Category Archives: Youth

Soroptimist  announces 85th Anniversary & Scholarship Awards Event

Soroptimist International (SI) of Ventura, a local service club for business and professional women with the goal of making a difference in the lives of women and girls, is celebrating its 85th year of serving the community of Ventura. The celebration will be held in conjunction with its annual scholarship awards.

April 16, from 11:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. at the Pierpont Inn, 550 Sanjon Road
Cost: $30 per person

Soroptimist raise funds throughout the year for scholarship awards and to provide additional grants to local community organizations serving women and girls.

Ticket may be purchased online at www.soroptimistventura.eventbrite.com .

Ventura County – 15 More Beds Needed for Summer Program

Volunteer families are asked to host international exchange students, ages 14-17, who are scheduled to arrive in the U.S. in June/July for a four-week program. Little kids, big kids, no kids…our host families come in all shapes and sizes and include single persons and senior citizens, as well as married couples who are with or without children. Host families are asked to provide the student with room and board, transportation to and from the school site, as well as a loving family environment. Students are fully insured, proficient in English and come with their own spending money to cover personal expenses.

This is a wonderful opportunity for you and your family to learn about other countries and cultures without ever leaving your home. When you volunteer to host an international exchange student, your world comes alive for a young person from another country. By opening your door, you open a student’s eyes to the real America: real people, real experiences, and real life. At the same time, your generosity of spirit creates a positive view of the United States that crosses oceans—and lasts a lifetime.

What You Offer: You! Wonder if you have what it takes? All you need to do is be yourself. Time and again, our exchange students tell us that what they remember most are the little things. Family dinners, weekend outings, even nights around the television become special as you watch an international student absorb American culture moment-by- moment. Just by opening your home, you have the power to make everyday extraordinary for you, your family, and a student from abroad. To host your own student contact Heather at 805.766.0861 or [email protected].

Become a Junior Ranger at Channel Islands National Park

In celebration of the National Park Service Centennial, Channel Islands National Park is hosting a special Junior Ranger event on Saturday, April 16, from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, at the park visitor center in the Ventura Harbor.

Children will have the opportunity to participate in four different Junior Ranger programs at the event, allowing them to earn badges as a Channel Islands National Park Junior Ranger, an Underwater Explorer, a Centennial Junior Ranger, or a Junior Paleontologist.

Local fifth grader Tigran Nahabedian will assist children who visit the Junior Ranger station in earning their badges. Nahabedian has earned 57 junior ranger badges at other national park sites across the country.

The event will also feature family-friendly activities that children of all ages can participate in, including fish prints, buttons, shark hats, and more. There will be two tidepool programs, at 11:00 am and 3:00 pm, and a ranger talk at 1:00 pm, about the adaptations of seals and sea lions.

Information about the national initiative, Every Kid in a Park, which invites all fourth graders to visit their public lands and waters for free, will also be available for parents and children.

This Junior Ranger Day event takes place just one week before a special Earth Day Beach Clean-up, hosted by Channel Islands National Park, on April 23. The event will be at the park visitor center in the Ventura Harbor, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. All ages are welcome.

The National Park Service Centennial honors 100 years of sharing America’s special places and helping Americans make meaningful connections to nature, history and culture. To learn more about Channel Islands National Park’s centennial efforts, visit www.nps.gov/chis.

To learn more about Channel Islands National Park’s Junior Ranger programs visit:

http://www.nps.gov/chis/forkids/beajuniorranger.htm

E. P. Foster STEM Academy recorded A Million Acts of Kindness

The E. P. Foster STEM Academy recorded A Million Acts of Kindness in honor of the 150th birthday of the city of Ventura. Each classroom had their own red heart, with papers to fill the heart with acts of kindness between January 19th and February 19th. The month-long event started with PeaceMakers’ week in January and ended with an assembly in the school gymnasium on February 19th.

Many were involved in all of this including: counselor Marie Alviz, all of the E. P. Foster students, the teachers, choir, band and of course the principal Carlos Covarrubias.

The kindness assembly was about the school as a whole and how they have accomplished kindness with their class.

Vista Real Charter High School

Ventura Chamber President and CEO Stephanie Caldwell holds the ribbon while Councilwoman Cheryl Heitmann cuts it at open house.

By Sheri Long-Vista Real Community Liaison

Although Vista Real’s downtown Ventura location opened in July, we officially celebrated with an Open House and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony on Thursday, March 10th. Students, staff, and community members were all invited to tour our facility, meet with school and student leadership and enjoy some good food and good fun with the local Scratch food truck and Q104.7 live on location!

