The Chalkboard

Read Across America Day

2010-03-07T09:49:00.000-08:00

Every year on March 2nd, children around the country get to celebrate a birthday, Dr Seuss's. Reading is fun. Teachers, educators, and volunteers gather in classrooms with all kinds of activities to enthrall children and build dreams around the beloved stories of Dr. Seuss.

As in past years, The Youth Foundation partnered with the Eagle River Youth Coalition/Youth Leaders Council and school staff to bring activities and supplies to 3 local schools. From musical chairs to a Dr. Seuss character version of Twister, face painting and cookie making, everything had a reading component.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this a fun day for the children at the Family Learning Center, Edwards Elementary and Gypsum Middle School.

Dance and Etiquette come to Berry Creek Middle School

2010-02-17T06:54:00.000-08:00

There's a new Power Hours program at The Berry Creek Middle School: Cotillion. Every Tuesday afternoon Professional dance instructor Colin Meiring is teaching students the art of dancing and etiquette. Many know Colin from the Vail Performing Arts Academy where he choreographs and produces theatre and dance performances. During the first Cotillion class students were dancing the Foxtrot within 20 minutes of starting class, young men were introducing themselves to their dance partners and girls were learning the proper way to follow a dance lead. Colin told the boys "you're driving a Ferrari, make sure you know where you're going and treat your partner with great care." Everyone was having a fun time and being very respectful.

Dave and Karen Kolquist volunteer at Gypsum Elementary

2010-02-17T06:37:00.000-08:00

Dave Kolquist is the Director of The First Tee of Eagle County, a Youth Foundation program that teaches both golf and character skills to children of all ages. But did you know that in his spare time Dave and his wife Karen volunteer in Gypsum Elementary Schools in both reading and science classes? As a teacher for most of the past 30 years, Dave knows how difficult it is to reach all of the children in a class room on a one on one basis. When he and Karen attend classroom reading time they are helping teacher Carol Blevins in a huge way. Without the extra help she would have much less time to work with each student and to ascertain their individual skills and needs.

Thank you Dave and Karen for all that you do.

Paddle Painting - June Creek Elementary

2010-02-17T06:23:00.000-08:00

June Creek Elementary kids in The Youth Foundation Power Hours programs

painted auction paddles for the upcoming First Descents Ball.

Youth Foundation Welcomes New Chair: STEVE COYER

2010-02-03T17:30:00.000-08:00

YOUTH FOUNDATION WELCOMES NEW CHAIR: Steve CoyerThe Youth Foundation is thrilled to have Steve accept the Chairmanship of the Youth Foundation. We are certain that his passion, keen business sense and great leadership will be a guiding light for the Youth Foundation in the years to come. A Native of Detroit, Michigan, Steve Coyer attended The University of Michigan where he received a B. A . degree in Economics (with Honors) in 1973. Upon graduating Steve joined a small, entrepreneurial firm, which was then pioneering the concept of computer time-sharing for business applications. There, he completed a number of consulting projects with clients ranging from large electric utilities, to banks, to multinational food and beverage companies. The firm was bought by Automatic Data Processing, Inc.

In 1974 Steve married Amy, and eventually they both attended Harvard University’s Graduate School of Business together, where they earned MBAs. Following graduate school at Harvard, Steve worked as a consultant for McKinsey & Co. in Los Angeles, and then joined a McKinsey partner to establish the first Strategic Planning department for Automatic Data Processing. After two years, Steve was recruited by a small, computer data base company in NYC to help expand the company as its President. The firm’s clients included most of the leading institutional financial firms in the US, Europe, and Japan, as well as two-thirds of the Fortune 500. After ten years, the company was sold to Knight-Ridder who eventually sold it to Thomson Reuters, where it operates today.
Amy and Steve retired to the Vail Valley in June of 1999. He is an avid cook, and enjoys creating a delicious meal for good friends. Traveling is also another love; together, he and Amy have had wonderful adventures in places as far flung as New Zealand, Patagonia, Afghanistan, Iran, India, Nepal, and Bhutan. Recently they sailed along the coast of Turkey and look forward to more exciting places in their future.

Though Amy and Steve never got around to having their own children, they pride themselves on being the best aunts and uncles imaginable! They adore their nine nieces and nephews, and have been fortunate, over the years, to have spent an amazing amount of quality time with them! Among Steve’s vast business experience he has also been a competitive amateur golfer for nearly twenty years, playing in the 1997 USGA Mid-Amateur, as well as the 1998 British Amateur Championship. His interest in golf and children led Steve to join the Advisory Board of The First Tee of Eagle County, and served as its Chair for the past three years.

Currently, Steve serves as President of the Mountain Star Homeowners’ Association, and has been for the past seven years. Thank you, Steve!

