Boys And Girls Club Of Topeka

THE HISTORY OF THE BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF TOPEKA DATES TO 1913 AND WAS OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZED AS BOYS CLUB OF TOPEKA IN 1956. IN 1976, TO EXPAND POSITIVE IMPACT ON SCHOOL AGE YOUTH, HONORARY CHAIRS ALFRED LANDON AND CATHERINE MENNINGER LEAD A SUCCESSFUL CAMPAIGN TO FULLY FUND THE CONSTRUCTION OF A 25,000 SQ. FT CLUB ON 9 ACRES OF DONATED PROPERTY IN ONE OF TOPEKA'S MOST ECONOMICALLY DISTRESSED AREAS. IN 1993 MEMBERSHIP WAS EXTENDED TO GIRLS AND THE ORGANIZATION BECAME BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF TOPEKA. TODAY, BGCT SERVES 981 CLUB MEMBERS 5YRS-18 YRS. DAILY. BGCT HAS 14 SITES (INCLUDING A DEDICATED CLUB FOR MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS), REACHING YOUTH AND WORKING FAMILIES WHO NEED US MOST DURING NON-SCHOOL HOURS. CLUB MEMBERSHIP INCLUDES NUTRITIOUS MEALS, A SAFE AND NURTURING ENVIRONMENT, POSITIVE ROLE MODELS, FAMILY SUPPORT, RESOURCES, AND REFERRAL. THE CLUB EXPERIENCE ENGAGES YOUTH IN EXPERIENCES, EVIDENCE-BASED PROGRAMS, AND ACTIVITIES CENTERED AROUND 7 CORE AREAS: EDUCATION, ARTS, RECREA

SERVING YOUTH AND FAMILIES WHO NEED US MOST: FAMILIES FACING SIGNIFICANT FINANCIAL HARDSHIPS. THE POVERTY RATE IN TOPEKA AT 15.2% IS 29.91% HIGHER THAN THE KANSAS AVERAGE. CHILDREN EXPERIENCE THE HIGHEST RATE OF POVERTY FOR ANY AGE GROUP IN TOPEKA AND SHAWNEE COUNTY. 70 YOUTH AND TEENS IDENTIFIED AS HOMELESS RECEIVED CLUB MEMBERSHIP. 48.9% OF ALL BGCT CLUB MEMBERS LIVE IN HOMES AT OR BELOW POVERTY LEVEL. CLUB SERVING HIGHEST POPULATION OF KIDS LIVING AT OR BELOW POVERTY LEVEL: ADAMS CLUB 91%, TEEN CENTER 89%, MONTARA UNIT 70% & LOGAN UNIT 60%. SINGLE PARENTS IN THE WORKFORCE: 41% OF CLUB MEMBERS LIVE IN A SINGLE PARENT HOUSEHOLD OUT OF SCHOOL TIME SERVICES: BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL, SCHOOL DAY OUT, EARLY RELEASE, LATE START, 3 UNANTICIPATED SCHOOL DAYS OUT DUE TO SCHOOL WEATHER CLOSURE AND A 9-WEEK SUMMER ENRICHMENT PROGRAM PROVIDED YOUTH IMPACTED BY VIOLENT CRIME: 30 YOUTH WERE REFERRED AND RECEIVED COMPREHENSIVE INTEGRATED HOLISTIC SUPPORTS AND SERVICES YOUTH IN STATE CUSTODY/FOSTER CARE: 2022 6,357 KIDS IN KANSAS WERE IN FOSTER CARE. OVER 10% OF THOSE KIDS WERE IN SHAWNEE COUNTY. 87 CLUB MEMBERS WERE IN STATE CUSTODY/FOSTER CARE CLUB MEMBERS ENGAGE IN PROGRAMMING IN 7 CORE AREAS: EDUCATION, ARTS, SPORTS & RECREATION, HEALTH & WELLNESS, SOCIAL EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT, WORKFORCE READINESS, CAREER & LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT. EACH AREA IS DRIVEN BY RESEARCHED BASED PROGRAMS FROM BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA. THESE INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS ARE DESIGNED TO EMPOWER YOUTH TO EXCEL IN SCHOOL, BECOME GOOD CITIZENS, LEAD HEALTHY, PRODUCTIVE LIVES , EXPOSE THEIR INTEREST AND PASSIONS, DEVELOP THEIR EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS, AND APPLY THEIR KNOWLEDGE TO REAL-WORLD WORK EXPERIENCES. BGCT HAS ADDED AND ALIGNED SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS IN MATH, READING, AND SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING THROUGH SMALL GROUP INTERVENTIONS. 