Vista Real is a free, independent study high school diploma program, currently serving approximately 1,000 students in the Ventura County Region and throughout our six school resource centers located in Ventura, Camarillo, Simi Valley, Oxnard and Santa Paula. Students that were previously at risk of dropping out, find a whole new way of learning at Vista Real with one on one teaching, on site computer labs and readily available, free tutoring from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Vista Real staff and teachers work diligently with students to create a positive learning environment where in students are successful each and every day.

Students have stated that our schools allow for “flexibility,” they assist with keeping students “on track” and “focus on students’ individual needs giving everyone the right amount of attention.” Students ages 14-19 may enroll at any Vista Real location. We also accept those youth ages 20-23, who have aged out of a comprehensive high school and are still interested in obtaining their high school diploma.

These opportunity youth are given a second chance at success while placed in a workforce program with the ability to obtain their high school diploma and job skills at the same time. Vista Real strives to create strong community ties, positive relations with service organizations, and course offerings in varying Career Technical Education fields.

Upon graduation, we work with our students to place them in areas of interest for jobs, internships or offer personal assistance with college applications and financial aid. In the words of one Vista Real student, “It’s an amazing place to be, and an amazing place to learn.” For more information please visit us at VRCH.org or call (877) 360-LEARN.

 

Ventura Family YMCA has many different classes and sports offerings

Participation in YMCA sports provides a fun learning experience.
Participation in YMCA sports provides a fun learning experience.

Registration is now open for youth of all ages to participate in the Ventura Family YMCA’s Spring II Session. This spring the Ventura Family YMCA has many different classes and sports offerings for their local youth including, swimming, ballet, baseball, football, tennis, basketball, and many other sports.

This is a great way to give children an introduction to a new sport or help them improve their skills in a sport that they already play.

Participation in YMCA sports provides a fun learning experience for all players regardless of their ability. Kids learn the basics of the sport, develop skills and sportsmanship, get playing time and enjoy an encouraging environment.

The Y’s Youth Programs Director recalls his past experiences as a child athlete helping shape who he is today.  Vinny Savelich  stated “When I think back on my time playing sports as a kid, I see how my teammates and coaches shaped me and helped establish my self-confidence and identity. These experiences really gave me the right direction to succeed in life, which is something that makes me feel really good because I can give back this type of help to our Y kids.”

The Y emphasizes the success and improvement of each team member rather than winning. The leagues offer competition to challenge every child’s ability and focus on fair play and teamwork.

Registrations close before the beginning of the Y’s Spring II Session, which runs from April 11, 2016-June 4, 2016.

To learn more and to register for summer programs and camps, visit ciymca.org/ventura, in-person at the Ventura Family YMCA, 3760 Telegraph Rd. or 642.2131.

 

 

Student musicians impressed the judges with their musical skills and maturity

 

Five finalists playing as a band at VMF jazz competition after the judging.

Ventura Music Festival held their 10th annual Student Jazz Competition at the Wyndham Garden Ventura Pierpont Inn filling the Ventura coastal air with groove and swing.

The five finalists (many talented students entered the competition) gathered and showed off their best Jazz solos in front of an eager audience and judges waiting to hear these young emerging musicians, from those who hope to join the best bassists in the world to those readying for classical careers. The stakes were not only bragging rights, but also cash prizes of $500, $250 and $100 for 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively. The contestants ranged in age from 14 to 18 years old and played a variety of musical instruments.

Each musician was backed up by the local band Coda, named after a term used in music primarily to designate a passage that brings a piece to an end, featuring Bevan Manson, Tom Etchart and Charles Levin. Charles is also a former Board Member of the Ventura Music Festival.

The judge’s decision was first place going to Blake Kasting, a guitarist and senior from Ventura High School. Second place went to trombone player Max Fourmy a high school senior from Santa Barbara’s Alta Vista High. Third place went to Henry Urschel an alto sax freshman attending Dos Pueblos High in Santa Barbara. Honorable mentions went to Chris Seagraves, a Junior from Moorpark High School and Matthew Michalek a sophomore from Thousand Oaks High School.

The Ventura Music Festival presents classical, jazz, popular music and family concerts in a variety of venues in Ventura, and educational outreach programs. This year the music festival has moved from April to July. Founded in 1994, the Ventura Music Festival is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. VenturaMusicFestival.org.

Ventura schools held mock city council meetings

To help celebrate Ventura’s 150th anniversary students from Lincoln Elementary and De Anza Academy of Technology and the Arts schools held mock city council meetings on March 11 at city hall. It was nice to have young city council members with fresh ideas. They were able to make 2 major decisions in less than an hour (maybe because they had to be in bed before midnight).