Youth Programs

Age Considers and Youth Ventures

The YouthALIVE! program at the Children’s Museum strives to involve youth, especially those in our immediate North Side neighborhood, in meaningful activities that promote growth, self esteem and job skills. In our afterschool program, we encourage responsibility and productivity that lead members to career opportunities. We aim to serve “at-risk” neighborhood youth from 11 - 18 years old through fun activities with a strong concentration in the arts and sciences. This past summer the YouthALIVE! kids and the Summer VolunTEEN programs got their hands into green-themed projects – they planted a garden in the front of the Museum complete with wind chimes and bamboo, and started an herb garden in the Museum’s Backyard.

The Summer VolunTEEN program is the shorter of the two programs, but jam packed with fun. One highlight is the students' chance to work with UNICEF and the oneminutes Foundation to create their own one-minute videos. Recently, videos by Nomi Leasure and Matthew Rutkowski were chosen as finalists in the StrangerFestival 2009 in Amsterdam, and Nomi's video, "Alice Doesn't Live There Anymore," won in the category of (Self) Portrait. Check out all of the videos below.

Blogger: JuWanda Thurmond, Youth Programs Manager

My experiences were both very fun and educational with the YouthALIVE! program and the Summer VolunTEEN program. In YouthALIVE! we did lots of fun things like went on cool field trips and learned cool stuff. For example, we saw what happens to your lungs when you smoke and all of the different chemicals that are in cigarettes. It surprised me because I would have never known what is in them. Also, we learned about different robots at Carnegie Mellon University and how some went to Mars and different places.

The Summer VolunTEEN program has given me lots of information about jobs. It’s helping me get ready for the workplace. I get to see how the Museum is everyday. The program gets you prepared for jobs and how to communicate with your employer. Also, I’ve never worked with younger kids, but now I know what that’s like.

Blogger: Arkeela Glenn, Age 14, CAPA High School