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SPIN Girls Monthly Newsletter | July 2021
Summer is here!
If last weekend's heat wave did anything other than melt the PNW, it reminded us that summer is truly here. And as COVID restrictions are lifting, I hope you all are able to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather!
In this month's newsletter, you'll find a recap of our activities in June and what your students can look forward to in July, plus the schedule for next year. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns. - Nell
MONTHLY RECAP
Capstone Presentation: We celebrated the year with a virtual Capstone filled with many heartfelt speeches and lots of amazing presentations! Thank you to everyone who attended. We hope you enjoyed it! If you'd like to re-watch any of the speeches or presentations, click one of the links below:
RESOURCES
College of the Environment Virtual Visit Days: The College of the Environment is hosting a series of virtual (Zoom) events in July and August for prospective undergrad students, and anyone interested in our programs. Each event will feature 2 faculty, academic advisers and current students and a live Q&A session.
Making Connections STEM Summer Bridge Program: Making Connections Summer Bridge is designed to introduce high school freshmen and sophomores to STEM careers and encourage them to pursue post-secondary education. APPLY HERE..
Tools for Teens: Stress management and Emotional Resilience: Based on the evidenced-based curriculum of Mindful Self Compassion, the Mindful Schools curriculum, and principles of positive psychology; this 8-week experiential program for teens provides practices and tools to manage stress, increase feelings of happiness and well-being, and promote emotional resilience. This program is offered by The Center for Child & Family Well-being and scholarships are available.
Cooling Centers in Seattle: I hope everyone managed okay this past weekend with our record heat! In case it happens again this summer, you can find a map of cooling centers in Seattle if you follow the link above. If you need support finding cooling centers in other cities, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
LOOKING FORWARD
Summer Retreat, July 12-16, 10am-12pm each day. If you signed up for retreat, you should have received an email from me with more information earlier this week. If you plan on attending retreat and have not yet filled out our questionnaire, please do so ASAP.
Here's the schedule for the 2021-22 program year. Add these dates to your calendar so you don't miss any!
September 25th - Orientation / Welcome Back
October 16th - Lab Day #1
November 6th - Field Day #1
December 4th - Field Day #2
January 8th - Lab Day #2
January 29th - Field Day #3
February 12th - Lab Day #3
March 5th - Field Day #4
March 26th - Lab Day #4
April 23rd - Field Day #5
May 14th - Lab Day #5
June 4th - Capstone Presentation
July 11th - 15th - Summer Retreat
FEATURED YDEKC MEMBER - STEM Paths Innovation Network
Check out our feature in the YDEKC newsletter this month!
This month we’re eager to feature STEM Paths Innovation Network (SPIN), who have been members of YDEKC over the last year. They have been stewards in closing the opportunity gap in STEM education to support youth by offering STEM+Arts classes and programs to students in King County. SPIN exposes students to STEM fields and careers they may never have learned otherwise and envisions a world in which every student, family, and community can pursue science, technology, engineering, math, and arts fields.
SPIN offers after-school enrichment programs and will soon be offering a summer program in direct partnership with community organizations and school districts at no cost to families. To learn more or to sign up youth for SPIN programs, use the SPIN Student Interest Form. Since its founding in 2015, SPIN has served over 800 students, has over twenty community and school partners in the county, and is committed to serving students of color. Their work begins in elementary school with enrichment that introduces students to STEM. Through collaboration, mentorship, and capacity building in middle and high school, they add opportunities for youth leadership. Check out their blog and follow them on Instagram and Facebook to see their work in action.
They are currently hiring for several positions including two Program Manager roles — apply today to join their team. If you’re interested in volunteering to support students’ interests in STEM, fill out their Volunteer Interest Form at any time.
And don't forget to join STEM Paths Innovation Network, YDEKC, and SOWA tomorrow for Partnership Quick Connections: Out-of-School-Time, Place-Based Partnership Highlight!
Additionally, watch Shana Beckwith, SPIN’s Director of Curriculum & Instruction, chat with YDEKC and Monica Haugen in their Partnership Quick Connections episode, Out-of-School-Time Place-based Partnership Highlight below!
