August Heat. Media
Power!
This month the Youth Development Peer Network is heating up! We are excited about all the possibilities the new school year holds. From our co-sponsored Incorporating Youth Media into Your Program to a early winter convening on workforce development for youth workers to more days of rejuvenation and self-care, the YDPN is your network to for high-quality, engaging, and youth development-focused events.
This YDPN Power! is all about Media Power! We are kick-starting the Fall on 8/31 with our co-sponsored event Incorporating Youth Media into Your Program (see our Events for more information). BAYCAT, CHALK, The San Francisco Art Institute’s City Studio, and World Savvy (formerly Project Spera) are fantastic co-sponsors dedicated to making this a tremendously fabulous event. (Please see our Organization Links for more information about these excellent organizations.) Participants will meet other youth workers, learn about the process used to create youth-produced media, and hear how individuals gained their skills in media production. Please visit our webpage at http://ydpn.bay.area.googlepages.com for registration information. SPACE IS LIMITED!
Additionally, we are happy to introduce you to
Lastly, we want to draw your attention to two incredible
resources where you can build your skills, learn new information, and educate
yourself on important policy developments.
The first is Media Alliance.
Their website is www.media-alliance.org. They are doing important and incredible work
“promoting media excellence, ethics, diversity, and accountability in the
interests of peace, justice, and social responsibility”. And second is Tech Soup. Their website is http://techsoup.org. They are a great site to buy software,
sign-up for classes, and learn more about technology that can help your program
succeed.
The information contained within YDPN
Power! is as powerful as our Network because we believe there is Power through a Network of Peers.
Therefore, we rely on YOU to bring your knowledge, events, and opportunities to
us for inclusion in YDPN Power! So
please send your comments, ideas, resources, opportunities, etc. to
Youth Worker Spotlight –
This quarter, we have the pleasure of introducing
you to
1. How
long have you been a youth worker?
I was working with youth ever since
I was released from C.Y.A in August12th. 2005. I first started working with
youth through
2. Why
and how did you become a youth worker?
I guess you can say I just happened
to become a youth worker by actually being a troubled youth working on myself
seeking solutions to problems that disturb me as well as answers to questions
that went unanswered leaving me confused and frustrated. Throughout my time in C.Y.A I devote my time
learning from my situation and sharing the lessons learned with my fellows
peer’s who would usually come to me for counsel and guidance. Due to the connections and bonds I made with
my peers I accepted the work that I do as a purpose worth living for.
3. What
is your passion for continuing the work?
I’m very passionate about
continuing to live for the youth because I know how much of a difference can be
made in a child’s life when there’s a dedicated person who will be there
through thick and thin as a positive outlet no matter what. My passion comes from the love, hope
encouragement and faith that I was blessed to receive from a long list of what
I call “Personals Angels” who devoted there hearts and minds to going the
distance to deliver the truth & love to me when everyone else turned there
backs on me during a time when I needed positive reinforcement and support the
most. I’m content with the work that I
live for because I know that I’m making a difference by setting an example by
using my own life experience as evidence proving that “What doesn’t kill us
will only make us stronger after all.”
4. What
other passions and interests do you have outside of your job?
Outside of work I enjoy spending
quality time with my family and friends enjoying priceless joys of life like
going to the beach at least once a week to find a peace of mind. Personal development through Healthy living
plays a big part in my life, so I like to stay active by maintaining a work out
routine in order to remain physically fit. I like to refer to myself as a
student of life, so reading, thinking, and studying Sociology takes up a lot of
my time.
5. What
do you want other youth workers to know about you?
I would like for other youth worker
to know that their time put into youth is not time wasted considering it takes
time to heal wounds.
6. Why have you gotten involved with the
YDPN or how has the YDPN supported you as a youth worker?
Because I believe that youth should
have a voice and way to share their perspective on how the think and feel thing
should be handled in the future; “Their Future".
The YDPN thanks Perry for his contribution to YDPN Power!, and for sharing his expertise at Incorporating Youth Media into Your Program.
If you would like to learn more about The
Beat Within, you can visit them at http://www.pacificnewsservice.org. To get
in touch with Perry, email him at perrydreamline@yahoo.com.
Organization Highlight –
Bayview/Hunter’s
This month, we are highlighting
the Bayview/Hunter’s
1. What is
the mission of your organization?
BAYCAT’s mission is to inspire and
educate underserved youth and adults to become more productive citizens and to
improve the quality of life for themselves and their communities by providing
education in arts, culture, and enterprise in an inspirational learning environment.
2. How long
has your organization been in existence?
BAYCAT piloted its first program in
2001 under the direction of CEO Villy Wang.
3. What
services and programs do you provide to youth?
BAYCAT’s arts and technology
classes educate underserved youth and young adults in the Bayview Hunters Point
neighborhood of
Our free digital media arts classes
teach TV & Video Production, Digital Filmmaking, Motion Graphics,
Animation, and Advanced Video Production & Editing, as well as necessary
life skills such as collaboration, civic leadership and critical thinking.
Teams of high school students and
young adults produce meaningful work under real deadlines. This summer,
students are working on the television documentary series “Zoom In”, which airs
on cable channel 29, two Public Service Announcements for Bay Area youth
service organizations, a music video for local artist Lindsay Garfield, and
identity development (signage & design) for an independent grocery store on
3rd Street.
