Greater Philadelphia Young Mens Christian Association

Programs: Healthy living: the y is a leading voice on health and well-being. We bring families closer together, encourage good health, and foster connections through fitness, sports, fun and shared interests. As a result, over 160,000 members are receiving the support, guidance, and resources they need to achieve greater health in spirit, mind and body. Our programs are accessible, affordable, and open to all faiths, backgrounds, abilities and income levels. We focus our efforts on children, youth, teens, adults, seniors and families whose successful pursuit of health and well-being requires continuously supportive relationships and environments. Inside the y, we influence and motivate our members to make positive changes in their pursuit of well-being. Outside the y, we help to create and sustain healthier communities through collaborative partnerships with other community-based health and social service organizations. Healthy living initiatives and programs are the ys response to our nation's growing health crisis. The y is engaging communities across the country to better support americans of all ages who are struggling to achieve and maintain healthy spirits, minds and bodies for all. Membership & health and wellness we provide resources and guidance to assist members in maintaining or improving their health and wellness at any stage of life. The y provides a variety of health and wellness programs including group exercise and water fitness classes, health and wellness seminars, educational classes, personalized training programs, non-competitive youth and adult sports leagues and social opportunities for seniors and families. The philadelphia freedom valley ymca ensures that everyone, regardless of income, has the opportunity to participate in all programs and services. In 2017, we provided over $5. 1 million in financial assistance to people who otherwise could not afford membership. Prevention and support the y is increasingly focused on helping individuals to prevent or mitigate the adverse effects of chronic health conditions such as type ii diabetes and hypertension. In 2017, we continued to provide the ymca diabetes prevention program, y-usa's model program designed to help those at risk of developing the disease to engage in positive nutrition and physical fitness habits. Our y also supports cancer survivors in our communities through the livestrong foundation's livestrong at the ymca, a 12-week physical activity program designed to get survivors back on their feet. Approximately 152 individuals participated in livestrong in 2017. Health screenings the philadelphia freedom valley ymca provides health education and screenings for our community throughout the year at all of our locations as well as community events. Often provided through partnerships with local hospitals and health systems, health education and screenings include such topics as weight management, stress reduction, smoking cessation classes, nutrition, blood sugar and blood pressure checks and skeletal muscular scans. In addition, we provide health and wellness prevention instruction and materials to educate our members on the importance of maintaining good health. As service to our members and the overall community, health education and screenings are either provided at low or no cost to the participant. Healthy kids day every year the philadelphia freedom valley ymca participates in the national ymca of the usa healthy kids day. As a leading nonprofit strengthening community through healthy living, the y holds healthy kids day to teach healthy habits to kids and families to inspire a lifetime love of physical activity. Families are encouraged to participate in this event together and take part in the activities, screenings and other learning opportunities. With help from local organizations, the y is able to provide this free event to the community. Saw week once a year, the philadelphia freedom valley ymca provides safety around water (saw) week. As a service for the community, saw week is a free program designed to help children and families learn important swimming and water safety skills, develop self confidence, pride and inner strength. Drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 12 and under. In 2017, we served 391 children and families throughout our association.

