I am making a plea to the world-at-large for your resources. Though it seems like everyone is making pleas for so many of your resources, this plea is NOT about money. It is about your time.
Sanctuary@Knox needs MENTORS. Sanctuary@Knox is a learning centre at Knox United Church that is open from Monday – Thursdays from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Inner-city youth can come to learn whatever they want to learn. It is intended to be a safe place for these individuals to “hang out,” check email, learn new skills, and be part of a growing community where they belong and where they are valued without judgment. Research regarding the resiliency of youth tells us that if youth have the following, they will be able to meet the varying challenges of adulthood:
• the necessary skills to solve problems and engage in rewarding work
• a sense that they are part of a caring community
• a voice in directing their future
• a sense that they are valued by others
Sanctuary@Knox endeavours to provide this for the clients that come.
The clientele are all youths that are not living at home. They live in the emergency shelters available to them. These kids are not enrolled in school programs. Because most of them are “status” youths with Child Welfare, they are not brought before truancy review committees, as it is recognized that such committees really can’t force the kids to go to school. Traditional learning environments have not worked for these kids. At present, all clients of Sanctuary@Knox have been diagnosed ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disordered) and most of them (all but one) have also been diagnosed ODD (Oppositional Defiant Disordered). Traditional medications have not been considered successful for them. They have been out of school for extended periods of time. It makes the work with them extremely exciting and challenging. Normal instructional techniques do not work for long.
However, clients are coming. One client, who, in the past few years, has not attended any program for more than a few hours, has logged in close to 100 hours here. I can’t say that he is actively involved in a structured academic program; however, he continues to attend and wants to work on achieving his high school equivalency. In fact, that is the goal of all our clients at the moment, though there is much work to be done before that will be a realistic goal for them. The Government of Alberta is making provisions for us to enroll our clients in distance education for no fee and will negotiate the provision of funds to the project for every high school credit earned by them.
I am looking for volunteers who would mentor individual clients. The time commitment I am looking for is one-half to one-full day a week for the next 6 months (or half to one full day per month, per two weeks, for some period of time). You are not expected to “teach” in any formal manner. Rather you would be here on your given day, meet specifically with your client, and be present in the learning centre. In December I wrote the following in our newsletter regarding the qualifications needed:
"Once the program is begun, a volunteer is assigned as a “mentor” to support this young person on his/her journey. The Mentor simply provides a presence with the learner so that they have someone nearby for support. Mentors help by asking learners if everything is OK. Mentors observe when frustration is developing and suggest a break for, perhaps, coffee or a snack (we will supply the coffee and snacks). Mentors help by being able to reword questions and providing alternate vocabulary. Mentors help communicate that the person is accepted, welcome, and valued.
Though they are tremendously important to the program, mentors need no special training other than possessing good listening skills, an ability to remain non-judgmental with someone who is struggling to learn, and a large amount of patience. Having a good sense of humour is also a welcome quality, but not necessarily crucial."
Since that time, I realize that some training would be an asset and I am willing to engage in training sessions for those who would like to do so. These kids have very colourful vocabularies. Setting boundaries and establishing your own comfort level is part of the work we do with them. Their histories would make many cringe with discomfort, yet these kids do survive and have learned what it takes to do so.
We do NOT discuss religion, any particular belief system, or try to convert these kids. I have told them that we won’t talk religion unless they bring it up and we will only answer the question being asked.
We do use technology to assist these kids. During my doctoral research, I became aware of many programs that might assist learners and have upgraded the computers in the lab (3 machines) to have this software. You do NOT need to be computer literate to be a mentor. I take care of that portion as new clients arrive. It won’t hurt to have some awareness, but it is NOT required.
We also use digital photography, video, sound recording, web cams, etc. to assist kids. Representing their knowledge through video, photography, and sound recordings is one of the many ways we can build their expertise with language skills, editing, sharing information, processing information, and communicating with others. This all assists in transforming their self-identities from that of “non-learner” to that of “learner.”
Having said that this is not a plea for funds, we could ALWAYS use funds. Contributions are tax deductible when made payable to “Knox United Church.” Make sure to note “for Sanctuary@Knox” on the cheque. We can also use working digital cameras and video equipment if you have some lying around that are not being used. However, this is actually a plea for your time. Please consider us as you plan your volunteer time and think about how you could make the life of one of these kids change for the positive.
