Youth Programs

CORE

CORE (Combining Outreach Recreation and Education) is an outdoor adventure program which utilizes a value based curriculum to provide at risk youth otherwise unobtainable opportunities.

 

In connection with teaching the skills of snowboarding, hiking, and climbing, the CORE curriculum is designed to promote positive self esteem, guide the youth to make positive choices and practice self-responsibility, educate youth about their environment, and help build connectedness with peers, adult mentors, and their community.

 

In conjunction with school counselors, teachers, and other school administrators, Twenty 8th grade students (5 from each of the 4 middle schools in the Yakima School District) are chosen each year to participate in the CORE Program. These participants are guided in five days of snowboarding, five days of climbing, and five days of other outdoor activities such as hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, and river rafting. Utilizing a safe, fun, and nurturing environment, youth are able to overcome fears, gain an awareness of their strengths, attain several short term goals, and develop a vision of a future with endless possibilities.

 

The CORE curriculum focuses on one of our five values each day of each activity: Responsibility, Respect, Trust, Caring, and Citizenship. Each morning begins with a group discussion of the value of the day, soliciting both definitions as well as examples from the youth. Each CORE group leader serves as a mentor, reinforcing the daily value while guiding the youth through the activity. We finish the day by coming together as a group to reflect on how the value was utilized throughout the day, as well as discussing how the students may use this value in different situations in their everyday lives.

 

The fifth day of each activity is a designated "reflection day". At the end of this day, each student is recognized by the CORE leaders for their accomplishments. The students also use this time to express their feelings regarding their experiences for the past five days.

 

Working with the students "off the mountain" is an essential part of the CORE curriculum. This helps us to take what the students learn in the outdoors and associate it to their everyday lives back home. CORE leaders will meet with the students once a week during the school year for two hours to lead them in group activities designed to build self-esteem, self-discovery, teamwork, and coping skills.

 

The students will also participate in a fundraising opportunity as a way of asking the community to provide them with funding to participate in the program, as well as participating in three community outreach projects as a way of giving back to the community for supporting them in their endeavors with CORE.