Eduacting area youth at the Ohio Valley Museum of Discovery

The Ohio Valley Museum of Discovery is pursuing its mission of providing hands-on educational experiences for youth in the Athens area. The "movable museum" recently displayed one of its first exhibits, a kaleidoscope that offers insight into human perception, at Kidsfest in The Convo.

A computer literacy program at The Gathering Place

Bridgebuilders: An afterschool program at Trimble

Every day after school, Melissa Bailes offers students in Trimble Township the opportunity to engage with one another and themselves. They don’t need to pick up a football or play an instrument or anything. They just need to show up.

Bailes and the Bridgebuilders program hope to combat teen alcohol and drug abuse with mental and physical stimulation for the student population. The goal, as assessed by the Child and Family Services in Athens County, is to involve 100 percent of the students from fifth to eighth grade in some kind of after-school and summer activity.

Bailes has approached the problem by putting much of the program, which began in August, in the hands of its participants.

More than 30 students came into school on a Saturday afternoon, believe it or not, for a chance to set fire to the strings in a Guitar Hero competition that the program sponsored.

Bailes described the environment as “awesome”.

A group of students watched a stage performance of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Christmas play at ArtsWEST. Another visited the Athens Historical Society on a field trip. Students even took a few steps in a dance class. Still others joined a discussion group centered on nutrition and self-esteem.

The target students are not involved in other after-school activities and those who come from home environments where abuse is an everyday reality and the parents are often addicted to drugs, especially prescriptive ones. Children Services has reported that 85 percent of domestic abuse cases in Athens County involve substance abuse in some form.

According to a survey by Bridgebuilders, more than 7 percent of the students said they had used someone else’s prescription pain medication as a recreational drug. Even then, it ranks only fourth in the students’ drugs of choice.

“There are kids who don’t see much hope,” she said. “Now they’re excited. They come to me all the time and ask: ‘What are we doing next?’ These are kids who have never been to a play.”

The program is continuing to expand. Bailes is about to start a club called “Men of Strength”, focused on helping young male teens mature into men and not perpetuating domestic abuse in an area where it is common.

Finding community support is crucial for Bridgebuilders to maintain its success. Bailes plans on opening up a game night to involve families of students and other community members. Other possible plans include collaborations with the art studio at the Dairy Barn and Stuart’s Opera House.

Teen Power! Fighting violence with knowledge

When Kate McGuckin describes dating violence among teens, passion pierces through in her voice. Her fight is not only with individual instances of violence, but with an entire culture of aggression.

“We live in a very violent society,” said the director of My Sister’s Place, a domestic abuse shelter in Athens, “and the media glamorizes violence. We have a huge barrier trying to compete with the media.”

So, with aid from the Athens Foundation, My Sister’s Place recently partnered with Girl Power! to produce its first sessions of “Teen Power”, a program on dating violence for young teens. More than 40 area girls from ages 8 to 14 attended. The curriculum educated the girls on the characteristics of a healthy relationship, how to recognize abuse in a relationship, and what resources are available if they fear they are victims of abuse.

Teen dating violence is a tangible danger in Athens and across the nation. Studies of eighth and ninth grade students found that a quarter of them had suffered nonsexual violence in a dating situation and eight percent had been abused sexually.

The problem, as far as McGuckin can tell, forms from a combination of early exposure to sex and the prevalence of violence in television, movies and music.

“People are dating younger,” she said. “They are exposed to strong media messages about the importance of being popular, having a boyfriend, and seeking external validation through a relationship.”

In summary: “There’s a lot of peer pressure to be popular.”

So the Teen Power program responded by offering an opportunity for these young women to understand their own power against violent behavior and to prepare them for successful and healthy relationships as they enter the dating world. The girls designed t-shirts, posters and postcards reflecting those themes. The art was distributed to various local venues – libraries, schools, health centers – to raise awareness. Some girls wrote poetry; others cooperated to produce a play.

The key was peer-to-peer interaction and connection, which would ensure the lessons learned in Teen Power could translate into real-world scenarios.

“It was their program,” McGuckin said.

The authorities appear to be taking notice of the problem as well. Ohio passed legislation this last year mandating an education of dating violence in the school system.

