Programs
Better Life
Opportunity to:
• Receive a monthly stipend
• Learn financial literacy
• Obtain certifications
(Drivers license, food handlers, first aid-CPR, etc.)
• Trade school opportunities
• Explore musical talents in our NEW music studio
Must:
• Apply and Interview
• Dress appropriate
• Attend ALL monthly sessions
• Participate in activities
• Be willing to learn
Schedule:
BI-weekly Wednesday afternoon and Saturday morning.
After-School
Join us for afternoons filled with fun, snacks, and learning. Everyday your child will be picked up directly from their school (see pick-up list bellow).
They will then have outside or gym time, be provided with a snack, followed by an educational activity or help with homework, and lastly time for free play.
After-School Hours
Monday-Friday | 3:30pm-6:00pm
Cost of Enrollment
$60.00/a month per child
Schools we will be picking up from:
• Carmona Elementary
• Ramirez Elementary
• Ervin Elementary
• Alderson Elementary
• Dunbar College Preparatory Academy
• Margaret Talkington School for Young Women Leaders
• Rise Academy Charter School
If your child attends a different school they are still able to attend our After-School program however, you must provide them with transportation to the Center daily.
Programs Offered
We offer specialized programs only available through enrolling in our After-School program at no additional cost. It is included within the monthly fee.
Music Classes with Lubbock Arts Alliance: For more than a decade, Lubbock Arts Alliance has provided our children with high-quality music classes that focus on developing children’s exploration, collaboration and appreciation of music in a safe environment.
Art Classes with Lubbock Arts Alliance: smART is Lubbock Arts Alliance’s outreach program. For more than a decade, they have provided our children with high-quality art classes that allow children to learn a wide range of art techniques and the chance to show off their artwork throughout the year.
Piano and Violin Lab with Texas Tech: Partnering with Texas Tech J.T. & Margaret Talkington College of Visual & Performing Arts has provided a brand-new piano and violin program taught by graduate students. This new type of program is focused on musical education and the development of technical skills.
S.T.E.M. Club with TTU S.T.E.M. Leaf: Powered by TTU’s S.T.E.M. Leaf student organization, they provide weekly S.T.E.M. experiments for our children.
Summer Blast Camp
Join us for a day filled with fun, snacks, and learning. Everyday your child will be picked up directly from their school (see pick-up list bellow).
They will then have outside or gym time, be provided with a snack, followed by an educational activity or help with homework, and lastly time for free play.
Summer Blast Camp Hours:
Monday-Friday | 8:30pm-5:30pm
Breakfast & lunch provided
Cost of Enrollment:
$260.00/Per child age 6-12 for the whole summer
$80.00/Per child ages 13 and up for the whole summer
What to Expect
Daily Meals: We provide our campers with two meals, a breakfast and hot lunch. We just ask that parents please provide your child with a healthy snack each day.
Fun and Engagement: Each day your child will be engaging in a variety of classes and activities, that range from continued reading and math support to learning a new dance or art technique.
Field Trips: Our campers are constantly going to eld trips from the fun lled Blazing Bouncers to the education Science Spectrum and even the exclusive look at the behind the scenes of local TV news station KCBD. In addition, each week the campers go to a local swimming pool to enjoy some fun in the sun!
Exciting Opportunities: Due in part to our amazing board members, we are able to work collaboratively with many businesses and organizations all across Lubbock to introduce our campers to all kinds of behind the scenes experiences. Every summer is always different so children can keep coming back for years and experiences new things each time!
End of Summer Recital: At the end of each summer, the campers put on a recital showing off all that they have learned. Each group will do an individual song and dance as well as a whole camp finale dance. Each year we have a new theme so you never know what you will see!
Programs Offered
Etiquette Class: Our etiquette program has evolved from teaching our campers basic dining etiquette to learning about money management, career planning, community building and communication skills. In addition, starting in the summer of 2023, we began our Etiquette Gala so that all campers could enjoy delicious food, a silent auction and dressing up!
Reading Class: Summer reading classes are geared to meet each camper at their own level, and help to foster a life-long love of reading. Campers will become exposed to new reading skills and techniques, poetry, authors and so much more!
Art, Music and Dance Classes: At our Summer Blast Camp, campers will have music, dance and art classes daily. These classes are led by talented and experienced instructors who encourage campers to express themselves in creative and fun ways.
