ANNUAL REPORT 2014-2015

ANNUAL REPORT 2014-2015

MISSION AND VISION MISSION STATEMENT The mission of Long Beach BLAST is to improve success for at-risk students through collaboration and innovative approaches to mentoring and learning. VISION STATEMENT Every student: inspired to succeed academically and personally. Page 1

2014-2015 Annual Report From the Board President As Long Beach BLAST s Board President, I couldn t be more excited to continue to work with such a talented group of professionals and volunteers. From the incredibly talented and hard-working office staff and program leadership, to our energetic and inspiring college mentors, BLAST has been a wonderful place to call home. This year, BLAST matched its 8,000 th college mentor since its inception in 2000. Perhaps more importantly, it provided services to its 12,000 th at-risk student in Long Beach. 2015-2016 promises to be a banner year for the program. We re launching a new evaluation program that will underscore the important work we do in the community. This will not only help us to improve our outcomes, but will help us as we continue our robust grant program, which accounts for more than 50% of our funding. Thank you to our board members, donors, and program partners for all you do to make this work possible. Phil Bond Board President Long Beach BLAST Page 2

Get AMPed!! Academic Mentoring Program The Academic Mentoring Program (AMP) matches college students with youth, and provides one on one support for a child s academics, future thinking, and character development. Each year, more than 500 local college student volunteers serve as mentors to at risk youth in Long Beach. 2014-15 Program Highlights: Served 650 students across 18 program partner sites 525 college student volunteers mentored students in grades K-12 10,406 service hours provided by our college student 99% youth reported that their academic mentor listened to them, understood them, and/or could trust their mentor. 100% of youth served by a BLAST academic mentor reported they plan to graduate from high school. 95% of youth reported that they believe their academic mentor helped them in reading, writing, or math. AMP matched its 8,000 th college student mentor and provided services to its 12,000 th student this year! Page 3

I absolutely love BLAST! Through my mentoring experiences thus far, I have come to an understanding how important it is to engage with youth and inspire them to reach their full potential. Samantha and I have developed a friendship and I genuinely care about her and want the best for her in her future school years. Jessica Martinez, BLAST Academic Mentor Jessica Martinez (pictured left), a Long Beach City College student majoring in child development, has been a BLAST academic mentor since spring 2014. Jessica and her mentee, Samantha (also pictured left), have developed a friendship that continues to flourish. Jessica kept their mentoring sessions structured and offered Samantha support and motivation when completing school work. Together they worked on math problems, practiced spelling, read, and completed journal entries. Jessica s open communication and active listening skills have allowed her to understand the adversities that Samantha and other youth face on a regular basis. Jessica and Samantha both want to teach and care for children in their future. Samantha aspires to be a school teacher and Jessica plans to open and operate her own daycare in the future. Page 4

Building Bridges, Reaching Dreams Bridge to Success Program The Bridge to Success Program (B2S) assists high school students enrolled in a credit recovery program to create a positive vision for their future toward higher education and/or a career. The program utilizes team leaders, guest speakers, and field trips to encourage and inspire students to set and achieve goals. 2014-15 Program Highlights: 160+ financial aid applications completed 16 guest speakers presented to students 8 field trips to local colleges and businesses 91% of B2S students reported they will go to college. 99% of the 2015 graduating class at Reid High School were served by this program. The number of students who wrote a resume increased by 51.42%. 324 high school students served at Reid and Beach High School! Page 5

What I loved most about BLAST is that the team leaders are determined to help students succeed and show them the right path to success. They are not quitters, especially Ms. Karena. No matter what, she was always there to help me and guide me. Martin A., Bridge to Success Student Similar to many of our students, Anthony (pictured left) was credit deficient and had not passed his CAHSEE tests. Anthony was very hesitant to be part of Bridge and vocally expressed his desire to drop out of high school to find a part time job. Anthony never saw himself as a college student. One day our team leader, Karina (also pictured left), asked him Do you know what you re going to do after graduating high school? He was stumped. He expressed that he had never officially thought about his future plans because he did not think he would graduate high school. Karina offered him a spot in the Bridge program and they both agreed to work on CAHSEE prep for the remainder of the semester, and he passed! Karina continued to mentor him throughout the remainder of the school year. They worked on his resume, his college and financial aid applications and assessment testing. On June 18 th, Anthony graduated from Beach High School as an honor student. Page 6

Our Funds, Our Future Financials Grant funding accounts for over 50% of BLAST s revenue Program expenses account for over 75% of all costs BLAST has started the process of reviewing our technology costs to identify potential savings to the organization Page 7

2014-2015 Donors Exceeding $2,500 Angels Baseball Foundation Employees Community Fund of Boeing CA City of Long Beach Workforce Investment Act Deluxe Corporation Foundation Steve & Lori Doty Freeman E. Fairfield Foundation John Fielder & Donita Van Horik Keesal, Young, & Logan Long Beach Community Foundation Lumina Foundation Pacific Life Foundation Park Bixby Tower John W. Porter Trust Secure Transportation Staples Foundation 2 Million & Change Initiative Waste Management Windes, Inc. Exceeding $10,000 Communities Advocating for Resident Empowerment (C.A.R.E.) Dwight Stuart Youth Fund The Green Foundation Josephine S. Gumbiner Foundation Long Beach Unified School District The Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation The Earl B. and Loraine H. Miller Foundation Rudolph J. and Daphne A. Munzer Foundation NRG Energy The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation Christie Peck Ruth Peck Will J. Reid Foundation Southern California Edison Page 8

Team Work Board of Directors and Staff Officers Phil Bond, President Mark Taylor, Vice President Scott Dionne, Treasurer Lori Doty, Secretary Members Holly Carpenter John Fielder Mark Garlington, DDS Marquita Grenot Scheyer Ph.D. Chief Robert Luna Jon Meyer Susan Rivard Bobbi Villalobos, Ed.D. Catherine Walsh Honorary Members Nancy Foster Eloy Oakley Sheriff Jim McDonnell Chris Steinhauser Founder Jean Egan Staff Noly Guardamondo Executive Director Leslie Keeney Program Manager Rachel Baker Program Director Danyelle Caruthers Nansi Martinez Kehau Fujikami Associate Director Hailey Barker Volunteer Program Coordinator Karena Agis Program Supervisor Laura Hernandez Arielle Neal Yesenia Ramirez Administrative Assistant Lucero Chairez Volunteer Program Coordinator Christina Boontanond Janine Lorenzo Christian Rodriguez Page 9

THANK YOU Thank you for making all of this possible this year! We couldn t do it without your support. Page 10