Care and Leading With

Care

Care in youth spaces is such an important responsibility as a youth worker. There are many different ways to display care as a youth worker. In an afterschool space showing care could be providing snacks for the youth so they are energized to participate in the activities. Another way of showing care is making sure the space is clean and organized for the youth. This communicates a lot to the youth about respect. Keeping the space clean for the youth is an act of care because it sets up a safe space for youth to allow themselves to be vulnerable and go out of their comfort zones.

Leading With

Leading With can take many different forms in a youth space. The biggest ideal of Leading With is giving the youth equal responsibility and leadership with facilitating and planning. It is about making youth apart of the conversation and not talking to them, but with them. Leading With is a collaboration with the youth and the adults. It is bringing the youth to the table and giving them a voice in their own programs. The middle school wrestling team I coach for is a great example of leading with. The wrestlers know the expectations and responsibilities and were apart of making them with us. We have gotten to the point in the season where the captains could run a practice without us because everyone know what is expected and there is a level of trust and respect throughout the whole team.

YDEV Ideology

I got positive youth development which didn’t surprise me at all. I got the same result the last time I took this quiz which was about a year and half ago. My values when working with youth definitely align with the beliefs of positive youth work. I believe that all youth have assets it’s just a matter of finding them, and sometimes making the youth aware of them. If these assets don’t exist then as a youth worker I try to incorporate positivity in what I can control. So, the biggest thing I can control is the environment and space I bring the youth into. It is always a priority as a youth worker to create a safe space for the youth to feel comfortable to go out of their comfort zones. When addressing an issue with a youth I like to frame the conversation a certain way. I always like to address the youth’s strengths before addressing the “issue” or something they might need to work on. I’ll never forget a conversation I had with one of my wrestlers. This particular student was known for always getting trouble. He would start issues with the other students and talk back to the coaches. Towards the end of last season he really started to take wrestling seriously. There was a tournament he wanted to attend, but it was only for the serious and committed wrestlers. He knew it was up to the executive director who got to go the tournament. He told me to put in a good word for him. He said to me, “I’m not a bad kid, sometimes I just make bad decisions”. This broke my heart. I had hoped we didn’t give him the impression that he was a “bad kid”. There is no such thing as a “bad kid”. That interaction has stuck with me, and made me think about the language and discourse I use with the students.

injustice in the workplace

Most of the injustices I have personally experienced have had to do with sexism. I have worked in many sexist environments. I have also experienced sexism growing up as an athlete, often times playing with or against male athletes.

While working at a Liquor Store for three years I experienced being treated differently because I am a female. Not only was I treated differently by the other staff, but the customers as well. The store only hires men to be managers and “stock boys”. Females are only hired there to be a cashier. As a cashier I was also responsible for stocking the shelves, and organizing the floor of the store. More times than not I was told not to lift heavy boxes, or someone offered to help me when I would be carrying a case to a customer. This made me so angry. The assumption that I wasn’t strong enough because I am female was so insulting.

One of my most prominent memories is when I was assisting a customer, and she actually asked for the male manager to bring the case to her car. She said it was too heavy for me to carry. I told her that I was more than capable, and it was actually part of my job. She insisted, and didn’t trust me carrying the case to her car. This happened all the time. Many times customers didn’t like seeing females lifting or carrying heavy boxes.

Now I am less polite when situations like this arise. I might even ask the customer why they feel like I am not able to carry of lift the box. Depending on their response I will either call them out on being sexist, or explain to them why I am more than capable of assisting them. Also, I would be a bit more outspoken with my boss and talk to him about why he only hires men for certain positions. Starting a dialogue is the first step to making someone aware of an injustice they might have inflicted upon you.

teaching work is caring work

There are several different ways of teachers showing care that are discussed in this article. The first is modeling care through presentation and dress. This is something I would not even think about, but can be an extremely effective way of showing care for LGBTQ students. This can say so much to the students in the community who looks to this “out” lesbian teacher as a role model.

Another way a teacher shows care to their students is by providing snacks. Especially, in an inner-city community snacks can make a whole of a difference to students moods and energy. Also, understanding that students need food to learn, and that not every student is getting enough food at home to quench their hunger.

The last example I am going to talk about is keeping the classroom clean. This is another effective way to show care that I wouldn’t necessarily think about. When students walk into a clean classroom they should feel like it is because they deserve it to be clean. A teacher can control the environment in which they bring their students into, they cannot control the environment outside of school. Creating a safe and clean space is so important, and makes the classroom feel more like home.