Vail Resorts & Millennium Society Join Forces to help Youth Foundation

2010-02-03T17:09:00.000-08:00

PARTNER HIGHLIGHT:The Vail Resorts ECHO program is leading the charge in creating a reverberating voice throughout the Vail Valley, shouting from the mountaintops that investing in children in this community is a priority. This weekend Rob Katz and Chris Jarnot, will lead a group of 50 young philanthropists from the Millennium Society for a great day on the mountain, while sharing insights about their important partnership with the Youth Foundation.

On February 6th, end a great day of skiing by joining Vail Resorts, Millennium Society and the Youth Foundation at Cucina Rustica in the Lodge at Vail, for a VIP après ski event at 3:00 pm, where you can participate in the launch of the 20.10 for KIDS Campaign and be eligible for a drawing for next year’s ski pass.
This year Vail Resorts is taking it to the next level by asking the community to step up by giving a $25,000 matching gift in support of the Youth Foundation’s 20.10 for KIDS Campaign. The 20.10 for KIDS Campaign is a grassroots effort to gain 2,010 pledges by the end of 2010 from community members who agree to contribute $20.10 each month to support PowerHours After School program, helping nearly 1,000 children have a safe and fun environment after school. By joining the 20.10 for KIDS Campaign on February 6th at Cucina Rustica, your matching contribution will go twice as far.

Innovative partnerships are needed to invest in opportunities and solutions for our resort community. The Vail Resorts ECHO program works with The Youth Foundation to deliver the programs that our community needs, and invests in the future of our youth. Vail Resorts’ understanding of the importance of after school programs have made this a natural partnership. Through volunteerism, charitable donations, and in-kind giving, Vail Resorts has been supporting programs of the Youth Foundation since 1998. Here are just a few examples of how Vail Resorts ECHO is heard throughout the Youth Foundation and the community:
•    Through the ECHO charitable giving program, the Youth Foundation has developed the Engaging Kids in Community Initiative, a program to teach children that everyone has gifts to share and should be part of creating a better future for our community through service learning.
•    By placing an emphasis volunteerism, Vail Resorts employees volunteer to read with children during the annual Read Across America Celebration, while Lodge at Vail staff and guests hosted a book drive to benefit the Youth Foundation’s Magic Bus program.
•    In 2010 the Vail Valley Foundation and Vail Resorts ECHO will launch the second Magic Bus, a program of the Youth Foundation, to double the number of families served by this kindergarten readiness program.

“We are so thankful to Vail Resorts for providing such outstanding support. With Vail Resorts contribution we can focus on enhancing our enrichment opportunities, ensuring that children have a safe and fun place to be during after school hours,” notes Katie Santambrogio, Marketing & Event Director for the Youth Foundation. For more information or to RSVP for the February 6th après ski event at Cucina Rustica, contact at (970) 763-7000.

From the Vail Mountain School News: Baskets for Bucks

2010-02-03T13:33:00.000-08:00

Susie Davis, the executive director of the Youth Foundation, sent her warmest thanks to VMS upper school students and teachers for their work on MLK, Jr. Volunteerism Day. In her message, she said, "Your help for the Magic Bus curriculum, washing windows and projects in the field house, critiquing our fitness activities, and your insights about the plight of the Haitians all reminded us of how lucky we are to have your assistance and participation."

Susie challenged the group of volunteers to shoot basketball hoops to raise funds for Haitian relief. She said she would match each hoop with $1 and send the money to organizations of the students' choice. Thanks to our students' b-ball skills and Susie's generosity, $312 has been donated to Doctors Without Borders, and another $312 gift has been made in honor of VMS students to local, Tessa Kirchner, who is going to Haiti with her father, Dr. Paul Milloy, to work at the Hospital Albert Schwietzer just north of Port-au-Prince (http://hashaiti.org/). This hospital has been helping the poor of this area for over 50 years, but is currently over-run with all the injuries from the earthquakes. They will be carrying supplies directly to the people who need this help.

Susie added, "I’ll remember to ask about your personal interests before I make such a pledge in the future – Willy Fair made 157 baskets alone!" Congratulations to the students who helped raise these funds, and thanks to Susie and the Youth Foundation for the incredible opportunity.

2009-12-30T07:46:00.000-08:00

Girls Only Group at Berry Creek Middle School

Sixth graders from the Girls Only Group at Berry Creek Middle School shared their program high points at their end of session celebration. The program is one of The Youth Foundation’s After School Enrichment activities. Alejandra and Marisol loved the self defense classes. “I have a lot of weapons from shoes, to nails, to keys to protect myself. My voice is the strongest way I can show my strength and personal power,” described Marisol in a clear, strong tone.

