The mission of the YIN of Oregon is to promote youth as active participants in the community through youth voice, youth leadership and youth volunteerism. We serve youth in a variety of ways from providing information on volunteer opportunities and building school – community partnerships through service learning to advocating for their positions on agency boards and as community representatives.
AmeriCorps and Youth Involvement Centers (YICs)
Currently, we have AmeriCorps members serving in schools and community based organization in an effort to expand and increase service learning and youth involvement opportunities at those sites. Members serve as Service Learning Coordinators to assist school staff in service learning project planning and create Youth Involvement Centers. YICs are school based volunteer centers where students and school staff can learn about volunteer opportunities and build relationships with their community. In middle and high schools, YICs provide a way for students to learn about current volunteer opportunities, project planning, the essential steps to service learning, grant writing and school and community organizing tactics.
Inside YIN of Oregon
-Camp Namanu
-Mentoring Partnership
-Success Program
-YIN of Oregon
Summer Service Projects
Additionally, AmeriCorps members plan and implement two, three-week summer service project sessions. This year’s program will run from June 25 until August 3, 2001. Serving incoming sixth through ninth graders, summer service projects offer youth the opportunity to learn about their community, serve the community and meet other youth that have similar interests. If you would like to learn more about this year’s projects, please contact Sarah Beth Collins at [email protected] or call 503-224-7800.
YINews
To complement our work in schools, YIN of Oregon has a quarterly youth published newsletter, YINews. We have a summer intern program, which allows youth to gain important planning, writing and community organizing skills. Please contact us if you would like to learn more about our summer positions. Also, we provide information on current volunteer opportunities through our searchable database that you can access by contacting Cindy DeGesero at [email protected] or call 503-224-7800.
The National Service Learning Exchange
Led by the National Youth Leadership Council and supported by the Corporation for National Service, supports service learning programs in schools, colleges, universities, tribal communities and community organizations across the country through peer-based training and technical assistance. Broken into five regions, the Exchange encourages peer mentoring within local regions. Oregon is in the Pacific Region. YIN of Oregon hosts the regional trainer for community based service learning. Please contact Carolyn Bonner, Regional Trainer, Pacific Region, [email protected] for information on the Exchange or to find out about peer mentors in your area. You can visit the Exchange at www.lsaexchange.org or call 1-877-572-3924 (toll free).
In the future, we hope to expand these services and include more schools, students, school staff and community-based organizations in our network. Our vision is that all Oregon youth are active, involved citizens recognized and valued by the community. Together, through community collaboration and resource sharing, this can happen!