Spring Break doesn’t mean a break from learning

Youth Life Learning Centers has had a busy Spring Break in Nashville, home to five of our centers.  Although many of their peers will be at home watching television or playing in the backyard with friends, we gave our students a chance to continue learning on their break.  Learning opportunities were provided to students in a variety of ways through field trips and service projects.

Youth Life’s students, who are in grades third or higher, were given the opportunity to attend a retreat at Bethel World Outreach in Brentwood.  On this Spring Break retreat, students participated in sessions focused on identify, purpose, abstinence & purity (with older group only), service, and intimacy with Christ.

YLLC-West took their Spring Break adventures to new learning levels at The Adventure Science Center when the museum donated tickets for the kids to attend.  Students made their way through the Cyberchase exhibit, which is based on the math mystery cartoon, Cyberchase from the Emmy award-winning PBS KIDS GO!  Students exclaimed, “This is fun!” while learning from “the control central,” “the grim wreaked,” “poddleville,” and many other activities.

YLLC-Easley students went to Grocer’s Edgehill to encourage 2012 voters with flyer registrations.  This allowed students to serve their community in a unique way by encouraging their community’s voice, no matter their views, to be heard.

Several YLLC-Riverchase students are apart of the Backyard Leadership team and were able to visit The Frist Center for Visual Arts on a Backyard field trip.  These students also did several projects at their site, including bead art.

Visit our  Facebook page to see more pictures from our 2012 Spring Break!

“It is an honor and a challenge,” says long-time volunteer and new Board Chair, Lew Moore

Our eleven-year-old organization has drawn people in as it has grown over the past decade.  Some have heard of us through partnerships and events, while to others through a student’s success story.  New 2012 Board Chair, Lew Moore, however, has been with Youth Life Learning Centers from its start.  He knew the individuals who initiated programming in Tennessee and was there to smell our first center’s paint dry when it was built in 2001.  You can find Lew in pictures from YLLC’s beginning, helping students –some now high school graduates — with their homework.  

Although his favorite part of working with us is volunteering directly with children, he is now able to serve students in a different way as Board Chair.  This on-going experience with our students will allow Lew to bring an exceptionally personable approach to his new position, one he describes as “an honor and a challenge.”

So why has Lew been around since the beginning?  He sees the unique stance we take to serve not only the student through academic and character-building, but also his or her family and their community as a whole.

“I know that it works, as I have seen the fruits of their efforts. I’ve seen children soar to new academic heights and families uplifted. It is effective!” says Lew.  One of his favorite stories on our effectiveness from over the years is about a family who was transplanted to Nashville as refugees from a civil war.

“The YLLC staff in their neighborhood really adopted this family, became friends with the parents and assisted their children in numerous ways.  One of the youngest children, who was too young for the program, would, nonetheless, follow his siblings to the center each day.  After taking notice, the staff created a special curriculum just for him.  His speech was stilted, so they helped him with that and his English.  By Christmas that year, he sang in the annual production.  There were few dry eyes that day!  Additionally, the staff helped one of the older siblings navigate through high school with tutoring.  Youth Life helped bridge the cultural divide the parents were experiencing, as they were more accustomed to children working after a certain age.  That student did graduate from high school and was the first in her family to attend college!  The second eldest sibling is currently in college, too, and was a featured speaker at our Women and Girls Benefit Luncheon last summer!  I firmly believe the life trajectory of this family would have taken a far different turn if not for the efforts of YLLC staff and volunteers.”

We’d like to thank Lew for his on-going dedication to our mission.  We know we have great things ahead with Lew leading our board.

Student choir travels from Hoover, Alabama to serve for their Spring Break

The student choir at Hunter Street Baptist Church contacted Youth Life Learning Centers to ask if they could spend their Spring Break serving our students.  Once the connection was made and the details were discussed, we became very excited for our visitors.  Hunter Street’s 70-student choir then made the three-and-a-half hour drive from Hoover, Alabama, to sing to our students at YLLC-Easley.