At the nonprofit I work for we provide snacks for the students after school. I work for an after school wrestling program. We realize that after school students need an energy boost, especially before they are about to engage in a sport. We also provide them with activities on the weekend which is not outside of the program hours. We take them to tournaments all over New England allowing them to experience an array of opportunities outside the state. The program provides great support for the students, but needs to work on more academic support. We are implementing development fridays which to address homework and personal development.

My YDEV Story

There are a lot of ways I can approach this blog. I can explain why I became a YDEV major, or why I enjoy youth work so much. However, I am going to take a different spin on this. When did I admit to myself that youth work is the field for me? Because to be honest, for awhile I tried to persuade myself that I didn't like working for kids, I was just good at it.
My first job as a youth worker was at a summer camp in Bristol. I attended this summer camp as a child, and absolutely loved it. It's an art camp that focuses on music, dance, theater, and art. I became a volunteer when I was in middle school because I loved it so much, and wanted to stay involved. I quickly realized what it took to become a counselor, and how different that was than being a camper.
I have always approached working with youth the same way, even when I was still considered a youth and took on a leadership position. This approach has been to treat the youth with respect and as equals. I have always done this because my best experiences as a youth were when I was treated this way by an adult. Whether that was a coach or a teacher.
So I guess this brings me to why YDEV? Well, one of the biggest themes of this major is "leading with". In my eyes I have always done that, and fully believe in this mantra. Since being a YDEV major my skills as a youth worker have gotten so much better. I have so many different perspectives. I think the best thing about continuing this journey is learning more about what youth work is and how closely I connect to the ideals and values. Youth development has become a part of my identity.
Now, I have accepted that youth work is the field for me because I absolutely love it. There is so much reward that is received in this line of work. It's incredible to watch youth succeed in a variety of settings, and know that I played a small or large part in their success.

YIA LEADING WITH

The organization Youth In Action appears to be a very empowering program for high school students. Their collective phase seems to highlight the most the idea of leading with. This phase doesn't just get students involved, but gives them power as well. The youth are able to have a position on the board of directors, giving them a seat "at the table". They also participate and organize fundraisers for the organization allowing them to have a hand in the finances of the nonprofit. Also, this gives them the opportunity to fundraise for what they think is most important to the program. The biggest way this organization creates a leading with environment is creating and changing policy WITH the youth. This type of relationship between youth and adult is not commonly seen.

Play IS Learning

I’ve been involved with lots of different youth spaces in my lifetime. My first position as a youth worker was at a summer camp that I went to as a child. I started out there as a volunteer aid, then became a camp counselor for five years. When I think back to why I became a youth worker this experience always comes to mind. Working as a camp counselor at Linden Place in Camp in Bristol was a great experience. I realized that it was something I’m good at it, and thoroughly enjoy. It was also the first time I worked with a student that has autism which is the population I know want to work with. After that I worked at a different summer camp in Ashby, MA. This camp was for teenagers, eighth and ninth graders. My experience there was not the best I ended up leaving early actually. This issue was not the campers, but the staff specifically my boss. The conditions were terrible, and I did not agree with a lot of the policies. The camp was a leadership-based camp. I was the express leader (so I did art activities). I learned a lot about leadership at that camp, and walked away with a lot of problem-solving skills as well. The current youth space I am in is an after school wrestling program. This has been an amazing experience, and one of the best spaces I’ve worked in so far. I am an assistant coach for a middle school wrestling team in Providence. Before starting this program I had never wrestled or worked in an inner-city school. Learning the sport has taught me a lot about myself, and being a coach to “at-risk” students has taught me a great deal as well.
At Linden Place play was very organized and was a part of the campers routine. There were set times where the campers could play, and set times where the campers had to work or do activities. They did not frame the activities as play even though they were. I was a music counselor, and we played with instruments and sang all day long. There always had to be a lesson attached to each day, even though the children were learning a great amount just by playing the instruments and learning songs.
At Camp Lapham in MA the campers didn’t play very much. Similar to what Jenkins talked about they tried to disguise learning as playing. So tried to make the activities about leadership more fun.
At Beat the Streets we allow lots of playing to happen. The students enjoy wrestling very much, and we try to incorporate games as much as possible. We participate alongside the students, so the coaches get to play as well. It’s a great environment.