2017 Summer YDA: Agents of Change Student Testimonials

King (8th Grade): "YDA is the best camp I’ve ever been to in my life. It’s helped me socially because I have problems with getting friends at school. At YDA I have a lot of friends and at my school I don’t really have many friends. YDA is a great place that’s taught me many things and it has changed me.YDA impacted me the most with courage. When I was at school I was a very shy person and wasn’t very good at making friends. Now that I’m at YDA it’s helped me to become a more courageous person and I’ve made a lot of friends here."

Jaylen (7th Grade, Environmental Charter Middle School): "YDA impacted my life because I would never have spoke in public but thanks to Derrick he gave me the courage to come up here. YDA impacted my life because if i wasn’t here I would have been at my house doing whatever I want, but I came here and met new people. I’m usually shy and keep to myself. I want to thank all the staff for taking the time to take care of us, showing us how to be ourselves, and to believe in ourselves. Although I don’t know everyone, I love you all."

Miranda (7th Grade, Dodson Middle School): "YDA has been really impactful in my life. I’d probably be sitting on my couch watching movies all day if it wasn’t for YDA. I’ve made so many friends here and I’ve learned so much about exercise and team building."

Marissa (12th Grade, San Pedro High School): "If you feel lost or you don’t have friends or you feel really alone, Sharefest is something that can help you. With all the difficult things in high school, when I come here I don’t have to deal with any of that. If you feel like High School isn’t a place for you, Sharefest will be like home."

Sabino (12th Grade, Narbonne High School): "I’m willing to go to college, I’m willing to take as long as it takes to get into the Police Academy because my dream is to become in Criminal Justice as a detective. Everyone here has their own dreams; follow them and don’t give up."

Ti’lar (12th Grade, Torrance High School): "Sharefest has taught me so much, I think that it’s wonderful that you’re here and willing to learn and grow from your experience. Everyone struggles and it’s okay."

Adrian (12th Grade, Narbonne High School): "Every year Sharefest has given me a light so I can keep pushing forward. Now I just want to say that Sharefest changed me dramatically. If it wasn’t for Sharefest, I don’t know where I would be."

2017 Summer YDA: Agents of Change Give Back to Their Community

July 20, 2017: HashtagLunchBag

Incoming 7th, 8th, 9th, and 12th grade students enrolled in the 2017 Summer Youth Development Academy (S-YDA) program participated in two day of service events as a part of the STEM, leadership, and service learning curriculums. Each day of service was a vehicle for students to practice the skills developed in their S-YDA courses by giving back to their surrounding community. The two dates allowed approximately 150 students (combined) to participate in projects that addressed the identified issue of hunger by directly providing food for those in need.

The 7th and 8th grade students learned about STEM through aquaponics, urban farming, and the importance of food sustainability. The 9th grade students developed leadership skills by building confidence within themselves and compassion for others through “improv.” The 12th grade students practiced leadership by acting upon their service learning curriculum and leading the younger students through each service project.

The first day of service was modeled after the initiative #HashtagLunchbag, aimed at “Empowering humanity to create & benefit from organized acts of love.” A #HashtagLunchbag event involves putting together a lunch bag for homeless or disadvantaged persons, inclusive of a meal, kind, hand-written note of encouragement, and the opportunity for both parties to meet and connect face-to-face.

15 12th grade students led 60 9th graders in making 140 lunches consisting of a peanut butter & jelly sandwich, fruit cup, bag of chips, and a water bottle. The lunch bags were completed with the addition of multiple handwritten notes of encouragement and delivered to Harbor Interfaith Services in San Pedro, an organization that provides meals, therapy sessions, and housing to the homeless and working poor. Students handed out the lunch bags to the clients for an hour and a half before returning to camp. It was so meaningful that #HashTagLunchBag wrote about it IN THEIR BLOG.

The monetary value of this service project was approximately $2,000.

August 1, 2017: GRoW Garden Expansion

The second day of service was tailored to the STEM curriculum with partner Ourfoods. 15 12th grade students led the middle school students through the construction of four “desktop model” aquaponics systems and directed them through the offsite service project. 80 7th and 8th grade students traveled with the 12th graders to the Watts Century Latino Organization to expand upon the GRoW Community Garden, a project completed during the 2017 Sharefest Workday. During the Workday, four sustainable, raised-bed planter boxes and a large-scale aquaponics system were installed. During the day of service, students installed two more boxes, learned how the aquaponics system functions and is maintained, and harvested crops growing in the previously-installed boxes. This garden is fully accessible to and used by many families in the Watts community.