From there, the choir split up to go to all five centers in Nashville to help Youth Life students in any way they could–with homework, activity time, playing outside, individual learning plans called O.P.S. (Opportunities, Procedures and Statuses) and reading.  The group even donated supplies and snacks to our programming!

On behalf of Youth Life Learning Centers, we would like to thank Hunter Street Baptist Church’s student choir for traveling all the way up from Hoover on their Spring Break to bring joy to our students– with their donations, entertainment, time and overall service.  It was such a pleasure having them!

If you are interested in donating supplies like those given to us from this amazing student choir, make sure to check out our on-going wish list for ideas.

In Celebration of Women’s History Month, YLLC Invites You to Read to Our Girls

In celebration of Women’s History Month, Youth Life is inviting local women to read to the at-risk girls living in inner-city communities whom we serve.  These women aren’t just coming to read your average children’s book, but rather will read specifically about the women’s suffrage movement and historical female figures.  Every year Women’s History Month doesn’t quite get the attention it deserves, evident by most not knowing a month dedicated to women even exists.  We hope by doing this reading project, it will bring to light not only the celebrated month, but also on the history and struggles of women, from the suffrage movement to the issues modern-day women face like pay disparity.

Education that celebrates self-esteem building, respect and empowerment, especially with girls living in at-risk communities, is crucial to their growth as women.  Some of the girls served at Youth Life Learning Centers come from a single-parent or guardian families.  It is not uncommon to see a child being raised by their single mother or grandmother in these environments.  Therefore, these youngsters will surely appreciate stories of powerful women, self-esteem, and women’s history with a newfound respect for the women who are raising them, oftentimes singlehandedly.

We have more spots to fill for our other two centers, so let us know your availability!  We’d love to have as many readers as possible.  See below for the dates we’re booked or visit our event calendar on our website at yllc.org.

• March 21st – Kim Church – YLLC-Easley
• March 22nd – Marie Garner – YLLC-Riverchase
• March 23rd – Aisling Maki – YLLC-Memphis
• March 28th – Valerie Lancaster – YLLC-Hillside

To sign up to read to our at-risk girls for Women’s History Month, please email info@yllc.org for available dates.  Volunteers must be willing to stop by between the hours of programing, which range from roughly 3:00 to 6:00 p.m., depending on the center.  We’d love to get more of you involved, and we anticipate a great turn-out.  We’ll keep our readers posted on how everything turns out with pictures and additional information.

After donating a major gift, Mr. Grubb now donates his time

If you’ve been keeping up with the news at Youth Life Learning Centers, you most likely read about our recent donation of now ten iPads and three laptops from Metro Nashville Public School teacher at Julia Green Elementary School, Mr. Gerald Grubb.  What you may not know is that after his donation, he took his belief in our programming even further when he became a regular volunteer for both YLLC-Hillside’s classes, kindergarten through first grade and second through fourth grade classes, for four days each week to assist the students in any way he can.

He just can’t stop teaching!  While some teachers might be exhausted after a full day of instructing third-graders, Mr. Grubb is ready for more.  

“His enthusiasm for children and their education is quite inspirational, and we hope that it will encourage other teachers to volunteer with Youth Life.  His impact is very obvious in the students’ excitement for coming to the center and learning,” says Jasmine Riley, YLLC-Hillside’s K-4th grade teacher.

While Mr. Grubb says, “Youth Life houses some very brilliant minds,” the Youth Life Learning Centers (YLLC) students he serves think he is “so cool.”

Although some are brilliant and very eager to learn, underprivileged students are often coming into our centers behind their public school peers.  Mr. Grubb hopes that volunteering with Youth Life Learning Centers will encourage other teachers—kindergarten, elementary, middle school, high school, and even college— to donate additional time and passion for teaching to these inner-city students.  

Photograph taken by Claire Wise with Claire Wise Photography.