CHALLENGE: 

A lack of diversity among leadership and program staff limits the experience and the value for everyone.

HOW TRAIL BLAZERS APPROACHES THIS WORK:

In 2020, Trail Blazers made a commitment to being an actively anti-racist organization and we have spent the past year laying the groundwork needed to support this work and move us forward. 

We started by lifting up DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion), which was one of the four Strategic Lenses identified in our Jan 2020 Strategic Plan, as our primary lens and then adding “B” for Belonging. To guide our work and to hold us accountable to our goals, we convened a DEIB committee that comprises board members, staff, an alumna, a community partner, and is supported by expert consultants. To institutionalize DEIB as a core and essential part of Trail Blazers, we integrated DEIB into our Mission and Vision statements, ensuring that it will guide how we govern, lead, communicate, operate, and interact. Furthermore, as our Primary Strategic Lens, DEIB will serve as our primary guide as we continue to operationalize our Strategic Plan and monitor its effectiveness through 2025. 

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CHALLENGE: 

Young people need support addressing their climate anxiety.

HOW TRAIL BLAZERS EQUIPS YOUNG PEOPLE TO MANAGE CLIMATE ANXIETY AND CREATE A POSITIVE  IMPACT IN OUR WORLD

Trail Blazers’ age-appropriate youth development strategies help young people recognize nature in all its forms (from natural forests to built city parks to managed waterways), learn how they are all interconnected, and develop skills for stewarding all our environments.  xx% campers demonstrate increased stewardship knowledge.

WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS

• From a survey of 10,000 young people (age 16-25) worldwide: 60% reported that they felt either “very” or “extremely” worried about climate change, more than half said climate change made them feel “afraid, sad, anxious, angry, powerless, helpless, and/or guilty,” 77% said that they considered the future to be frightening, and 56% agreed with the viewpoint that humanity is doomed. More than 45% of the respondents said the feelings of fear and worry about climate change adversely affects their ability to function in their day-to-day lives.

CHALLENGE: 

Young people need SEL (Social Emotional Learning) Skills and mental health support, not just academic development, in order to thrive and succeed in today’s world.

HOW TRAIL BLAZERS HELPS YOUNG PEOPLE THRIVE AND SUCCEED:

Trail Blazers’ programs are rooted in research-based youth development strategies proven to help young people grow in social emotional competencies (also known as soft skills, executive skills, and 21st Century Skills) including self-efficacy, social skills, contribution/citizenship, positive identity, self-management and mastery orientation. Across all programs, over 80% of campers develop statistically-significant growth in at least one competency.

WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS

• “82% of [New York] Parents [regardless of whether they have a kid currently in afterschool or not] agree that programs provide kids opportunities to learn life skills, like the ability to communicate and work in teams.” –After School Alliance
• While academics is important, Social emotional learning has proven benefits on mental health, behavior, learning, and life skills – which play a critical role in a person’s ability to thrive and succeed.
• “While 3 in 4 parents (75 percent) say that it is important to them that a summer experience helped keep their child from losing academic ground, roughly 9 in 10 parents (90 percent) report that opportunities to build life skills (94 percent), physical activity (92 percent), the variety of activities in a program (90 percent), and opportunities to experience the outdoors (86 percent) were important when choosing their child’s summer activities.” – AA3PM 2021

CHALLENGE: 

OST (Out-of-School) program providers are challenged to hire staff, which is integral to their ability to provide programs that families need. 

HOW TRAIL BLAZERS SUPPORTS FAMILIES:

Trail Blazers’ leadership development programs – The APEX, The Academy, and Internships – cultivate a pipeline of diverse and skilled staff who reflect campers/students and are equipped to deliver high quality programs. Learn more about these new initiatives, developed in response to the need for more staff and increased diversity, here. 

WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS

• “ 82% of [New York] Parents [regardless of whether they have a kid currently in afterschool or not] agree that programs provide kids opportunities to learn life skills, like the ability to communicate and work in teams.” –After School Alliance
• While academics is important, Social emotional learning has proven benefits on mental health, behavior, learning, and life skills – which play a critical role in a person’s ability to thrive and succeed.
• “While 3 in 4 parents (75 percent) say that it is important to them that a summer experience helped keep their child from losing academic ground, roughly 9 in 10 parents (90 percent) report that opportunities to build life skills (94 percent), physical activity (92 percent), the variety of activities in a program (90 percent), and opportunities to experience the outdoors (86 percent) were important when choosing their child’s summer activities.” – AA3PM 2021

CHALLENGE: 

Young people need to get outside, being outdoors for the sake of being outdoors, including opportunities for fresh air, exercise, and improved mental health

HOW TRAIL BLAZERS SUPPORTS FAMILIES:

Trail Blazers’ nature-based programs fully integrate the outdoors into our design. We believe there is no such thing as bad weather, just inadequate clothes. Furthermore, diverse staff and leadership help campers see that people of all backgrounds belong and should feel comfortable outdoors. Across all programs, over 70% of participants demonstrated increased nature affinity.

WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS

• Continued participation in outdoor play and nature-based activities during the pandemic buffered adolescents against declines in their well-being, resulting in post COVID-19 well-being scores similar to pre COVID-19 scores.- NCBI
• “93% of [New York] Parents report that opportunities to experience the outdoors was important in selecting their child’s structured summer experience” –After School Alliance
• “Learning in nature is proven to support improved relationship skills and reduced stress, anger, and aggression”

CHALLENGE: 

For many working families, camp and after school are not only about enriching experiences, it is also about accessing affordable childcare during the hours they are at work.

HOW TRAIL BLAZERS SUPPORTS FAMILIES:

Trail Blazers’ extensive scholarship program removes financial barriers to participation, providing over $1mm in tuition support every year.

WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS

• “In 2019, 666,896 children (23%) would have been enrolled in a summer program if one were available to them.” – After School Alliance
• “For every child in afterschool, 4 are waiting for an available program.” – After School Alliance
• “The average cost of summer camp in the United States is around $76 a day, and for sleep-away camp, it’s $172 a day, according to Tom Rosenberg, president and CEO of the American Camp Association (ACA).” – ACA via care.com
• “The average weekly rate for day camp ranges from $199 to $800, while overnight camps will set parents back between $680 and $2,000 a week, according to the American Camp Association.” -ACA via CNBC
• “For families with low incomes, unmet demand for summer programs was even greater than for higher income households. More than 1 in 3 children living in households with low incomes (35 percent) would have been enrolled in a summer program if one were available to them, compared to 28 percent of children in families with higher incomes.” – AA3PM 2021
• “The cost of a program was a greater barrier to children’s participation in structured summer experiences for families with low incomes than for families with higher incomes (44 percent vs. 35 percent).” –AA3PM 2021
• “New York families pay an average of $11,128 per child for afterschool, making the state one of the least affordable when it comes to afterschool costs.” – Network for Youth Success
• “Especially as the Delta variant spreads, many parents of young children — those under 12 who cannot yet be vaccinated — say they’re unable to return to workplaces or apply for new jobs as long as there is uncertainty about when their children can safely return to full-time school or child care.” – NYT
• Census Bureau survey, 5 percent of parents said their children were not currently attending child care for pandemic-related reasons.” – NYT
• “In an Indeed survey this summer, one-third of those looking for a job said they wouldn’t want to start in the next month, and a significant share said they were waiting for schools to open. Among those who were unemployed but not urgently looking, nearly one-fifth said care responsibilities were the reason. Those without college degrees were more likely to cite such a reason — and more likely to be unable to work from home or to afford nannies.” – NYT
• “Overall, about half of employed parents with children younger than 12 in the household (52%) say it has been difficult to handle child care responsibilities during the coronavirus outbreak, up from 38% who said this in March 2020.” – Pewresearch
• “Seventy percent of low-income communities across the country live in nature-deprived areas. This figure is 20 percent higher than the figure for those with moderate or high incomes.” – The Nature Gap
• “Nature destruction has had the largest impact on low-income communities of color. More than 76 percent of people who live in low-income communities of color live in nature-deprived places.” – The Nature Gap