199 CLUB KIDS RECEIVED INTENSIVE MATH TUTORING SERVICES THROUGH MATHQUEST. BGCT DEVELOPED A SUPPORT SERVICES DEPARTMENT, LED BY A MASTER'S LEVEL SOCIAL WORKER. A RELATIONSHIP DEVELOPED WITH WASHBURN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK RESULTED IN 9 SOCIAL WORK INTERNS FOCUSED ON SOCIAL EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT. THIS POSITION WAS ALSO ON THE CITY OF TOPEKA'S HOMELESS COLLABORATIVE, PROVIDING IMMEDIATE AND DIRECT TRANSITION TO HOMELESS SCHOOL AGE YOUTH INTO THE CLUB, FAMILY RESOURCE AND REFERRAL NECESSARY FOR FAMILY STABILIZATION. SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, AND MATHEMATICS (STEM) ARE ESSENTIAL SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE FOR TODAY'S YOUTH TO BUILD TO BE SUCCESSFUL. IN A WORLD GROWING INCREASINGLY MORE DEPENDENT ON STEM RELATED JOBS, BGCT'S GOAL IS TO EXPOSE YOUNG PEOPLE TO HANDS-ON STEM ACTIVITIES AND CAREERS. THE CLUBS' COLLECTION OF COLLEGE ACCESS AND SUCCESS PROGRAMS--PROVIDES STUDENTS WITH ACADEMIC SUPPORT SERVICES, TUTORING, COLLEGE TOURS, COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS, CAREER READINESS & EXPLORATION TRAINING, ACADEMIC ADVISING, FINANCIAL LITERACY TRAINING, ASSISTANCE WITH COLLEGE APPLICATIONS, LEADERSHIP LESSONS AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT. IN 2022, MORE THAN 106 MEMBERS PARTICIPATED IN DIPLOMAS2DEGREES, YOUTH OF THE YEAR AND MONEY MATTERS. THE PROGRAM HAS A 100% HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION RATE AND HAS GRADUATED CLOSE TO 24 FIRST GENERATION COLLEGE UNDERGRADUATES SINCE ITS INCEPTION. THE PROGRAM ALSO FACILITATES AGENCY SCHOLARSHIPS. BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS' CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS HELP TOPEKA YOUTH LEARN THE SKILLS THEY NEED TO SUCCEED IN THE WORKPLACE. THROUGH CLUB PROGRAMS, MEMBERS ARE INTRODUCED TO A VARIETY OF WORK ENVIRONMENTS AND GUEST SPEAKERS, WORKSITE TOURS, AND HANDS-ON EXPERIENCE AS WELL AS CAREER AND FINANCIAL LITERACY. IN 2022, THROUGH CAREER LAUNCH, 219 MEMBERS EXPLORED CAREERS AND DEVELOPED WORK SKILLS THROUGH THE CAREER LAUNCH PROGRAM, 124 MEMBERS LEARNED MONEY MANAGEMENT, BUDGETING, AND FINANCIAL GOALS AND 52 MEMBERS EXPLORED CAREERS IN AGRICULTURE THROUGH THE K-STATE MINORITIES IN AGRICULTURE, NATURAL RESOURCES, AND RELATED SCIENCES PROGRAM. BGCT'S ART PROGRAMS INTENTIONALLY USE ART AS A TOOL TO SUPPORT THE VOICES OF YOUTH AND PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR SOCIAL CHANGE AND INTERNAL EXPRESSION. IN OUR OWN COMMUNITY, BGCT COMMITTED TO ADDRESSING THE SHORTFALL IN ARTISTIC OPPORTUNITY MINIMIZED IN SCHOOL CURRICULUM BY PROVIDING YOUTH WITH A VARIETY