youth development: our ymca is committed to nurturing the potential of every child and teen. We believe that all kids deserve the opportunity to discover who they are and what they can achieve. That's why we help young people cultivate the values, skills and relationships that lead to positive behavior, better health, and educational achievement. Our ymca programs such as child care, school-age child care and summer day camp programs offer a range of experiences that enrich cognitive, social, physical and emotional growth. Expenses include direct financial assistance that make participation possible for over 3,000 kids each school year and over 5,000 kids each summer. We provided nearly $2 million in financial assistance to children in our child care and summer day camp programs in 2017. Early childhood education the philadelphia freedom valley ymca is the largest nonprofit provider of child care services in southeastern pa, caring for approximately 1,500 0-5 year-old children each day. We offer state-certified and keystone star-ranked child care programs at 18 branch locations and 90 program sites. All of our child care programs provide a safe, nurturing environment in which children learn, grow and develop social skills. We provide financial assistance, mitigating economic barriers that working families might face in choosing high-quality care for their children. Staff and program high quality credentials and structure at the philadelphia freedom valley ymca quality care begins with quality teachers. All of our early childhood education classroom teachers have a minimum of an associate's degree in early childhood education. Teaching assistants must have attained their child development associate (cda) credential. The y is committed to professional development and encourages staff to further their education in order to provide the most knowledgeable and experienced care possible. Child development associate training program (cda) the child development associate training program provides an essential credential to an emerging childcare professional. This nationally recognized credential assists practitioners in meeting the specific needs of children and gaining the knowledge to work with parents and other adults to support and nurture a child's physical, social, emotional and intellectual growth in a child development framework. In 2017, the philadelphia freedom valley ymca graduated 108 individuals with a cda. Family childcare network the accreditation initiative is the family childcare network's way to increase the quality and quantity of infant/toddler care centers in the city of philadelphia and surrounding counties while providing training and technical assistance to meet the prerequisites for accreditation under national association of family child care centers (nafcc). Any resident of philadelphia, montgomery or delaware county with a desire to commit to the education of young children can become a licensed family childcare provider. Through our program we assist a minimum of 75 participants to attain all required licenses and permits from the city and state in order to legally operate a child care business. The family childcare network served 600 children in 2017. School-age childcare: before and after school programs after children enter kindergarten, the philadelphia freedom valley ymca encourages their social and psychological development through state-licensed before and after school care programs. Across the entire association in 2017, we served approximately 2,000 students in grades k-8 with both before- and after-school programs. School-age child care at the y provides a setting in which children can receive academic assistance that accommodates their personal learning style and needs. Homework help and tutoring are primary components of school-age child care and serve to reinforce the learning accomplished during school hours. Our school-age child care programs also strive to engage children in productive extracurricular activities that are voluntary and confidence-building. Participating students may choose from a variety of recreational activities, including swimming lessons, arts & crafts, basketball and other sports, and chess instruction. Healthy snacks and/or dinner are also available to students. Additionally, certain branches, such as the columbia north ymca, offer middle school clubs for youth in grades 6-8. Designed to meet the needs of young teens, middle school clubs are themed around swimming, computers, sports and homework/test prep. Similar to our other school-age child care programs, middle school clubs seek to emphasize character development of the y's four core values: honesty, caring, respect and responsibility. Summer day camps at the philadelphia freedom valley ymca the philadelphia freedom valley ymca believes that children need quality summer programs to both reinforce and advance their physical, psychological and social growth they experience throughout the school year. In 2017, more than 5,500 youth participated in our summer day camp programs. We provided 2,210 campers financial assistance for the 2017 summer day camp season. The y summer day camps are vital to character development while also being a fun and enriching environment for children to develop their extracurricular interests - things they may not have full opportunity to do throughout the school year given budget cuts to arts, music, and physical education programs. Camp at the y accommodates children ages 3-16 in a variety of activities that allow children to explore their interests in areas including sports, gymnastics, swimming, theater, dance, art, and community involvement and volunteerism. The abington, ambler area, spring valley and roxborough y's offer special needs camps specifically designed for children with autism, high-functioning asd, or other special needs. These camps safety and preparedness are top priorities for the y; therefore every camp staff member receives a minimum of 40 hours of pre-camp training