If you have an interest in being a mentor, please contact me by email (dmoulton@knoxunited.ab.ca), by phone (403-269-8382 ext 29 and leave a message) or by writing a comment on my blog. All volunteers must be vetted through a police check service provided by the United Church of Canada at no cost to the volunteer.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
The continuing Journey
I will try to keep my postings shorter, more concise, and brief. It is not one of my strengths. I believe that I must look at all possible angles of a topic in order to be sure that I am not misunderstood.
The kids keep coming and I am now looking to expand my volunteer base. I originally planned to assign a mentor to each participant and thought that the mentors would come whenever the participant came. That would have been practical only if participants came once a week or infrequently. What is happening is that most participants come for a good part of the day every day. Who can ask that of a volunteer?
So now, with the advice and suggestion of one of the people on my advisory board (aren't advisory boards wonderful?), we are looking to ask people to come for half a day (or a full day) once a week. This feels more doable. I wonder if even this is too much to ask of people. What do you think?
In the meantime, I am finding that I have to close the centre whenever I have to be out of it for any reason. For example, we have team meetings every Tuesday afternoon from 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM. I tried just going over to my colleague's office for this meeting and leaving the kids here. However, they are all ADD. It is too much to ask of them to stay out of any trouble for that length of time. So I need to close for that time.
As I increase my volunteer corps, I will be able to stay open and leave for short periods of time and even for longer ones. So what does one think? Is half a day once a week too much to ask?
The kids keep coming and I am now looking to expand my volunteer base. I originally planned to assign a mentor to each participant and thought that the mentors would come whenever the participant came. That would have been practical only if participants came once a week or infrequently. What is happening is that most participants come for a good part of the day every day. Who can ask that of a volunteer?
So now, with the advice and suggestion of one of the people on my advisory board (aren't advisory boards wonderful?), we are looking to ask people to come for half a day (or a full day) once a week. This feels more doable. I wonder if even this is too much to ask of people. What do you think?
In the meantime, I am finding that I have to close the centre whenever I have to be out of it for any reason. For example, we have team meetings every Tuesday afternoon from 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM. I tried just going over to my colleague's office for this meeting and leaving the kids here. However, they are all ADD. It is too much to ask of them to stay out of any trouble for that length of time. So I need to close for that time.
As I increase my volunteer corps, I will be able to stay open and leave for short periods of time and even for longer ones. So what does one think? Is half a day once a week too much to ask?
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Almost a year later!
Can you believe it? Santuary@Knox is actually up and running!
It took the better part of a year to get going, however, it really is up and running! The Pilot is still underway, but the project has clients, we do stuff, and we are all learning lots!
Just a reminder....
Santuary@Knox is a learning centre that is run out of the church for kids who live and circulate throughout the city centre. Most of the clientele are not currently enrolled in a school. Most have not been to school in multiple years. The oldest person coming is 17, with the youngest being 15. These kids have all been under the jurisdiction of Child Welfare at some point with most of them being continuing clients of the Social Services industry.
Clients can come to the church to learn anything they wish to learn. This is an interesting phenomenon, because most of these kids really don't know what they want to learn, just that there is a lot of stuff to learn. As they haven't been in school for a long time, they really don't have a lot of ability to stay focused on anything for very long. At the moment, everyone who has come to Santuary@Knox has been diagnosed ADHD and have had very unsuccessful experiences with medication intended to treat ADHD.
The theory behind the program is to allow individuals to come to the church to learn something they want to learn. I have some good assistive technologies available. With these, I hope to show them that they truly can learn something and to transform their self-identities from being non-learners to being learners. It sounds simple enough, however, it really is complicated with all their history in schools, their individual histories at home and in foster care, their drug use, their experiences with incarceration and the legal system, and their understanding of what churches do.
I know that the process can work through my experiences in schools and through my doctoral research. However, this is a really interesting group with which to work and the process is far more complicated. The hurdles are huge and can seem insurmountable, What seems to happen is that, just when I am about to give up, something happens to give me a glimmer of hope and then I remember to trust the process. Things take time. It took more than a few days to produce all the baggage they carry around with them. It will take time to see real change happen.