Water Safety: In partnership with Texas Tech University, we provide campers the chance to learn how to swim. For those who already know, we go on weekly trips to the pool. All you have to do is sign up your child at registration.
S.T.E.M. Class: Short for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, our S.T.E.M. class allows our campers to take part in lots of fun experiments.
GRUB Farm: In partnership with Kids Cafe, a small group of campers have the opportunity to go to the Kids Cafe center once a week. There they learn about growing fruits and vegetables, cooking skills and recipes, healthy eating and much more! Just sign your child up at registration.
Enrichment
Art
ArtAdventures is a Lubbock Arts Alliance Program serving the children of the Guadalupe Parkway Neighborhood Centers, providing after-school Visual Art and Music instruction. ArtAdventures serves 40 Art students and approximately 20 Music Students. Participants produce several pieces of artwork that demonstrate their individual talent and creativity which are showcased at the First Friday Art Trail and other art exhibits throughout the school year. Artist, Maisie Marie Alford is the instructor for this program.
During Summer Blast, every student takes an hour Art course 2-3 times per week. The goal is to equip participants with the skills to identify color schemes, mediums and diverse forms of art techniques.
The objectives of the Art program are as follows:
- Compare and contrast color schemes in painting and drawing
- Produce an art piece with diverse paint mediums in watercolor and acrylics
- Maintain an individual journal to promote individual creativity
- Demonstrate proper use of lines, shapes and harmony in a painting
These programs include field trips to the First Friday Art Trail. Art instruction encourages creativity with imagination and emotion. Participants develop art skills with the guidance of the Art instructors.
Music
Through our partnerships with the Lubbock Arts Alliance and the J.T. & Margaret Talkington College of Visual & Performing Arts we are able to provide the a wide range of music education to the children at the Centers. From vocals and drums to structured piano and violin classes, we aim to enrich our children’s lives through music.
Piano with Texas Tech University
In partnership with the J.T. & Margaret Talkington College of Visual & Performing Arts, Dr. Leobardo Guerrero, along with graduate students from the Texas Tech University School of Music, teach piano lessons at the Center.
This program is partly funded by the generosity of the Helen Jones Foundation, The CH Foundation and private donors from the Guadalupe-Parkway Neighborhood Centers.
Arts Adventure with Lubbock Arts Alliance
For over a decade Lubbock Arts Alliance have partnered with us to provide our children with high quality music classes that focus on developing children’s exploration, collaboration, and appreciation of music in a safe environment.
Dance
Dance is a form of expression that all children love. Through dance education, children learn the values of creativity, discipline, focus and commitment. All of which will not only help them succeed in dance, but also in their adult life and future careers.
Our Objectives for the dance education program are as follows:
- Each child will build confidence and self-esteem
- Every child will find their own creative style and personality in movement
- Each child will develop their vocabulary of technical terms and improve on their technique
- Demonstrate retention and memorization of choreography
- Develop stage presence and improve on stage performances
During our Summer Blast Camp, each group typically performs their own unique dance and then one dance together as a whole. They also learn a dance indicative of the country and/or culture they are studying over Summer Blast. The children have the opportunity to demonstrate their skills in the Center’s recital.
Life Skills
Etiquette
The Etiquette program has now been facilitated since 2006. The program has introduced a personal responsibility component as part of the curriculum. All children/youth are introduced to social etiquette, the importance of first impression, and practicing a confident handshake. The program is also gender specific in that they are introduced to etiquette components specific to their gender and age.
The goal of providing an Etiquette course is to encourage self-confidence and introduce each participant to specific skills of conversation in a public setting, table manners, hosting a dinner party, calculating a tip at a restaurant and public presentation of oneself in a professional and responsible environment.
The objectives of Etiquette are as follows:
- Able to start good conversations and maintain them Recognize formal and informal table settings
- Demonstrate knowledge of diverse table manners
- Articulate a speech when making a toast at a dinner party
- Learn components of being a good host at a dinner party
- Proper handshake and eye contact
- How to tie a necktie (Boys and Girls)
- How to compliment wait staff and restaurant manager
- Proper dating etiquette
- Personal responsibility
Participants practice table manners and greeting guests through specific mock and dating protocol activities with the guidance of the etiquette instructor. Each participant receives individual constructive critiques during the class that include personal responsibility. Toward the end of the instruction, each group is given multiple opportunities to attend local restaurants where they practiced table manners and general calculations for determining the tip for wait staff. Students are asked to practice the listed objectives at the restaurant and at home.