OF ARTS ACTIVITIES (92 YOUTH PARTICIPATED IN BALLET THROUGH KANSAS BALLET IN THE CLUB PROGRAM), FIELD TRIPS, HIGH-QUALITY PROGRAMS AS WELL AS FURTHER PROFESSIONAL AND CAREER-BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUTH WHO DEMONSTRATE INTEREST AND TALENT. SPORTS & RECREATION ALL CHILDREN DESERVE ACCESS TO PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES THAT PROMOTE HEALTHY HABITS AND LIFESTYLES. OFTEN CERTAIN BARRIERS SUCH AS A LACK OF TRANSPORTATION OR THE INABILITY TO PAY PREVENT YOUTH LIVING IN LOW-INCOME ENVIRONMENTS FROM ACCESSING SPORTS & RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES. BGCT'S SPORTS & RECREATION PARTNERSHIP WITH THE TOPEKA POLICE ATHLETIC LEAGUE CONNECTS MEMBERS TO TEAMS IN ORGANIZED LEAGUES UNDER THE DIRECTION OF PROFESSIONAL COACHES AT LITTLE TO NO COST. IN 2022, MORE THAN 1018 MEMBERS PARTICIPATED IN SPORTS, RECREATION, AND HEALTH & WELLNESS PROGRAMMING. MORE THAN 94 CLUB MEMBERS PARTICIPATED IN ORGANIZED LEAGUES, INCLUDING BASKETBALL (63 MEMBERS), FLAG FOOTBALL (87 MEMBERS), DISC GOLF (22 MEMBERS). CHESS CLUB (28 MEMBERS) BOATING (42 MEMBERS, FISHING (47 MEMBERS) WALKING CLUB (111 MEMBERS) HIKING CLUB (39 MEMBERS) SWIMMING (1,023 MEMBERS) AND OTHER SPORTS ACTIVITIES WERE ALSO OFFERED. LEADERSHIP & SERVICE LEADERSHIP AND SERVICE PROGRAMS HELP YOUTH BECOME RESPONSIBLE, CARING CITIZENS AND ACQUIRE SKILLS TO PARTICIPATE IN THE DEMOCRATIC PROCESS. PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS ALSO DEVELOP LEADERSHIP SKILLS AND GAIN OPPORTUNITIES FOR PLANNING, DECISION-MAKING, CONTRIBUTING TO THEIR CLUB AND COMMUNITY AND CELEBRATING OUR NATIONAL HERITAGE. THE PROGRAMS OFFERED TO YOUTH IN OUR CLUBS ENCOURAGE THEM TO TAKE ON LEADERSHIP ROLES, LEARN ABOUT FUNDRAISING AND PARTICIPATE IN COMMUNITY SERVICE.IN 2022, HUNDREDS OF MEMBERS PARTICIPATED IN LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS, SUCH AS FEED THE NEED -FOOD PANTRY OPERATIONS (54 MEMBERS), KEYSTONE (88 MEMBERS), TORCH CLUB (92 MEMBERS) AND SOME ENTERED THE STATEWIDE YOUTH OF THE YEAR COMPETITION TO CELEBRATE THEIR SUCCESSES. SOCIAL & EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT AFTER DECADES OF RESEARCH AND PASSIONATE DEBATE AROUND THE FOUNDATIONS OF HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT, HEALING, AND LEARNING, YOUTH-SERVING ORGANIZATIONS AND EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS ACROSS THE NATION ARE NOW EMBRACING THIS MOVEMENT DECLARING THAT THE SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING OF YOUTH IS THE FOUNDATION OF OUR WORK. BGCT PROVIDES TRAINING AND COACHING TO HELP BUILD SAFE, SUPPORTIVE, AND TRAUMA-SENSITIVE ENVIRONMENTS FOUNDATIONAL TO ENSURING THAT TODAY'S YOUTH, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO NEED US THE MOST, REALIZE THEIR FULL POTENTIAL AND ACHIEVE A GREAT FUTURE.IN 2022, APPROXIMATELY 283 STAFF WENT THROUGH TRAINING, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, AND COACHING.