WSA_Youth and Family Master Plan Phase I - September 2009

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events have actually been eliminated (from 2009 forward} due to budget cuts. This has shifted the role of City Recreation Supervisors, making them increasingly ward-focused. Supervisors are assigned to a specific ward and act as the "eyes and ears" of the agency and follow up on complaints and issues raised by the residents at the neighborhood level. It is the supervisors' responsibility to conduct outreach by attending neighborhood association meetings and to identifying local non-profits and other agencies or individuals who can provide services at the recreation centers with minimal impact to the City's general fund. The Reservations desk is now a critical component of the Santa Ana PRCSA insofar as it helps to manage facilities to augment the availability of leisure classes and services provided bynon-profits. The agency has shifted its focus to better support community pre-event meetings for other organizations and individuals who wish to conduct special events. Approximately 12 pre-event meetings are conducted each month to help organizations plan their events. Organizations include schools and colleges, non- profits, churches, and private promoters and they plan events such as community picnics, dances, graduation ceremonies, community resource fairs, health fairs, neighborhood association concerts and other events, sporting events, fiestas, and similar activities. The stakeholders interviewed identified several key components of youth services that need to be coordinated if youth are to be served effectively in the long run in Santa Ana. For example, there is a large untapped volunteer and mentor potential in the city. The city soccer programs have learned to effectively use volunteers extensively because, according to one city staff member," ...they [volunteers] know expectations, responsibilities, and plans so that they are accountable". There were several comments suggesting that the process for using volunteers in other programs is not as fully developed as needed for the large amount of programming in the city. Participants from all three focus groups noted the need for teen workshops to train youth about dealing with self-esteem issues, life skills, leadership skills and job development. These issues extend beyond the scope of obesity prevention and are intrinsically tied to supporting an overall environment that, similar to the goals of the EPIC commission, would empower youth and could provide them with the tools and opportunities to avoid and/or overcome gang involvement. ~u~ in~a Three focus groups were conducted with over 40 youth (6th-12t"grade} during the course of this assessment.12 The protocol for the discussion was designed to primarily focus on physical activity environments and program needs. However, what emerged from the discussions most notably was a desire on behalf of the youth to have more programming thatfocuses on building leadership qualities and engaging youth in mentor/mentee relationships. When asked "What kind of programs or activities do you think would help teens in Santa Ana develop healthy habits in the community?" the most common responses from the youth focused on wanting to build self-confidence and to have more adult advisors and mentors as role models. This information reinforced the data from the SAUSD Student Forum (December 16, 2008}.13 In this forum, the youth identified the following community needs: / more community and tutoring centers for homework and recreation 1z This includes youth from Santa Ana Youth Commission, Kid Works and Orange County Children's Therapeutic Arts Center. i3 See attachment for full summary report of SAUSD Student Forum, December 16, 2008.