News

We are always finding ways to build the capacity and the leadership qualities of our youth and one way this was done was through an intensive 11-week program. In collaboration with Black Creek Community Health Centre, we sent 10 youth every week to Black Creek Community Health Care Centre in Yorkgate mall where they got the opportunity to learn more about themselves and what it truly takes to be a leader. The youth not only got the chance to do various activities to understand their strengths and weaknesses, but also got the chance to cook healthy meals and part take in a few dance sessions as well! Our youth enjoyed this program and some have applied what they have learned to their mentor roles and everyday life!

On a Saturday night every year in February, SBL takes a bus load of youth down to the Natrel Rink for the 1Love T.O. ice-skating party! For many of our youth, this was their first time trying ice-skating or even being at the Natrel Rink, and for others that have been part of our annual ice-skating trip they have become pros on the ice! The ice-skating party allows us to combine food, fun and relationship-building with a beautiful view of the Toronto Harbourfront!

During our after-school program in collaboration with Art Gallery of York University (AGYU), we feature a guest speaker to discuss their journey and path to success. This month’s guest speaker was Whitney French, who is the founder and coordinator of Writing While Black, an initiative that aims to unite and develop a community of Black writers. Whitney French came by the SBL After-School Program on October 3^rd to share with our youth her life experiences and to share some of her work! The discussion also focussed on the victories and challenges of being a Black writer in Canada. One of the participants from the workshop Margaret Sam, said that what resonated with her from the workshop is that “Despite what people say about you, you can still rise”. The workshop allowed our youth to not only support each other artistically via writing, but to also empower each other!

Working closely with our team of mentors to build the capacity has always been a priority each year. We held a workshop that allows our youth to learn more about how the work they do is impacting the community. We partnered with Student’s Commission who successfully delivered a session on creating and delivering evaluations. Youth were engaged on different techniques and styles of how we evaluate a program. Learning what goes on behind the scenes can build capacity and provide more insight for our Mentors to see how their work is impacting SBL.

Our youth space is the core meeting space for our young people, which connects them to opportunities across the city. During the school year we engage on monthly trips promoting various physical activities. This month featured a trip to Skyzone, where students had the opportunity to play trampoline dodgeball, master dunks, and race across foam pits. Check out a recap of our trip: CLICK HERE

Our summer program was a huge success and through our summer report you will soon be updated with all the amazing highlights of our 2016 Summer Program. Our central themes were resiliency, strength & passion.

2016-summer-report

Our graduation embodied the recurring theme throughout the summer: Resilience. Youth, staff, teachers, and everyone involved in the success of the program have been resilient in ensuring a positive experience for all. Our graduation held in the Moot Court room at Osgoode Hall Law School was packed full with parents, friends, and various other stakeholders in our community. The night was also filled with performances and celebrations of our achievements, which included the credits that students receive at the end of our program. A Video recap is available and can be seen on our YouTube Channel.

Career Day is always an important part of our Summer Program and this year was no different! Our 2016 Summer Program was diverse and filled with career panelists from a wide variety of backgrounds – some of which included: journalism, photography, hair styling, real estate, education, aviation, nursing and business. In addition, for the first time ever we had a keynote speaker, Mike George shared his experiences as an agent with Excel Sports Management! Our panelists shared their stories, life experiences, wisdom and unique pathways to success with our mentees, volunteers and mentors and for that we are truly grateful.

In the classrooms, SBL youth got the opportunity to connect with the panelists on a more intimate and personal level by asking them questions about the highs and lows they had to encounter on their journeys to success. At the end of the experience, the youth were able to learn more about possible career choices and received more information about what steps are needed in high school and in post-secondary to achieve their career goals.

We would like to give a very special thank you to the following speakers: Ginella Massa, Yasim Osman, Ellis Tango, Charles Ayodele, Jamie Sutherland, Jeffrey Roberts, Liban Abkor, Michelle Smith, Tasha Chin and Mike George for their time and the wisdom that was shared to the SBL youth.

An annual tradition of our SBL summer program is having a Parent Night, of which we had over 50 parents and their families attending on July 14 2016! Parent night is a great way for SBL staff, SBL mentors, and teachers to connect with parents about their child’s progress in the summer program. In addition, parents are divided into groups and are able to go to different stations to learn more about community perspectives, how to support students with Individualized Education Plans (I.E.P.S), parent engagement, course selection and streaming/destreaming.

Parents also get to learn more about the academic and social supports that SBL provides during the school day and the SBL after-school program at Westview! After the parent night presentations were finished and conversations were had, many parents still wanted to connect with SBL staff to ensure that their child is still connected with the program even if they are not attending Westview C.S.S.!

We look forward to summer for its sun filled days, but most of all the smiling new faces that fill the halls of Osgoode Hall Law School. On the first day the afternoon was planned by mentor alumni and recreational staff Winston Luc. It was packed with performances ranging from Spoken Word, Dance, a Live DJ showcasing artists from across the city. There were also impromptu performances by mentees and mentors. We want to send a big shoutout to Winston for MCing and sharing some incredibly personal and inspirational stories with our young people.