Tuesday, September 22, 2009

JLU and City Year ... a match made in heaven!

JUST LIKE YOU is in LOVE with an organization called City Year.

Across the States, City Year recruits a group of young people, called "corps members", for a year of full-time service. These City Year corps members serve as tutors, mentors and role models to help students stay on track – and get back on track – to graduate.



The City Year model for creating impact is based on THREE (3) tenets that align directly with JLU's vision:

School-Based Service
- "Whole School, Whole Child"
- JUST LIKE YOU has created a innovative afterschool program to supplement in-the-classroom learning with a curriculum that promotes physical activity, health and wellness and cultural awareness, tolerance and sensitivity. These are very important aspects of a child's personal development that need to be addressed to create a "Whole Child".

Community Transformation
- Engaging the community to create, maximize and sustain visible impact.
- JUST LIKE YOU plans community events called "Global Playground" events where kids get to showcase what they've learned about the world by playing the various games in front of invited parents, educators, and community leaders. The community will then recognize the importance of thinking globally

Youth Leadership
- City Year's Young Heroes and City Heroes programs encourage young students to be active in their communities
- JUST LIKE YOU is building a Young Diplomats programs designed to provide a space for young people curious about the world to brainstorm ways they can make a difference, even at a young age.

JUST LIKE YOU and CITY YEAR are now working together to train corps members and have the JLU curriculum implemeneted in various City Year afterschool programs across the country, starting in LA. Exciting news!!


We are very lucky to be partnered with such an amazing organization. :-)



City Year: Give A Year. Change The World.
JUST LIKE YOU: Building the Next Generation of Global Citizens.

JLU expands to Austin, Texas!!!

Milena Batanova and a group of students from UT Austin make up Team JLU - Austin.
They started JLU programming at Denton Elementary school in Asutin this past Friday, teaching Latin American games ..

MEET THE TEAM!





They're a crazy bunch but the kids seem to like them! :-)






Look out for JLU launching in the following cities in the next few months:
Boston, DC, SF, Irvine, Minneapolis.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

JUST LIKE YOU's first GLOBAL PLAYGROUND event



JUST LIKE YOU had it's first ever GLOBAL PLAYGROUND event on Saturday, Sept 12th, 2009.
It was held at the Boys & Girls Club of San Fernando Valley in Pacoima, CA and it was a HUGE success!

Recap:
-- We had 25 student volunteers from Pepperdine participate as part of Step Forward day.
-- Evian Water provided refreshments for all attendees.
-- A live Mariachi band performed during the event.
-- Parents & Community members took off their shoes and joined the fun!
-- We had over 60 attendees in total.

Here's a video with some highlights from the event ...