McGuckin envisioned Teen Power as a program that could be replicated in the school environment. There is also room for expansion, and McGuckin hopes the opportunity for another session comes up.

“We would certainly like to continue this,” she said.

Ohio University Kids on Campus

The youth of Appalachia is taking part in activities that provide creative outlets and indirect learning through Ohio University's Kids on Campus.

Although the organization has many programs designed for children, the wood-working shop has been one of the most popular, says Eric Tabler, facilitator of the class, adding that the hands-on work the students are doing is very rewarding. Another benefit of the class is that it gives students practice with mathematics without the conventionalities of a classroom. As a high school Spanish teacher, Tabler has had experience in a classroom setting, and because of his previous knowledge of wood-working and the enjoyment he receives from this hobby, he chose to facilitate this class.

Kids on Campus is a program that provides youth with activities they may not normally be able to take part in. Its goal is to enrich the lives of these children by providing them with classes such as wood-working as well as academic programs and tutoring sessions. Tabler believes this is important for children today. The organization also extends these services into the school year by providing after school sessions.

The Athens Foundation assisted Kids on Campus by granting it funds to buy the supplies needed to execute its classes, such as the wood and tools for the wood-working class.

Athens Photographic Project

Breaking barriers is what the Athens Photographic Project is all about, says Project Director Nate Thomson.

By enrolling individuals recovering from mental health problems in photography courses, the Project is interested in providing students with an artistic outlet in which they are able to overcome the obstacles their illnesses have put in the way of continuing on with an enriched life. Thomson told the Athens Foundation that sometimes patients see themselves as their diagnosis rather than a contributing member of society and that his organization provides them with a way to realize otherwise. "The nature of the arts is to challenge self-identity," he said, and by engaging in photography students are able to bring out parts of their persona they would have instead suppressed. He added that "it's fine art, but it's also answering a need."

A student and future mentor of the program Beth Klaus offered advice to those waiting to take classes. She said to never give up, adding that she never would have gotten as far with the program if she had. One of the most important successes she's had with the Athens Photographic Project include having new experiences. "It expands your horizons," she said. Involved since 2000, Klaus said that the classes "really started making [her] smile when [she] got her hands on the manual [camera]...and being in total control." She is ready for the challenge of becoming a mentor of the program.

Thomson reported that a major obstacle of the program has been keeping the program alive. State funding for mental health is being cut, causing programs like this one to suffer. He said there is a gap between being perceived as a community member and a mental health patient, and his ogranization is trying to bridge that gap. However, there is no lack of participation in the program. Twenty-five students are enrolled for the advanced class in the Fall, and 40 are on the waiting list. "We're looking at how we can continue to replicate the program model by pairing with other organizations and creating opportunities for visiting artists to lead classes," Thomson said. The grant the Project received in the Spring of 2009 is helping to fund these efforts.

Appalachian Staple Foods Collaborative

For Michelle Ajamian and Brandon Jaeger, the Appalachian Staple Foods Collaborative is more important than simply growing hearty crops for the region.

Along with a desire to entice local farmers to grow staple crops, Operations Manager Brandon Jaeger told the Athens Foundation that it is also about working towards devloping a program to get this food to food banks for low-income families. These banks are normally places where people are getting the worst food commodity, but with help from the Collaborative they will be able to get the best food first. With this accomplished, families who were once unable to afford quality foods will have the opportunity to become more nutritious, allowing their health and children's school performance to improve.

The project is also determined to keep agricultural business in the Appalachian region. Jaeger also said that the resources farmers are growing are being exported elsewhere to be sold, in turn removing those profits from its home area. He says that developing a staple foods system will decrease this economic loss. June Holley of Networkweaving and also a partner of the Collaborative conducted several surveys of the region and reported that eight local food businesses in Athens are willing to buy staple foods that have been grown locally, providing support for Jaeger's claim.

Executive Director Michelle Ajamian believes their efforts will succeed simply because food is an entity that everyone needs. "[It's] a common denominator," she said, elaborating that food is a place where people can come together. "It's a strategy for changing the world."

The Appalachian Staple Foods Collaborative received its grant in the Spring of 2009. The money is being used for what Jaeger calls "the unglamorous," such as crop handling and equipment. The project is also being funded by Rural Action and the Ohio Farm Bureau Foundation.