SPIN Girls Monthly Newsletter | June 2021
Happy Summer!
June is Pride Month! Check out our resources section for some activities for LGBTQ+ youth. June 19th is Juneteenth! Find programming to celebrate with in our resources section below.
In this month's newsletter, you'll find a recap of our activities in May and what your students can look forward to in June. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns. - Nell
MONTHLY RECAP
Lab Day: All cohorts finished up the projects that they've been working on throughout the year and prepared their Capstone Presentations! Students recorded video presentations since the Capstone will be a virtual event. We're excited for you to see their work at the Capstone!
RESOURCES
NAAM — Juneteenth Week 2021: Celebrate Juneteenth with free programming from the Northwest African American Museum.
Youth Events Calendar — Lambert House: Lambert House offers free and virtual activities and resources for LGBTQ+ youth including resources on parenting and supporting youth.
Children and Youth Summer Food Service Program: From June 21 through August 25, 2021, City of Seattle will run its annual Summer Meals Program for youth 18 and younger. Meals from identified partner sites can be picked up by parents for youth who are not present. Some sites might also follow a waiver guideline that lets them hand out more than one day's meals at a time to minimize the number of visits a family must make to the site.
LOOKING FORWARD
Capstone Presentation on June 5th from 10:30AM-12PM. Families are invited and encouraged to come!
Summer Retreat will be held the week of July 12-16
SPIN Girls Monthly Newsletter | May 2021
It's Asian Pacific American Heritage Month!
In light of the rise in violence against the AAPI community since COVID began, it is more important than ever that we take this month to educate ourselves and each other on the history of the AAPI community and to celebrate AAPI heritage. Scroll down to our resources section to find out how!
In this month's newsletter, you'll find a recap of our activities in April and what your students can look forward to in May. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns. - Nell
MONTHLY RECAP
Field Day: Luminous Cohort heard from Renton Technical College about the pros of a technical education and a career in a trade. Stellar & Epic Cohorts learned about how mRNA vaccines work and got to hear from a panel of amazing women from UW Immunology. This was Epic's last Field Day ever!
RESOURCES
11 Moments From Asian American History That You Should Know: Read this article to learn about AAPI history in honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.
Seattle Asian Art Museum is reopening: After being closed for a year due to the pandemic, Seattle Asian Art Museum will reopen to the public May 28. The Museum recently underwent a major renovation and redesign in 2019. Current exhibits include Boundless: Stories of Asian Art, and Be/longing: Contemporary Asian Art.Tickets will be released every Thursday at 10 am and everyone must get tickets online in advance of their visit.
Social Media & Youth Sociopolitical Development Study: Each participant will attend: 1 orientation, 4 interviews and 1 "social media ride along" where you and the researchers will talk about your social media activity together as you go through your account (total of 6 meetings between May and October). You will also submit social media posts weekly. Each enrolled participant will receive a $25 e-gift card for each interview (total of $100 for 4 interviews), $25 for the social media 'ride along', and $10 a week (requires at least 3 posts per week) from July-August 2021 (total of $80 for all posts). Five young people (ages 13-18) will be selected for this project. Applications submitted before May 30 will be given priority. You will learn more about all these activities in orientation. If you have questions, you can email Angie Malorni (she/her) at malorni@uw.edu
What’s Open?: Washington has entered its fourth wave of COVID-19 and Gov. Inslee may move certain counties back to Phase 2. To review what’s open in each phase, visit the “Roadmap to Recovery” link.
Vaccinate WA: COVID-19 Vaccine Availability: Tool for finding COVID-19 real-time available vaccine openings in Washington.
LOOKING FORWARD
Lab Day on May 15th from 10AM-12PM for Luminous & Stellar Cohorts and 1PM-3PM for Epic Cohort. This is the last Lab Day of the year and Epic Cohort's last Lab Day ever!
Summer Retreat will be held the week of July 12-16. Timing is TBD but assume an all day retreat schedule for now. Retreat will be held in a hybrid model - two days in person, three days virtual.