Water Safety
Children need constant supervision around water. While water safety should start at home, often parents face their own challenges when it comes to water. For this reason it has become a priority for the Summer Blast Program to initiate and equip every student/participant with the skills to survive in the water whether for fun or in the event of an emergency. Children drown at an unnecessary rate because they panic in the water and do not have the necessary skills to engage in a survival mode during an accidental drowning. The skills children learn during the water safety classes are life saving tips and exercises that could potentially safe their lives or the life of a drowning victim.
The goal of the water safety program is to equip every student with water safety skills that prevent injuries and drowning. Common sense tips and exercises encourage mastery of basic swimming skills. All participants receive instruction in water safety, however only participants who do not know how to swim receive basic individualized lessons. All classes and instruction are age appropriate. Students are divided in small cooperative groups.
Objectives for Water Safety are as follows:
- Knowledge of safety procedures in and outside the pool
- Practice entering and exiting pool
- Demonstrate submersion underwater and breath control
- Demonstrate front and back floating
- Demonstrate front and back glides
- Practice confidence in the pool through required exercises
Children participate weekly in water safety classes with the guidance of the water safety instructor. Each child receives one on one instruction and critiques in the skills listed above. Progress is monitored in each class and instruction is altered based on progress.
Outreach Programs
Teen Outreach Program (T.O.P.)
The Teen Outreach Program aka T.O.P. was created to address a need within the community that 8th through-12th graders did not have a safe, constructive environment during the school year and summer months. Children in middle school and high school have more school responsibility as they prep for their future careers and participate in extracurricular activities at their current schools. Some children however do not participate in extracurricular activities and therefore have idle time on their hands. Thus, making them less susceptible to high-risk behaviors, lower academic achievement and drug or alcohol abuse. The Centers meet this need by providing a program such as T.O.P. to serve youth with a safe place in the early evening hours where they are given opportunities to be mentored, make new friends, volunteer within the community, receive academic support and receive training on preparing for college and their transition into the real world.
The goal of this program is to prepare at risk youth for personal responsibility readiness, provide a safe and drug free environment. Additionally, the program provides academic support and celebrates accomplishments. Alongside the personal responsibility component, a recreational service provided that teaches team work and health wellness to all participants. T.O.P. provides meals, mentoring, college/career exploration, and art enrichment. Special speakers from the community will be scheduled to speak. Leadership, personal responsibility, healthy alternatives, and good sportsmanship are part of the overall year round programs.
The Learning Objectives of T.O.P. are to provide Job Readiness Preparation, Financial Education, Life Skills, and Job Skills including but not limited to:
- Properly filll out college and employment applications
- Properly filll out FASFA and scholarship forms
- Create a resume
- Master interview skills
- Elements of different dress codes
- Common employee etiquette
- Proper email correspondence techniques
- Importance of internships and/or volunteerism to gain experience
- How to compute interest rates
- How to file a mock tax return
- How to create budgets
- How to balance a check book
- Examine average household expense costs
- Examine average vehicle expense costs
- Time management
- The importance of prioritizing
- Leadership qualities
- Stress management techniques
- The importance of self care/health
- Steps to turning goals into visions
Our target audience is all adolescent students. Curriculum varies depending on age group and class rank. It is our goal to collaborate with Communities In Schools and counselors at Estacado, Lubbock High, Talkington, Dunbar, Cavazos, and Roosevelt for referrals. Dinner is provided as an incentive to attend.
Making A Difference (M.A.D.)
The goal of M.A.D. is to provide every student living or staying in the 79415 zip code the opportunity to engage in positive recreational activities in a controlled environment where students can develop physical skills, self-discipline and social skills. Another goal of the program focuses specifically on juvenile delinquency prevention and intervention and school dropout prevention.
Objectives for M.A.D. include the following:
- Participation in healthy competitive sports activities
- Develop positive relationships with peers and mentors
- Fostering healthy relationships outside of school
- Develop Self-Esteem
- Improve Physical health
- Build Confidence
Instructors, coaches and coordinators monitor and direct the program weekly. The objectives are met through continued progress demonstrated in competitions and practices.