BAYCAT seeks to be the community
media producer of
4. How do
you support your youth workers?
The BAYCAT program team meets weekly to discuss challenges and successes and offer group support. Class planning and evaluation is done as a team. CEO Villy Wang, a certified teacher, provides teacher training and assistance for instructors. BAYCAT’s Program Manager handles questions and concerns from the instructors and advocates for the team’s needs.
5. Why is your
organization involved with the Youth Development Peer Network?
BAYCAT is currently working with
YDPN to plan and host the upcoming event, Incorporating
Youth Media into Your Program. The BAYCAT staff is involved with YDPN for
the opportunities it provides to share resources, learn from others in the
field, and network!
6.
Is there anything else you would like to share about your organization with the
YDPN?
BAYCAT brings programs, such as its
“Go! Music Video Workshop” to schools, after-school programs, and community
centers, complete with lights, cameras, sound recording equipment, and laptop,
so that technical education can come to sites with no technical resources. We
also invite groups to come to BAYCAT and use our state-of-the art facility for
field trips, workshops, and conferences. Studio BAYCAT can be a resource for
youth workers and youth service organizations that need marketing materials
such as websites, promotional videos, and logos. Furthermore, BAYCAT offers
free training & educational programs to low-income adults. Youth workers
have the opportunity to gain technical & design skills for free through
BAYCAT’s classes!
Events
o
YDPN-sponsored: Incorporating Youth Media into Your Program –
If you would like your event listed here, please send an
email titled: YDPN Power! Event Announcement to Jason
Wyman at isa_afterschool@yahoo.com.
Please include in your email an external link to your event along with a two
sentence description.
Funding for Youth
Youth Funding Youth
Ideas – 2006 Request for Proposals for Youth Led Projects
Deadline: September
1, 2006 , 8:00
pm
YFYI is a youth-led program that
seeks to foster young San Franciscans with the opportunities to expand on their
leadership goals by funding their project ideas. We bring the tools and
support, you bring the ideas. Information: CHALK 415 977-6949 or www.chalk.org/yfyi.
If you would like your funding opportunity for youth listed
here, please send an email titled: YDPN Power! Funding for Youth
to Jason Wyman at isa_afterschool@yahoo.com.
Please include in your email an external link to your funding opportunity for
youth along with a two sentence description.
Organization Links
This quarter, we are proud to
highlight our co-sponsors for Incorporating
Youth Media into Your Program on Thursday, August 31st.
Bayview/Hunter's Point Center for Arts and Technology
BAYCAT’s mission is to inspire and educate underserved youth
and adults to become more productive citizens and to improve the quality of
life for themselves and their communities by providing education in arts,
culture, and enterprise in an inspirational learning environment. BAYCAT’s arts
and technology classes educate underserved youth and young adults in the Bayview
Hunters Point neighborhood of
Communities in Harmony Advocating for Learning and Kids (CHALK)
www.chalk.org,www.youthline.org
Communities in Harmony Advocating for Learning and Kids
(CHALK) focuses on employing high risk youth as front line service providers
and supplying the youth with the tools to give back to the drug infested and
actively violent communities of which they originate. We hire youth who are on
probation, gang involved, at risk of academic failure and teen parents. CHALK
produces amazing results in serving this population. Our success is due largely
to our active use of the following five key elements that live at the heart of
CHALK’s youth development practices: legal income, leadership opportunities,
job training, active use of technology, and positive youth and adult
relationships.
San Francisco Art Institute – City Studio
At its core, City Studio is committed to facilitating
intergenerational
studio praxis about the contributions of art, artists, and
researchers
to the urban domain.
In the fall of 2005, the San Francisco Art Institute in partnership with
a network of local youth organizations from
"This program is fundamentally about the creative
potential of young people, their power to represent their lives and the world
in new and important ways," explains SFAI President Chris Bratton.
"It's also about the creative power of communities, and how we can support
and link these communities in new ways."
World Savvy
World Savvy’s mission is to inform, empower and engage young
people to become active and responsible lifelong participants in a global
community. Project Spera aims to educate youth about international affairs and
build their skills for "global citizenship" so that they become
well-informed and responsible citizens.
If you would like your organization listed here, please send
an email titled YDPN Power! Organization Link to Jason Wyman at
isa_afterschool@yahoo.com.
Please include in your email an external link to your organization along
with two sentences about your organization.
Job Opportunities
Currently, we are developing this side of our
communications. If you know of an employment opportunity you would like
listed here, please send an email titled YDPN Power! Job Opportunity
to Jason Wyman at isa_afterschool@yahoo.com.
Please include in your email an external link to the job opportunity along with
a two sentence description.
Closing
Thank you for taking the time to read YDPN Power! We hope that this was, is, and will be a useful tool for you as a youth worker in the Bay Area. If you have any comments, ideas, suggestions, opportunities, etc., please share them with Jason Wyman at isa_afterschool@yahoo.com. For ease of use, please include YDPN Power! in the subject of all communications.
Once again, thanks for reading. And remember...There
is Power through a Network of Peers.