“I made a whole lot of new friends. I also met new teachers and made new relationships with people I didn't think I would ever talk to. I learned how to socialize and interact with people and feel more comfortable around people.”
Middle School Summer Program
Middle School had an amazing summer! Some highlights include trips to Geeks Mania, Boulders Climbing Gym, and Blue Mounds State Park. Garden Fit participants got to learn about beekeeping and caring for chickens. Some of our Girls Inc participants got to go camping for two nights at Lake Farm Park. We've been going on bike rides, going fishing, visiting the library through the MPL Dreambus, and getting ice-cream down the street at Chocolate Shoppe.
We also had a visit from CrossFit professional athlete Elijah Muhammed, who talked to our youth about his sport, how he trains, and the self-discipline it takes to accomplish your goals. He even led the youth through some training drills and lifting routines.
Youth will celebrate the end of summer together with a day of grilling-out and pontoon boat rides on Lake Mendota.
We hope to see many of our youth again in our fall afterschool program!
High School Seed To Table Summer Program
High School TEENworks, Seed to Table, and 9 on Time Summer Participants worked hard and played hard!
- 66 students received at least .5 credit of MMSD credit!
- 57 students earned a nationally recognized employment certification! (either Serve-Safe or NAYS)
- 28 high school freshman are participating in two weeks of additional bridging support and peer
networking! - In addition to our regular summer program, 39 Teens were employed around the center supporting
evaluation, youth programs, catering, and the food pantry!
Students challenged themselves to try new things and celebrated their hard work with an end of the summer field trip to Mt Olympus.
Student Reflections On Their Summer Experience
"No matter where I'm working while I'm at Goodman, I try my best to do what I can and learn as much as possible. I'm glad and proud of the things I have done so far."
"My self-set goal for work is to do my best at all times, have fun, and do what is needed to me. I have grown since I started working here, I feel more like myself now."
"I made a whole lot of new friends. I also met new teachers and made new relationships with people I didn't think I would ever talk to. I learned how to socialize and interact with people and feel more comfortable around people."
"My accomplishment was giving my best effort in all of my work. This can be hard because I don't like some of the activities that we do. I overcame this by thinking about how all of this is for a reason."