities being provided by the event. “I think it’s fantastic! Some of the young people had not even considered college before, let alone talked to admissions officials.” Organizers were extremely satisfied with the day and hope that it will set a precedent for similar LAYC-sponsored events in the future.

YouthRadio DC on the Air: Sex Education Story on NPR's Justice Talking

On July 6th, LAYC’s own Erica Grandados De La Rosa made her YouthRadio debut on National Public Radio’s Justice Talking. Erica interviewed youth from LAYC and the District of Columbia about the role that sex plays in their teenage lives. She produced a fantastic feature radio story about teens, sex, and how teens learn about sex. Erica is a fresh voice taking an unblinking look at a serious issue that makes folks blush.

Erica and producer Shea Shackelford from the LAYC Art + Media House's YouthRadio DC, gathered surprising takes and great music and mixed it together in a sassy piece that aired on 100 public radio stations nationally.

You can hear the story at the websites of either Justice Talking http://www.justicetalking.org or the YouthRadio at http://www.youthradio.org

Congratulations to Erica and Shea!

M&T Bank Honors Latin American Youth Center’s AmeriCorps Graduates

M&T Bank honored graduates of the Latin American Youth Center’s AmeriCorps program at a ceremony held at the Center’s anchor site.

Special commemorative jackets were presented to 25 young people who completed AmeriCorps training and served during the school year as educational aides. AmeriCorps members worked at elementary and middle schools to encourage academic achievement among students performing below grade level.  They are now providing free summer enrichment camps to125 youth. AmeriCorps members also serve as mentors and parent liaisons and engage in community and school beautification projects.

The jackets feature the M&T Bank logo on one sleeve, AmeriCorps logo on the other, and Latin American Youth Center lettering on the back. They will be worn while AmeriCorps members carry out community service projects.

“We are pleased to honor and support the graduates of this outstanding program that makes such a positive impact in the community,” said Chuck Martin, M&T Bank’s Community Reinvestment Officer.

Lori Kaplan, executive director of LAYC, added, “We welcome this partnership with M&T Bank and their recognition of our AmeriCorps program through which thousands of elementary and middle school students have improved their academic performance and expanded their horizons. We look forward to continuing to partner with M&T Bank to help youth in this community become successful young adults.”

LAYC's AmeriCorps Program was established in 1997.  To date, 150 Corps members have participated. Members are recruited from the local community.  Many have been involved with LAYC and have attended the DC public schools in which they now serve.

Borders to be Broken, Anyway!

This summer, every floor at LAYC's Art + Media House (AMH) overflows with young people. Sixty youth from neighborhoods across D.C. are creating art about their personal experiences.  They are exploring migration, gentrification, and immigration – generally the push and pull that moves people from one place to another.

Summer began with a three-day orientation that introduced everyone to each other and the project.  The youth age 12-18 chose to be a part of a production team: mixed media, music, poetry, murals, photography, or graphic design.  Youth are spending the next five weeks developing their skills in their medium.

The youth decided that the title Borders to be Broken, Anyway!  best conveyed their message.  During workshops, youth discussed crossing borders in their lives: moving from one neighborhood to another, attending a new school, adapting to a new culture, or crossing a racial divide.

 The youth believe that borders are to be broken.  The art and media work created for the summer installation reflects on and questions the borders in their lives. 

YouthBuild PCS Premieres Its New Video Produced by the Art + Media House

LAYC YouthBuild Public Charter School hosted an event at the GALA Hispanic Theatre on June 13th to debut its new video, produced by the LAYC Art + Media House. The 8-minute video tells the story of the YouthBuild Public Charter School and its students and alumni through the voices of the students. In addition to providing an inside look at student life at YouthBuild, it tells the compelling stories of three YouthBuild graduates who have gone on to very successful careers. Foulger-Pratt, one of YouthBuild’s major partners, underwrote the event, and John Barron, President of Foulger-Pratt Contracting, spoke about their firm’s successful experience employing YouthBuild graduates. City Council Member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1) shared his perspective on how YouthBuild Public Charter School is filling a crucial need by re-engaging disconnected youth in our community. To view the video click here.

“Our Voices” Start the Drama Theater Project in LAYC’s Maryland Multicultural Youth Centers Summer Program

“Our Voices,” a socio-drama created and performed by youth, offers compelling and poignant insights into the lives of Latino and African American youth today. Written by 15 youth in LAYC’s MMYC Montgomery County Department of Juvenile Services program in collaboration with professional actor Michael Anthony Williams and performed by 25 youth in the “Start the Drama Company” summer program, “Our Voices” uses vignettes and monologues to explore topics of identity, child abuse, gangs, relationships, teen pregnancy, parent-child relationships, and more. During three performances audience members laughed and cried as the painfully realistic words of the young people touched their hearts. LAYC plans to identify additional venues in the fall so that the voices of young people can continue to be heard. “This play needs to be seen by parents, policy-makers, and youth themselves. It is an awesome wake-up call for everyone who cares about young people,” stated Lori Kaplan, LAYC Executive Director.

Special thanks to Montgomery County Collaboration Council for Children, Youth, and Families for funding the “Our Voices” project.

The LAYC Family of Organizations is a network of youth centers, schools, and social enterprises with a shared commitment to helping youth become successful and happy young adults, with the skills they need to succeed educationally, professionally and personally.  For more information, please go to www.layc-dc.org.