Tag: COVID-19

TeamChild believes in belonging and power for youth across Washington state

By Adriana Zazula

No one is dispensable.  For over 20 years, TeamChild has held true to its belief that youth should not be defined by their worst mistake. Instead, young people deserve to be heard and seen as an essential part of the community. Their mission is to, “uphold the rights of youth involved, or at risk of being involved, in the juvenile justice system to help them secure the education, healthcare, housing and other supports they need to achieve positive outcomes in their lives.”  “We operate with the basic belief that youth should not be incarcerated. Youth deserve belonging and power in … [ ]

Seattle CARES—creating and becoming superheroes

By Adriana Zazula

Seattle CARES is more than mentoring. The organization invests not only in the youth they work with, but also their families. Their mission is to secure and transform the lives of Black children by inspiring, recruiting, and mobilizing masses of caring Black men and women to mentor and nourish them. Their programs respect the voices of the students, adults, parents and guardians they serve, and reflect the needs and wishes of the community. The pandemic highlighted an increasing need for wrap-around support. Seattle CARES took only three weeks to reassess how they would adapt their programs virtually. Immediately following, they … [ ]

Wenas Mammoth Foundation—bringing earth science to life in Central Washington

By Adriana Zazula

What if we told you that Mammoths roamed Washington 16,000 years ago? What if we told you that you and your family could see it for yourself? The Wenas Mammoth Foundation (WMF) prides themselves on doing just that. Since 2005 the organization has welcomed the community, from archaeologists to kindergartners, to visit their property to dig for and examine Mammoth bones. Why? Because they love earth science and think you should too.  When we first discovered the mammoth—although we usually tell people it found us—we knew it was an opportunity to get the community involved in earth science. We wanted … [ ]

King County Best Starts for Kids quality out-of-school time initiative extended for fourth year

By School's Out Washington

The Out-of-School Time Initiative, a part of King County Best Starts for Kids, began in 2018 and was slated to provide youth program providers with funding and quality improvement support through 2020. The initiative is designed to increase access to high quality and culturally relevant summer and afterschool programming for elementary and middle school youth. In total, $8.3 million was distributed to 12 People-of-Color-Led organizations and 7 Place-Based Partnerships (representing 26 organizations). The cohort represents dynamic, engaging youth development work and has fostered a richer landscape of services across King County In January of last year, the SOWA Best Starts team was gearing up to enter the final assessment season, collecting data on programs’ gains, and planning to close out the inaugural cycle with a bang. When COVID hit, communities across the county (and the world) scrambled to support each … [ ]