Hoops with Some Heart: BGC Newark @ Burnet St Hosts Charity Basketball Game

From our partners at Burnet Street Elementary, Boys & Girls Clubs of Newark:

Local Kids Organized Charity Basketball Game

Proceeds, totaling more then $200, Benefiting Breast Cancer Research

Newark Global Village School Zone schools compete for worthy cause

Boys & Girls Clubs of Newark After-school Programs at Burnet Street School and Newton Street School Face Off

The Club members at the Boys & Girls Club/NJA3 after-school program at Burnet Street School, which includes children in grades 4-8, organized a Charity Basketball Game to benefit Breast Cancer research at the “Susan G. Komen for the Cure” Center. It is their first service-learning project. The kids chose the cause, researched and selected the organization, arranged for the donation, developed and implemented a publicity plan that includes social media, the school’s parents and faculty while even mapping their own route throughout the local community to spread the word! After all, teaching children that they hold the power of change in their small hands is an essential part to their social development and overall education. Youth-led service learning yields longer lasting impact as kids learn to change the world they live rather then adapt to it.

Professional Development Opportunity @ Essex County

Focus on Content: Resources Abound

With the end of the year coming, it is never too late to freshen up your program content. Here are some resources designed specifically for the afterschool community:

4-H Programs have made a wide variety of curricula available - from friendship games for K, to world culture activities for 8th graders.

This Coalition for Science After School has a variety of resources available.

April Showers Bring... Funding Opportunties!

While our #1 focus should be running high quality programs and ending the year strong, we must also begin to look forward to the next academic year. Here are some RFPs and interesting articles from the philanthropy world that you should take some time to review:

PNC is working with community organizations to roll our financial literacy curricula. With PNC being a NJ based bank, this could open up some opportunities for our Newark programs.

The NEA and Nickelodeon have teamed up to offer $5000 grants for service programs. This is a great opportunity to work collaboratively with a certified teacher from your school and show the extra value your organizations bring!

With Spring having fully sprung, it might be a great time for a school-based garden project. Whole Foods is offering $2000 grants to fund such projects.

As you write grants to support your programming, don't forget that your programs can be a key resource to improve literacy skills. Check out this article reinforcing what we already know - literacy is incredibly important, particularly for the most vulnerable populations.

Camp Vacamas at Quitman: Entrepreneurs in Action

On Friday, April 15th, the student-entrepreneurs at the Camp Vacamas at Quitman Street displayed their business plans, along with their "Going Green" service project - recycling and redesigning clothing! Check out these pictures!

And we cannot forget the wonderful work of the Quitman Street Photography Club!

These students presented their fully developed business plans to a full panel of reviewers, including Quitman Street Principal Erskine Glover, and an audience of proud parents and community members. 5th and 6th graders joined the festivities, showing off their unique recycling efforts, turning gently used clothing into unique and redesigned fashion must-haves!

$$$FUNDING ALERT$$$

Happy Spring Break to you NGVSZers! While you are taking in the sun (or at least not working as hard as you usually do), take a few minutes to check out some FANTASTIC funding opportunties for you, your programs and your program partners!

• Dollar General (which serves the Newark area) is giving away $5000 grants for non-profits (supplies anybody?)
• Are you tech-savvy? Do you have a tech club? The NEA is looking to give $1000 to individuals and organziations that develop mobile phone "apps" for school!
• Tell your certifed teachers that they can apply for a $3400 grant from PSE&G to support environmental education!

Unique Resources Available to You

For the creative program, we have available some unique resources, including...

• Free DVD cases (sans DVDs, of course)
• DVD cover art (see pic below)
• Recent (but old) magazines, including Nintendo Power, etc

Use them as incentives, or for art projects... if you can think of an idea, they are yours! Please email your program officer for more info!

A word on the magazines and cover art - these were given to me by my PT employer, Blockbuster. I have a whole box, and while there is a lot of good kid-centric stuff, not everything in the box is kid appropriate. You'll need to look through and sort it out. Even the non-kid appropriate stuff can be useful, though! Make these cardboard covers into bathroom passes, signs for rooms, flashcards - whatever!