The monetary value of this service project was approximately $8,600.

Sharefest is proud to preparing students through hands-on service projects to be a vital source of their community’s growth and betterment.

2017 Summer YDA: Agents of Change Learn Sustainable Farming

86 middle school students participating in the Summer Youth Development Academy (S-YDA) at California State University Dominguez Hills honed their STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) skills through four weeks of learning about sustainable urban farming. Daily, 40-minute classes guided students through a discovery process of how plants grow and ways science and technology can improve food sustainably. Their learning culminated in a “give back” service project in which they put their new agricultural knowledge to work by installing two new garden beds at the Watts GRoW Garden in Watts.

Access to healthy foods has become a hotspot of community need. Learning to plant a sustainable garden tangibly impacts health, economics, and ecology. Communities with access to innovative gardening techniques experience resilience and renewal, leading to improved quality of life. Introducing middle students to concepts like aquaponics and hydroponics prepares them to not only be better prepared for academic success, but also to be a resource to their own community’s brightest future.

In partnership with Ourfoods, a local non-profit social enterprise, dedicated to urban agriculture education, training, and jobs, S-YDA students received valuable education with tangible applications. Led by their instructor Natalie Kra, a Ourfoods employee and recent USC graduate, students explored soil quality, water conservation, and technologies for growing healthy foods anywhere. Most importantly, students learned about the power of food and how it can transform communities.

This class is a good example of how Sharefest is working to prepare youth to lead positive change in their communities and expose them to inspiring college and career opportunities.

Sharefest wishes to extend a special thank you to Ourfoods for sharing a vibrant vision for the future of our local communities and partnering to revitalize hope and flourishing.

2017 Summer YDA: Voices of Hope

“If you really knew me, you would know I care about…” From this space of personal experience and compassion, 34 students from twenty local high schools shared about their concerns for their communities on Thursday, August 3, 2017, at the Asomugha Foundation in Los Angeles. Students addressed problems and possible solutions around the topics of immigration, homelessness, affordable housing, quality education, restorative justice, pollution, and harmful stereotypes of minorities.

Awakening youth voices to positively advocate for their communities is part of the larger framework Sharefest employs to engage students in service and leadership. Public speaking is a common fear and discovering tools and motivations for conquering it early is essential to empowering the valuable resources youth provide in bettering local communities.Through the “point of view” presentation, youth discover their ideas for community restoration are important and that others can benefit from their courage to speak up. This exercise is an essential element of shifting both internal and external stereotypes that marginalize youth from being a part of the solutions communities need to flourish.

The Voices of Hope luncheon is the culminating event for the 10th and 11th grade students’ Summer Youth Development Academy (S-YDA) Leadership class. This year’s S-YDA theme, Agents of Change, helped students explore social justice issue and equipped them with the five habits of a change agent: courage, compassion, critical thinking, cooperation, and commitment. 80 guests joined for lunch to listen to the students’ presentations, including parents, principals, teachers, business leaders, community advocates, and government dignitaries. At the conclusion of the event, Gabriela Medina, District Director for Congresswoman Nanette Diaz Barragan (CA 44th Congressional District), exhorted the students, “Keep speaking! Our communities need you.” Also in attendance was Manny Lopez (Mayor Garcetti’s Office) and Victor Ibarra (Assemblymember Mike Gipson’s Office). Students received certificates from both Barragan and Gipson’s office in recognition for their community advocacy.

Alcoa Foundation Supports Sharefest Youth Development Academy With a Generous Gift

We are thrilled to have the generous support of the Alcoa Foundation and are so grateful for their $50,000 gift to support Sharefest's Youth Development Academy! Additionally, Sharefest YDA alum Fernando Aguilar was recently selected for the NatureBridge Alcoa Scholars program! As 1 of only 100 students selected from thousands of applications, Fernando will have the opportunity to spend two weeks on an environmental expedition in Shenandoah National Park. Congrats, Fernando and thank you, Alcoa, for continuing to support youth development and education!