Arlene liked planting flowers that represented the patience needed to grow friendships. When she showed her older sister, who is the firstborn in the family what she learned in the Martial Arts class, she thought it was really funny to see Arlene so strong!

Briceida enjoyed the relaxation of yoga, learning how to protect herself, and knowing the importance of liking herself. Girls that before this program were merely acquaintances are now Briceida’s friends.

Steffania and Karina both found the yoga to be relaxing and peaceful. Steffania especially liked the Dove video identifying that . . . “the beauty that is inside us matters the most. Before I was just Alex’s sister, now girls know me by my name, Steffania. You can make friends that stay your friends your entire life.”

Abigail liked all of the activities in the girls program, but her favorite part of the after school programs is soccer with Coach Lee.

Marbeth thought the stretching in yoga was especially relaxing. She related the difference from elementary to middle school –taking seven classes in one day and getting to know some new girls has opened a new world for her.

Dayanna described several tokens that she carries with her as a reminder of many messages learned in the Girls Only Group: a band-aid to symbolize healing any problem with time and care, a toothpick to remember to “pick” good choices and pick positive solutions, glue to stick together when times are tough, and a rubber band as a reminder to stay flexible in friendships.

Student recommendations to improve the program? Dayanna and Alejandra think the program should run the entire school year. Thank you to Ms. Narda, Ms. Nita, Ms. Aliria and the great Interns for contributing to the strength and smarts of BCMS girls. The seventh grade girls will start their eight week Girls Only program in January.

Gypsum Elementary goes swimming

2009-12-05T17:34:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday Lee Jones asked if I was busy. Without really thinking I quickly said "Just desk work, why?' Lee responded, "We need one more person to help take the Gypsum Elementary kids to the Rec Center for swimming." I agreed to do it, not having a clue what I was in for. Don't get me wrong, I work for The Youth Foundation and it's not because I don't like children, I love them, but 30 4th and 5th grade girls at one time was a harsh reality: I raised 3 boys. Walking over to the center from school was fun. I remember several years ago when The Youth Foundation and volunteers built the path...by the way, it needs some repairs. The real awakening was herding the girls into the locker room for changing into swim suits. Backpacks, parkas, hats, shoes, towels, clothes, e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e. Somehow they all managed to collect their own belongings, packing them off to the "Birthday room" where they promptly re-scattered everything on the floor. But, now the fun began. Watching the boys and girls jump into the lazy river, swim around, daring each other to slide or jump was worth it all. I love to photograph the fun our Youth Foundation kids have and, expecting some good photo-ops, I remembered to bring my camera. 45 minutes later the whistle blew and the chaos started all over again. This time I'd have to say it was at least twice as bad, especially since Deb Dutmer, who's done this before, had to leave early, posting me all alone to referee. Not only were all the girls trying to share 4 showers and hairdryers at once but now the floor was covered in sopping wet towels and bathing suits. I don't know if it was quite as hectic in the boys locker room but the pitch level had to be something a bit more tolerable.

I'd comment on getting everyone to the buses, cars and back to school but I'll leave that logistical nightmare up to Lee.

And one more thing for Lee, next time, "I'm busy." - Susan Milhoan, Director of Development

Youth Foundation Open House

2009-11-23T13:52:00.001-08:00

Respect

2009-11-21T08:12:00.001-08:00

A positive, productive, respectful and effective working relationship is emerging between Ms. Hofsess, Mrs. Blevins, Karen and me. Ms. Hofsess has been teaching about plant structure and function for the past couple of weeks. One day she had some plant leaves and stems out for kids to examine with magnifying lenses. They had read about and observed pictures of cell structures and had done a good job of memorizing plant parts and what they do. I volunteered that if we had a microscope I could help students prepare some slides that would allow them to see the structures they had been learning about. The school had some microscopes, as it turned out. Miss Hofsess has a few students who have learning disabilities that make reading and writing very challenging for them. She noticed that two of them in particular had done a very good job in the hands on “lab” work of examining plants. She suggested to me that maybe these two could be first to work with the microscopes and share their findings with the class. I met with the two students, a boy and a girl, and asked them some questions about what they had been learning. They were able to verbally explain most of the concepts in fairly significant detail. I asked them if they thought all parts of the leaf would look the same under the microscope. We talked about the top side being kind of shiny and the bottom side being kind of dull and more textured. We decided to make two slides, one of the top layer of the leaf and one of the bottom. The result was like seeing two beautiful butterflies emerging from a cocoon. With great dexterity the girl prepared her slide gently scraping away the lower layers of the leaf so that the cells of the upper surface were exposed and clearly visible under the microscope. The boy did the same thing exposing the lower layer instead. Each slide was dramatically different and the two students were very excited about what they saw and proud of their efforts. We talked about the differences and they began to verbally relate what they had seen to what they had been learning in class. Suddenly, the boy, who rarely writes anything, produced a piece of paper and started asking me questions in order to verify what he saw under the microscope. He began to write, asking me how to correctly spell words like chloroplasts and stomata. He prepared, essentially, an outline that he could use as a reference. Miss Hofsess sent the rest of the students in small groups to see what the boy and girl had prepared. For each small group the boy and girl explained what they had done, what was being viewed, why the slides were different, and cited evidence that verified that the structures being viewed functioned as taught in the class. The pride on these two students’ faces was heartwarming. The respect that the other students afforded them provided a validation that they may never have experienced in school before. There is no doubt in my mind that those two students absolutely know about plant structures and functions and can explain the process of photosynthesis in fairly technical terms. Much more importantly, they gained the respect of their classmates, not to mention a considerable amount of self-esteem. Had Miss Hofsess not had someone to help her with class that day, I am sure that the two “star” students would not have been able to achieve what they did in our team environment. There were lots of high fives between the two students, Miss Hofsess and myself.

