Holiday Fund: Helping youth develop character, talents, skills Holiday Fund: Helping youth develop character, talents, skills (December 07, 2005)

Collaborating with community groups stretches resources of the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Peninsula.

By Marjorie Mader

Almanac Staff Writer

The Boys and Girls Clubs of the Peninsula is increasing its collaboration with other community organizations to help young people from low-income and high-crime neighborhoods develop character, talents and skills.

"We're all struggling to meet the needs of 14,000 children" who live in East Palo Alto and eastern Menlo Park and Redwood City, says Peter Fortenbaugh, the club's executive director.

"The schools in the areas the clubs serve are struggling," says Mr. Fortenbaugh. He cites statistics: About 85 percent of the students score "below proficient" in standardized math and reading tests.

Some 50 to 65 percent of the youth in these neighborhoods do not graduate from high school.

A recent and unusual collaboration was moving Community School South from a rented warehouse to the attractive East Palo Alto Moldaw-Zaffaroni Clubhouse last September. This school, administered by the San Mateo County Office of Education, gives high school students who run afoul of the law and are on probation an opportunity to continue their education in a smaller setting.

This collaboration involves the county office of education, the probation department and the Boys and Girls Clubs. The county pays a nominal rent for the use of the club's facilities -- including a classroom with a bank of computers and the Teen Center with a large TV and pool table for recreation -- from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Other community agencies provide services such as substance abuse counseling, individual counseling, HIV screening, and visits from the San Mateo County health van's "clinic on wheels."

Merrie Busch, a teacher from the county office of education, is in charge of the multi-graded, self-contained classroom with 20 to 25 high school students, ages 16 to 18.

All of the students live in East Palo Alto or Belle Haven and previously attended schools in the Sequoia Union High School District.

"As soon as students arrive at the school, we help them continue their learning right away," says Ms. Busch.

Students are assessed for their ability and academic standing (high school credits earned).

"We treat them as an individual and work out an individual learning plan, designed for their needs and goals, and a contract," she says.

The curriculum is based on the California State standards and state adopted texts.

A teacher's assistant and a group supervisor from the county probation department work with students and Ms. Busch in the classroom.

About 40 percent of the students speak Spanish as their first language, 30 percent are Tongan or South Pacific Islanders, and 30 percent are African Americans. Thirty percent or more of the students receive special education services.

"Each of the students have multiple issues that affect their ability to be successful," says Ms. Busch. "We're trying to address these issues to get them back on track."

The main goals are to return the students to their high schools or help them earn a high school diploma from the county office of education, receive an adult school diploma if they are 18, or work toward the GED (General Education Development certificate).

For other students, the goal is to develop their basic life skills and link them with vocational training.

"They're all good kids," says Jason Allen, unit director for the Boys and Girls' clubhouse in East Palo Alto. They haven't found success in traditional schools, but do better in the smaller setting, he says.

"We're trying to do a better job of collaborating with the community because there are fewer resources to go around," says Mr. Fortenbaugh.

Encouraged by the response at the new location for Community School South, the county moved its Community School Central to space at the Boys and Girls' Mervin Morris Clubhouse in Redwood City last month.

Other recent collaborations for the Boys and Girls Clubs are running the after-school programs for students in the Ravenswood City School District at Flood Magnet School in Menlo Park and Edison McNair Academy in East Palo Alto.

Looking ahead, Mr. Fortenbaugh says an immediate goal is to further develop the teen program and provide job-training opportunities. He is re-focusing the academic program to serve children in grades K-3 to promote reading and early literacy.

The organization needs to raise $4.1 million to meet its annual budget.
About the organization

The Boys and Girls Clubs of the Peninsula, founded in 1958, is the largest youth development organization on the Peninsula. Some 2,200 boys and girls, ages 6-18, come after school and during the summer to take part in programs and activities at four locations:

** Menlo Park: McNeil Family Clubhouse, 401 Pierce Road, phone 322-6255.

** Redwood City: Mervin G. Morris Clubhouse, 1109 Hilton St., phone 364-0176.

** East Palo Alto: Moldaw-Zaffaroni Clubhouse, 2031 Pulgas Ave., phone 330-1090.

** Menlo Park: Center for a New Generation, James Flood Magnet School, 320 Sheridan Drive, Menlo Park, phone 321-8935.

Programs range from academics and science to technology, visual and performing arts, athletics and social education.

For more information, call 322-8065 or check www.bgcp.org. For information about Community School South, call the school office at 599-1517.

** HOLIDAY FUND

Gifts to the Almanac's Holiday Fund help the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Peninsula.

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