including first aid and cpr as well as child abuse prevention. Additionally, all camp staff must attend a day-long seminar taught by philadelphia freedom valley ymca staff, consultants from brown and brown consulting, and teachers from local delaware valley public schools. Topics at the seminar include but are not limited to aquatic safety, behavior management, active engagement/games & activities, working with 5-12 year olds and leading a great camp experience. Overnight camps camp speers, a 1,100 acre ymca resident camp located in pike county, serves youth from across pa, nj and ny as well as international students. While at camp speers, the majority of summer campers will participate in a traditional program with a variety of activity options including swimming, boating, canoeing, sailing, kayaking, target sports, dance, drama, nature discovery, team sports, mountain biking, hiking, outdoor cooking, arts & crafts, ceramics, climbing, ropes course challenges, teambuilding and instrumental music. Camp speers annually serves over 7,000 children and adults each year through overnight summer camp and educational programs during the school year. Overall, our goal at camp is to create a healthy, cooperative community focused on teamwork, and outdoor education and recreation. We partner with over 30 school districts and over 50 community agencies throughout pa, nj, and ny to deliver life-changing programs for families and youth. For children with special medical needs, we offer dragonfly forest. Taking place each summer at camp speers, dragonfly forest is a summer camp program for children with autism and medical needs. In 2006, this began as a program for children with bleeding disorders and sickle cell disease. Quickly, we also added persistent asthma, autism, and 22q11. 2 deletion syndrome to the populations we served. We focus on supporting children with chronic medical or developmental needs and helping them find their version of success as they learn to grow and live with their unique needs. Dragonfly forest became a program of the philadelphia freedom valley ymca in january 2017. Dragonfly forest served approximately 300 youth in 2017. Given the financial burden of caring for a special needs child, the vast majority of dragonfly families benefit from financial assistance. 7th grade membership initiative the philadelphia freedom valley ymca, in partnership with the pa state alliance of ymcas executive committee, is a participant in the 7th grade membership initiative. The 7th grade membership initiative guarantees every 7th grade student in pennsylvania a free one-year membership to the y. By providing these youth a free membership to any of our location, the y has the opportunity to engage, cultivate and connect with youth at a time that is most crucial to their development. In 2017, the y provided over 5,400 7th grade memberships valued at approximately $1. 2 million.

social responsibility: our ymca believes in giving back and supporting our neighbors. We have been listening and responding to our community's most critical social needs for more than 163 years. Our y programs deliver training, resources, and support that empower our neighbors to effect change, bridge gaps, and overcome obstacles. In 2017, we engaged more members, participants, and volunteers in activities that strengthen our community and pave the way for future generations to thrive. For additional details regarding these critical programs and their impact, see below. Y achievers program the y achievers program is an academic achievement/career development initiative that helps teens and pre-teens set and pursue higher educational and career goals, resulting in graduation and acceptance to an institution of higher learning. Y achievers pursues this goal by providing developmentally based, mentorship and workshop activities, designed to give 5th-12th grade youth the tools they need to succeed in post-secondary education and beyond. The y achievers program is founded on five programmatic thrusts: * career exploration * college readiness * leadership development * personal (character) development * community investment the y achievers program was created with the following 3 goals: * to encourage youth to set and achieve high educational, personal and professional goals, * to help youth create positive mentoring relationships with adults who have achieved personal and professional success, and to acknowledge both for their success, * to create channels for continuing community investment and involvement of business and industry. In 2017, we served over 1,500 students in the y achievers program, at locations throughout the greater philadelphia area. Of those, 46% are female and 54% are male. 89% of our y achievers were african american, 5% were multi-racial, 4% were latino and 1% were asian or caucasian. Of the achievers who responded to survey questions on family income, 43% came from households making less than $30,000 per year. 73% of y achievers participants attend public school in the philadelphia school district. 54% of all y achievers participants live in the service area of the inner city branches, columbia north, west and christian street. Also, 100% of graduating seniors completed 12th grade and received their high school diplomas. International & cultural programs the philadelphia freedom valley ymca's international program is engaged in ongoing activities that help to develop a sense of world-mindedness, promote worldwide understanding of various cultures, and celebrate cultural diversity. We do this through volunteer opportunities, program initiatives like youth and adult exchange programs, international staff exchanges, program courses including esl and citizenship classes, toefl preparation and program events. The philadelphia freedom valley ymca was selected to participate as part of a pilot group of leading ymcas to drive and showcase the u. S. Efforts to lead the expansion of opportunities for inclusion and the building of a global community.