Health and Life Skills
These initiatives help youth achieve and maintain healthy, active lifestyles as well as give them positive self-esteem and motivational tools for growth.
Passport to Manhood and SMART Girls
At the Boys & Girls Clubs of Cleveland the main thrust of programming occurs through the SMART Girls and Passport to Manhood programs.
Thanks to the Cleveland Indians Charities and Travis and Amy Hafner, our Passport and SMART Girls programs will now reach more youth than ever through the Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD) Outreach program. The program, branded "Pronk's Peeps" after Travis Hafner, will allow Boys & Girls Club staff to visit 7 local schools per semester and offer Passport and SMART Girls programs to seventh-grade students in the CMSD. Through this program, seventh-graders will be able to build confidence and self-esteem in order to be successful in high school and in life.
SMART Girls is an outgrowth of the popular and effective SMART Moves program. SMART Girls helps participants develop healthy attitudes and lifestyles. Girls ages 8-12 and young women ages 13-17 explore, in age-appropriate discussion, their own and societal attitudes and values as they practice life skills for nutritional eating, physical fitness, reproductive health, accessing the health care system, resolving conflict and building healthy mentoring relationships. The SMART Girls program is sponsored nationally by Tupperware Brands Corporation.
Passport to Manhood is a curriculum for adolescent boys addressing several key areas of development while stressing and promoting positive values and behaviors. Passport to Manhood promotes and teaches responsibility for male Club members ages 11- 14 through 14 small-group sessions, each of which concentrates on a specific aspect of manhood through highly interactive activities. At this critical and transitional time in their adolescence, boys are encouraged to adopt the character virtues that will give them a positive head start in their journey to manhood. Each participant is issued his own "Passport" to underscore the idea that he is on a journey of maturation and personal growth.
The SMART Moves (Skills Mastery and Resistance Training) prevention/education program addresses the problems of drug and alcohol use and premature sexual activity. Based on proven techniques, the program uses a team approach involving Club staff, peer leaders, parents and community representatives. More than simply emphasizing a "Say No" message, the program teaches young people ages 6-15 how to say no by involving them in discussion and role-playing, practicing resistance and refusal skills, developing assertiveness, strengthening decision-making skills and analyzing media and peer influence. The ultimate goal: to promote abstinence from substance abuse and adolescent sexual involvement through the practice of responsible behavior.
Act SMART was developed as a joint project between Boys & Girls Clubs of America and the American Red Cross. Act SMART is an HIV/AIDS prevention program designed for Club members ages 6-17.
KIDS IN CONTROL is a 15-session safety awareness program designed to help Club members ages 8-10 develop the personal safety habits and practical skills needed to be safe at the Club, at home and in the neighborhood. The program offers interactive approaches to building Club members' crime prevention and personal safety skills through role-playing, games and other participatory activities. KIDS IN CONTROL is sponsored nationally by Brink's Home Security, Inc.
Street SMART consists of three components designed to help young people ages 11-13 effectively resist gangs and violence, resolve conflicts and be positive peer helpers in their communities. It also allows them the opportunity to hold annual events that celebrate anti-gang, anti-violence themes. The program is also used to enhance Torch Clubs (a leadership and service program) nationally. Street SMART is funded nationally by THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
Triple Play
Through Triple Play, a new program released by the Boys & Girls Clubs of America in January 2006, youth develop their understanding of a healthy lifestyle and improve their physical fitness. Triple Play helps build social skills by getting at the soul of the Club experience – recreation. Triple Play’s diverse health and wellness program encompasses three components: Mind—Developing a knowledge base to acquire healthy habits, such as making smart food choices, understanding appropriate portion sizes, and creating fun and healthy meals. Body—Becoming more physically active through daily fitness exercises and fun, including activities to get kids active and moving. Soul—Strengthening character and reinforcing positive behavior with social recreation activities designed to improve confidence and develop interpersonal skills. Each mind, body and soul program component can stand alone, yet integrating them allows Club members to reap more powerful, lifelong benefits. Locally, St. Luke’s Foundation of Cleveland, Ohio and Aetna Foundation support Healthy Habits, the healthy eating portion of Triple Play.
Cavity-Free Zone was developed in response to the recent U.S. Surgeon General's report on oral health which revealed a silent epidemic of oral disease in America, especially among disadvantaged youth. Underwritten nationally by Crest, Cavity-Free Zone aims to improve the oral health of Club members ages 6-18 nationwide. Each year, over 200 Boys & Girls Clubs of Cleveland members are eligible to receive free dental cleanings and exams through our annual Give Kids a Smile Day, which is hosted by the Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine.
