About Us
Message from the Director
The Legacy of the Centers continues after more than 60 years of service to the community. The universe conspires to assist us when we reveal our dreams. The Centers are dedicated to assist students in fulfilling their dreams. We believe that every child has his own personal legend to fulfill. With the support from the Centers, every child has an opportunity to fulfill their legend. It is with dedicated staff, vested in this community, that we are able to give our best every day. We invite you to visit us and see the great programs in action. Enriching lives for generations in hopes of empowering and impacting entire families is what we love. It is with the help from our donors that we are able to continue the legacy of Barbara Somerville.
Please consider the Guadalupe-Parkway Neighborhood Centers an epicenter for the communities in North and East Lubbock.
Dela Esqueda, CEO
Guadalupe-Parkway Sommerville Centers
Goals
Career Readiness
It is our goal to equip students with the necessary tools for success. Although our members range from age 6-14, we believe it is never to early to plan for the future.
During the course of the 10 week Summer Blast program, students research several career fields before identifying the ones they have the most interest in. Once a student identifies “what they want to be when they grow up,” they examine the crucial steps they must take to accomplish their goals. Students will be assisted determining the year in which they will graduate high school, how many years of college their degree plan requires, and the average income of their desired career field. It is emphasized that our students accomplish anything that they set their minds to. It is also noted that their aspirations may change at any time. To highlight each child’s research, they create Vision Boards as a project to stress that NO vision is too big or too far-fetched. The children cut out phrases and photos from magazines and attach them to a poster board so that they may visualize their goals coming to fruition.
Education
It is our goal to enhance the education experience of our center members past the standard classroom experience.
We educate our children to believe in themselves. We educate our children to be kind and respectful. We educate our students in academics and fine arts.
During our after-school program, every student participates in homework Power Hour. This hour is designated to complete homework with the assistance of our Program Facilitators. If students are not assigned homework from school, we encourage positive study habits by assigning homework to them during Power Hour in the basic subjects such as Math, Reading, and Writing. We understand that success lies in the ability to master these subjects. We also have an on-sight tutor who pulls students from their regular scheduled activities to complete individualized Math and Reading exercises on IPADs. All students participate in tutoring and the IPADs make the experience interactive and fun. Students are also required to submit a copy of their report card so that we may monitor areas that they may be struggling as well as applaud areas that they are excelling. On Wednesdays of each week a Texas Tech organization, Reading Aces come to promote active reading amongst our students. Students each pick out a book of their choice and have one-on-one reading sessions in our Learning Garden with the Reading Aces members.
During Summer Blast, every student rotates through Etiquette, Reading, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math), Art, Music, and Dance. Each component is designed with goals, objectives, and assessments. However we strive to make learning as fun and hands-on as possible. There is not standardized curriculum which permits for lessons and activities developed based on creativity and ingenuity.
Self-Esteem
It is our goal to build the Self-Esteem of each child that we serve. Our children are LIMITLESS and they should rightfully feel so. Each of our programs are designed to provide children with new skills & strengthen existing skills in order to empower our youth. Each child participates in self-esteem boosting activities such as Mindset Mondays, the power of words, practicing positive a rmations, and team building. When a child learns to play the piano or even learns to swim, they feel accomplished. That sense of accomplishment is empowering.
As another strategy to develop self-esteem, we schedule local leaders and professionals such as from the communities in which our children live to come speak at our centers. It is essential for children to see someone who looks like them and who has a background similar to their current lives in the role they aspire to be in. We hope that they can see themselves in that leader or professional and think to themselves, “If they can do it, so can I.”
New Experiences
It is our goal to expose our children to places and things that they might not otherwise have the opportunity to experience.
Over the course of our 10 week Summer Blast Program all of our children have gone on several different field trips including to the Science Spectrum, Main Event, Joyland, Premiere Cinemas, Texas Tech Museum and Planetarium, Adventures USA Skating Rink, Mae Simmons Swimming Pool, YWCA Sun ‘n Fun, Legacy Play Village, Body Works Adrenaline City, and the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center.
Students are rotated on a weekly basis to Etiquette Lunches (see Etiquette Page) and Downtown Lunches at the Gazebo.
Our enthusiastic artists have attended 1st Friday Art Trail at the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts.
A group of 10 junior high students have been selected to take a trip to Austin to tour the Texas State Capital Building, visit the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum, and have fun at the Typhoon Texas Water Park.
Meet Our Team
Chief Executive Officer
Oversite Director
Administrative Director
Site Supervisor
Programs
Ronald Sanders,
Program Facilitator
Jonathan McGee,
Program Facilitator
Matthew Self,
Program Facilitator
Jazsmine Sanchez,
Program Facilitator
Emily Rodgers,
Program Facilitator
Lydia Smith,
Reading Program Facilitator
Vanessa James,
Talkington Front Desk
Board of Directors
Our board of directors are made up of passionate members of the community with diverse backgrounds and experiences.
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Gabe Vitela,
Board Chair
Chase Gentry,
Vice Chair
Dawn Franks,
Board Secretary
Barbara Lieck,
Board Treasurer
BOARD MEMBERS
Adrienne Cozart
Chad Davis
Timothy Dixon
Taylor Ernst
Lauren Hoffman
Brandi Ivey
Crystal Meister
Marie Meyer
Britt Pharris
Mona Robledo
Richard Smith
Priscilla Villalon
Julie Baron Wells
Mark Williams