Though I did state that learning is occurring (and I strongly believe that to be truth), there is currently very little "academic" learning happening within this setting (if any). First of all, the kids need to learn that I can be trusted. That is likely their first hurdle to overcome, though getting through the church doors is really difficult for some of them. Trust is crucial for them - to be able to take the necessary risks that learning entails. I think I'd like to write just about those risks some day, as it seems that many people do not understand how big a risk that is for these people. Maybe next time.
Learning to trust me entails all kinds of tests (good and bad experiences). There are purposeful tests as well as those that just happen in day-to-day interactions. Though I hate "being on guard," I realize that almost any situation can develop into a teachable moment about trust. So I am so incredibly intentional about this work.
Another aspect of learning about trust is me learning that I can trust them. This is sometimes very amusing, as the way adults typically trust kids doesn't really work in this situation. These kids are street survivors. One of my clients has been under the supervision of Child Welfare since being in early elementary school. Most adults have failed these kids - from their point of view. Their parents are seen to have failed to keep them safe. Teachers have failed to help them learn what they think they need to learn. Social workers fail to give them what they think they need. In some cases, the kids may be right. Whether they are or not, adults are not seen to be the source of a lot of care and support. So they know how to manipulate them to meet their perceived needs. Though I need to learn to trust them, I can not use the "normal" filters to determine whether they are trustworthy. Instead, I try to determine if I can trust how they might react or behave in certain situations. I have to learn when I can believe what they tell me and when it really doesn't matter what they say. The whole process of developing my trust in them is really a new experience for me and I feel like I am learning so much.
Just learning about each other is really an interesting process. As this is a pilot and the budget is minimal, I am alone with them most of the time. There is a plan for including volunteers, however, I have had to drastically revise that plan as I go along. For the moment, I have to accept that I am alone with them.
This has some of those closest to me extremely concerned. Because I am a gay man, they feel that I am extremely vulnerable to false accusations of sexual misconduct. Though this could be a very real possibility, I have lived with this all my career. As a male in an elementary school, I was often alone with children. As a secondary teacher, I was also often alone with students. There were times when we went on extended field trips in the wilderness, to Quebec, and other places where I would find myself alone with individual students. I have had to trust my own instincts and trust that when I am centrered on meeting the needs of someone else, my own behaviours will reflect that sense of service to others. In 34 years, I have not had a problem with it. As a trusted male in an elementary school, students often came to see me as a pseudo-parental figure. It is a common experience among teachers. As such, kids would approach me for different kinds of nurture. When a needy child approaches you for a hug, I don't think I can say "Sorry, this might be misunderstood by an observer, so stay well away from me."
This does not mean that I am not careful. I always ensure that my hugging is done in very public places where I can be observed by many rather than a few. I try to be extremely aware, so that I am sure that I let go as soon as a child begins to let go. I also am on the alert for any kind of inappropriate expressions. Otherwise, I become naively vulnerable. Some might say that I am being naive in spite of my diligence, however, I need to set my own boundaries. If I am here to help, then I need to be free to do so. All the same, I am extremely self-reflective about whose needs are being met and what my intentions truly are. So far, this has kept things clear.
So lots of the learning at this juncture is about social interaction. There is also a lot of two-way learning. They teach me stuff each day, and I hope they are learning from me. We share technological expertise. We share learning processes. We learn about each other. When they are ready, which will be an individual experience, we will enter into a more structural learning experience. At the moment it continues to be very experiential and not following much of a planned sequence.
I invite you to share this journey with us through this blog, which I plan on adding to much more frequently.
Your comments are always welcome.
It took the better part of a year to get going, however, it really is up and running! The Pilot is still underway, but the project has clients, we do stuff, and we are all learning lots!
Just a reminder....
Santuary@Knox is a learning centre that is run out of the church for kids who live and circulate throughout the city centre. Most of the clientele are not currently enrolled in a school. Most have not been to school in multiple years. The oldest person coming is 17, with the youngest being 15. These kids have all been under the jurisdiction of Child Welfare at some point with most of them being continuing clients of the Social Services industry.
Clients can come to the church to learn anything they wish to learn. This is an interesting phenomenon, because most of these kids really don't know what they want to learn, just that there is a lot of stuff to learn. As they haven't been in school for a long time, they really don't have a lot of ability to stay focused on anything for very long. At the moment, everyone who has come to Santuary@Knox has been diagnosed ADHD and have had very unsuccessful experiences with medication intended to treat ADHD.
