President’s
Message:

Finding Balance in Uncertain Times
Stu Semigran

Entering into this new year with so much in flux, with uncertainties and challenges being thrust upon us each day, how can we find a sense of peace and stability? Our children need us now more than ever, but we may feel that we are floundering or ill equipped. Can we find ourselves to be a steadying force during these whirlwind times?

Perhaps the very first step is taking care of ourselves: when we take care of ourselves, we can help take care of others. As we support our own emotional and mental health and resilience, we can then be more available to truly be there for others.

As Arianna Huffington recently wrote in her blog, Resilience+ Is My Word of the Year, “… just as boosters are essential for our physical immunity, a daily process of strengthening our resilience is essential for our emotional and mental immunity.”

As we commit to our self-care and social-emotional health, this naturally influences our resilience, our relationships with ourself and with others, and guides our life decisions. Our teaching and parenting become more than just a collection of lectures, lesson plans, or activities. It becomes a way of teaching... a way of parenting… a way of being... a way of living. As authentic role models, we then can deeply assist our children and our students in their learning to navigate and strengthen their positive emotional and mental health. Our attention to our self-care is at the core.

EduCare Foundation teaches “Eight Skills for Heartset® Education,” tools for self-care through self-awareness, mindfulness, self-forgiveness, and empathetic listening. When these become our personal baseline, then we can create a kind and compassionate climate at school and at home that impacts, sustains, and elevates our children. As we develop a deeper positive regard (honoring and caring) for ourselves, then we can have a mindset and a heartset that really sees the best in our children and their aspirations. We can see the possibilities of their bright future, at times when they don't even see it for themselves. From our growth Heartset, we are compassionate sparks that support and lift both our young people and ourselves.

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News from the Field: ACE Programs

2021 in Review

During July of 2021, we continued to make ACE Heartbeats (created in response to the pandemic as a way to introduce EduCare’s Eight Heartset® Skills in an interactive online setting) available.

And in the fall semester, after more than a year of online-only programs, ACE again offered in-person workshops in September 2021. What a joy to be able to see students and teachers in real life!

Here is an overview of ACE during 2021 (both virtual and in-person):

ACE Programs

ACE Heartbeats

• 6 Virtual Sessions, reaching 120 students at one high school

• 70 in-person workshops, reaching 455 students at 7 elementary schools and 3 high schools

ACE Programs (3-day)

• 14 Programs, reaching 1,426 Students at 8 high schools and 2 middle schools

ACE Workshops (1-day)

• 24 Workshops, reaching 2,088 students at 14 high schools

ACE/Heartset Professional Development

• 22 Workshops, reaching over 500 teachers

ACE Initiative

In 2021, ERC released its most recent evaluation of ACE Initiative, our comprehensive, integrated, year-long program of student services, professional development, and parent services that builds ACE principles into school culture. The report notes that several key benchmarks at the focus school (Social Justice Humanitas Academy, Los Angeles Unified School District) improved significantly: GPA, credits earned, and school attendance.

In addition, the report states that “ACE Initiative provided a foundation for students to develop social and emotional skills as well as supporting them academically and in pursuing college goals.”

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Learn more about the ACE Programs here.

Related post: ERC Evaluation

News from the Field: Afterschool Programs

Ramping Up with Safety in Mind

After the holiday break, we returned to all campuses in January, with a full range of afterschool activities. Students are now engaging in academic tutoring, mental health support, dance, fitness, band, theater arts, leadership, and so much more.

All EduCare staff members are taking active precautions to maintain on-campus safety: from PCR testing, to seating charts that maintain social distancing, to providing sanitation stations for each activity, we are following all public health guidelines.

Stay tuned as we begin to highlight Afterschool activities in future issues of the newsletter.

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Learn more about EduCare’s Afterschool Services here.

Spotlight on Staff

Outspoken and passionate about righting injustices during college, she began to work with groups advocating for causes in which she believed. After graduation – and following a stint in culinary school – she discovered her passion for working with youth. One thing led to another, and she joined the EduCare family in 2014.

In 2016, working closely with a student group to develop the activities that would best engage and support youth, she launched the Afterschool Program at Firebaugh High School in Lynwood. Students let her know what’s working and what needs course correction, and provide the very best “marketing” for afterschool programs by getting their peers to jump in.

This year, Magaly has found that as students returned to on-campus learning, their biggest need is for social reconnection, not just with each other, but with teachers and school staff as well. Afterschool activities provide much-needed, shared activities. Cheer & dance is wildly popular, as are theater and fitness. Other popular afterschool activities include academic tutoring and leadership support.

Magaly’s natural outspokenness has led to advocacy for afterschool funding. Particularly focused on funding for afterschool staff – since afterschool programs depend on student connection with staff who engage, encourage, and uplift students – Magaly excels in developing effective talking points when she connects with politicians in Sacramento, and, even more important, their staff.

When Magaly isn’t connecting with students at Firebaugh, or contributing to meetings with EduCare’s Fund Development Committee, or engaging in afterschool advocacy, she is busy raising her very active 4-year-old daughter.

Thank you, Magaly, for your energy, your wisdom, and your smile – and for the profound difference you make in the lives of students every day!

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Special Thanks: Supporters & Partners

We extend an enormous thank you to our individual donors who contributed to our 2021 year-end campaign. Together we secured our full matching fund and raised over $100,000 for youth services. Your donations provide students with heart-centered social-emotional development programs, mentoring, academic enrichment, and so much more. Thank you!

We are also deeply grateful to our 2021 community and foundation partners:

• The Ahmanson Foundation

• Annenberg Foundation

• BSTATE

• California Community Foundation

• Compass Cares Westside Community Fund

• Gary Saltz Foundation

• Great Public Schools Now

• Green Dot Public Schools

• Johnny Carson Foundation

• Los Angeles Unified School District, Beyond the Bell Division

• Lynwood Unified School District

• Omron Delta Tau Data Systems

• Rose Hills Foundation

• Royal Business Bank

• Sherman Oaks Womens Club

• TCIG Pacific Insurance Services

• Travelers Foundation

• Vanguard Charitable

• Vans

• Weingart Foundation

• W.M. Keck Foundation

Your support is enabling us to deepen the scope and scale of services in response to the need in our communities.

Thank you all for joining with us in lifting the lives of our young people!

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