kids' enrichment programs
Adolescents growing up in impoverished homes are looking for guidance. So when parents are at work or otherwise not available, they turn to those who recruit vulnerable kids - gangs, drug dealers and worse. These kids are often angry and have no one who is around them who cares enough to listen.
If left on their own without stable, caring support many lose heart and drop out of school to either make it on their own or to try to help parents support younger children. (AZ's high school drop out rate is one of the highest in the U.S. at 12%!) At the Glendale Family Development Center we help "at risk" kids truly be "kids at hope!"
The Kid’s Enrichment Program directly addresses all three areas of our mission: illiteracy, abuse and poverty. We support the kids' efforts to achieve academic success by providing tutors/mentors to assist with homework.
Mentors (volunteers and staff) create special relationships with each child because they are the people who see the kids as soon as they get off the bus on the worst days, as well as the best. Our tutor/mentors are the first to hear about the kids' greatest triumphs as well as their most heartbreaking disappointments. Mentors have the unique opportunity to provide each child with objective coaching on how to handle situations today and how to work through issues tomorrow.
With such a special relationship we provide a positive influence to resolve conflicts peacefully, to stay away from experimenting with drugs and to see things through to the best of their abilities. These focuses are specifically directed to breaking the cycle of abuse (in all of its forms).In addition, this program seeks to eliminate illiteracy and prepare each child for a higher education enabling him or her to break the cycle of poverty.