Chalk Talk by Dave Kolquist, Director of The First Tee Program in Eagle County

2009-11-11T09:44:00.000-08:00

The thing that I love most about my job as director of The Youth Foundation’s First Tee of Eagle County is the time I directly spend with the kids we serve. While First Tee’s portion of The Youth Foundation’s programming is most visible in the summer we are very active during the school year as well. We have a long standing relationship with schools, working with teachers to reinforce values and academic concepts taught in school through our club making classes. In fact, all of The Youth Foundation’s after school programs are dedicated to helping students acquire academic, social and physical skills that will enable them to be positive contributors. Sandra Smyser, Superintendent of Eagle County Schools, has clearly stated that the major goal for this year is to have all students reading at grade level or better. In addition, she has placed a very high level of importance on the school district’s relationship with The Youth Foundation in achieving this goal. As a lifelong educator I am ecstatic and privileged to be able to work toward this goal with the staff and students at Gypsum Elementary School.

When I walk into GES I can feel a passion and sense of pride that students and staff have for their school. Students walking through the halls readily acknowledge visitors with a smile and friendly greeting. Staff and students are enthusiastic, respectful, and inclusive. I can feel the flow of positive energy. It is a great environment for learning and I am witness to wonderful examples of it each time I am there. My involvement is two-fold: as a tutor in science and writing skills and as The Youth Foundation liaison with the after school literacy program.

Six schools in the district operate Youth Foundation funded/sponsored after school programs. Students participating in these programs receive additional academic assistance from teachers at their schools. In addition to funding teacher salaries, The Youth Foundation provides complementary recreational and enrichment activities for after school participants.
I was asked to be The Youth Foundation’s liaison with Gypsum Elementary School’s after school program. I met with Mitch Forsberg, the principal to see what his objectives for the program were. I also informed him that I had been a science teacher for thirty years prior to becoming a director in The First Tee network, and would be happy to assist with student achievement in any way I might be of help. I also mentioned that my wife, Karen, also an educator, was interested in helping as well. After talking with his staff Mitch told me that my offer of assistance was enthusiastically received by his faculty and him. I was asked if I would be able to help with science classes. Karen and I were also asked to help in editing and improving writing skills for fifth grade students. We are assisting Carol Blevins and Lisa Hofsess in language arts and science respectively. Both of these teachers do an outstanding job in their classrooms. They are extremely competent in teaching subject matter, but it is especially impressive to witness, first-hand, how much emphasis is also placed on student’s learning values in conjunction with their academic course work. Students are taught the importance of values such as respect, courtesy, responsibility, confidence, and compassion. The importance of incorporating and exhibiting these values in daily life is emphasized repeatedly and student attitudes and behavior indicate that the values taught are being adopted. That these lessons have been taught effectively is evidenced the many acts of courtesy, kindness and consideration displayed by virtually every student every day.
Karen and I both relish the experience we are having. The teachers are excellent but clearly value our assistance. They have so many expectations placed on them, so many things to teach and so many students who need assistance. It is impossible for any teacher, in my estimation to accomplish all that these teachers work so hard to accomplish. It is so rewarding and such an honor to be able to provide some support and assistance to them.
There are several observations that Karen and I have made since we became involved at Gypsum:
• The teachers are dedicated, talented, and knowledgeable
• A strong emphasis is placed on the development and use of life skills such as courtesy, confidence, respect and responsibility by their students
• There is a pervading atmosphere of positive energy among staff and students at GES
• Students want to learn
• Students need validation
• Teachers are unable to give every student the time and attention they need
• Volunteers can help improve student performance by providing extra time and attention
• Teachers stress the importance of values