YMCA of the USA
From Service-Learning Wiki
| This program was profiled in Growing to Greatness 2004. |
Since 1844, the YMCA has grown into an inclusive, ecumenical organization with more than 2,500 sites across the U.S. and 130 countries. YMCAs have devoted considerable resources and energy toward building strong kids, families, and communities. In recent years, YMCAs have focused their efforts on community development and efforts to reach out to more teens, dovetailing with an emphasis on community service and service-learning.
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Service-Learning in the YMCA
YMCAs collaborate with organizations that leverage resources towards the greater social good and emphasis on teenagers. YMCA Earth Service Corps: For the past ten years, the YMCA has operated the Earth Service Corps, a service-learning program for teenagers to make a difference in their communities. Grounded on the building blocks of leadership development, environmental education and action, and cross-cultural awareness, this program works in communities, allowing teens to use their talents develop new skills, and learn more about themselves and their surroundings.
YMCA Learn and Serve America Project: In 2000, the YMCA of the USA received a three-year grant from the Corporation for National and Community Service to institute service-learning at five local YMCA sites.The project’s overall goal was to engage teens to help children (ages 5-11) increase their readiness and respect for, and commitment to learning.The teen participants were guided in developing and implementing innovative projects in underserved neighborhoods to develop “social capital” in the neighborhoods surrounding the YMCAs.
Civic Engagement Initiative: In 2002, the YMCA of the USA began a civic engagement initiative, with support from the Pew Charitable Trusts, to build on previous Pew-funded efforts by promoting service-learning and civic engagement activities throughout the entire YMCA system in the United States.The initiative began with a symposium attended by representatives of over 40 YMCAs and their community partners to “jump-start” planning for new and/or enhanced civic engagement activities. It involved 24 local YMCA staff as “Civic Engagement Fellows” who jointly developed a training curriculum on civic engagement.
Scope of Service-Learning
The YMCA Earth Service Corps operates in more than 140 YMCAs in 30 states, and continues to experience growth as a national program. In its ten-year history, the program has involved close to 20,000 young people in well over 1,000,000 hours of service. Based on interim data, 23 (out of 24) Pew-sponsored Civic Engagement Fellows provided training to promote youth civic engagement to more than 2,700 adults and 4,800 youths in 19 states.
Intended Outcomes
An external evaluation by Search Institute found high impact on YMCA Earth Service Corps’ ability to strengthen leadership skills, increase the commitment of future volunteerism, and provide the tools necessary for healthy, competent, and caring lives. A recently completed evaluation of the Learn and Serve project by Brandeis University shows that the YMCA model has succeeded in engaging teenagers in ways that lead to a wide range of personal growth indicators and benefits for their communities.The activities have led to solid progress in utilizing service-learning to develop or improve relationships among YMCAs and other community agencies.