The theory behind the program is to allow individuals to come to the church to learn something they want to learn. I have some good assistive technologies available. With these, I hope to show them that they truly can learn something and to transform their self-identities from being non-learners to being learners. It sounds simple enough, however, it really is complicated with all their history in schools, their individual histories at home and in foster care, their drug use, their experiences with incarceration and the legal system, and their understanding of what churches do.
I know that the process can work through my experiences in schools and through my doctoral research. However, this is a really interesting group with which to work and the process is far more complicated. The hurdles are huge and can seem insurmountable, What seems to happen is that, just when I am about to give up, something happens to give me a glimmer of hope and then I remember to trust the process. Things take time. It took more than a few days to produce all the baggage they carry around with them. It will take time to see real change happen.
Though I did state that learning is occurring (and I strongly believe that to be truth), there is currently very little "academic" learning happening within this setting (if any). First of all, the kids need to learn that I can be trusted. That is likely their first hurdle to overcome, though getting through the church doors is really difficult for some of them. Trust is crucial for them - to be able to take the necessary risks that learning entails. I think I'd like to write just about those risks some day, as it seems that many people do not understand how big a risk that is for these people. Maybe next time.
Learning to trust me entails all kinds of tests (good and bad experiences). There are purposeful tests as well as those that just happen in day-to-day interactions. Though I hate "being on guard," I realize that almost any situation can develop into a teachable moment about trust. So I am so incredibly intentional about this work.
Another aspect of learning about trust is me learning that I can trust them. This is sometimes very amusing, as the way adults typically trust kids doesn't really work in this situation. These kids are street survivors. One of my clients has been under the supervision of Child Welfare since being in early elementary school. Most adults have failed these kids - from their point of view. Their parents are seen to have failed to keep them safe. Teachers have failed to help them learn what they think they need to learn. Social workers fail to give them what they think they need. In some cases, the kids may be right. Whether they are or not, adults are not seen to be the source of a lot of care and support. So they know how to manipulate them to meet their perceived needs. Though I need to learn to trust them, I can not use the "normal" filters to determine whether they are trustworthy. Instead, I try to determine if I can trust how they might react or behave in certain situations. I have to learn when I can believe what they tell me and when it really doesn't matter what they say. The whole process of developing my trust in them is really a new experience for me and I feel like I am learning so much.
Just learning about each other is really an interesting process. As this is a pilot and the budget is minimal, I am alone with them most of the time. There is a plan for including volunteers, however, I have had to drastically revise that plan as I go along. For the moment, I have to accept that I am alone with them.
This has some of those closest to me extremely concerned. Because I am a gay man, they feel that I am extremely vulnerable to false accusations of sexual misconduct. Though this could be a very real possibility, I have lived with this all my career. As a male in an elementary school, I was often alone with children. As a secondary teacher, I was also often alone with students. There were times when we went on extended field trips in the wilderness, to Quebec, and other places where I would find myself alone with individual students. I have had to trust my own instincts and trust that when I am centrered on meeting the needs of someone else, my own behaviours will reflect that sense of service to others. In 34 years, I have not had a problem with it. As a trusted male in an elementary school, students often came to see me as a pseudo-parental figure. It is a common experience among teachers. As such, kids would approach me for different kinds of nurture. When a needy child approaches you for a hug, I don't think I can say "Sorry, this might be misunderstood by an observer, so stay well away from me."
This does not mean that I am not careful. I always ensure that my hugging is done in very public places where I can be observed by many rather than a few. I try to be extremely aware, so that I am sure that I let go as soon as a child begins to let go. I also am on the alert for any kind of inappropriate expressions. Otherwise, I become naively vulnerable. Some might say that I am being naive in spite of my diligence, however, I need to set my own boundaries. If I am here to help, then I need to be free to do so. All the same, I am extremely self-reflective about whose needs are being met and what my intentions truly are. So far, this has kept things clear.
So lots of the learning at this juncture is about social interaction. There is also a lot of two-way learning. They teach me stuff each day, and I hope they are learning from me. We share technological expertise. We share learning processes. We learn about each other. When they are ready, which will be an individual experience, we will enter into a more structural learning experience. At the moment it continues to be very experiential and not following much of a planned sequence.
I invite you to share this journey with us through this blog, which I plan on adding to much more frequently.
Your comments are always welcome.
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