Boys and Girls Club Volunteer Program

Growing up, I spent a lot of time at the local community center because both of my parents always worked. When I got to high school, it only made sense that my first job should be there, working with the children's department. When I transferred to Binghamton University I knew I wanted to continue my work with youth, but wasn’t sure where. I visited the local Jewish Community Center, YMCA and Binghamton Boys and Girls Club. When I visited the Boys and Girls Club, I found out that they actually operate 10 satellite sites called "Fun Clubs" in the Binghamton School District; mine was Thomas Jefferson Elementary. All the sites serve very at-risk populations. The statistics of the children who attend Boys and Girls Clubs programming are just staggering. Almost 70% come from single parent families, 50% are receiving public assistance, 2/3 of the kids are under the age of 8. Each school Fun Club definitely has a unique personality too, defined by the location, the teachers, and the children there. Some Fun Clubs are tougher to work in, and staff turnover has been incredibly high. Sometimes multiple staff would leave in the same week, the kids never knowing who would be there the next day. Typically teacher turnover is also high at these schools. When I started at Fun Club, the staff:child ratio was 1:10. I’ve staffed all the sites many times, I know almost all 350 kids by name. Even so, it’s impossible to give each child the attention they need with so few adults. I’ve seen kids hit their teachers, I’ve reported signs of abuse, there were schools where cursing and throwing things was the norm! With a ratio of 10 kids to the adult, how could we improve reading levels when we had to focus on basic social skills? The addition of student volunteers has helped ratios drop considerably, with currently over 50 volunteers in the schools – every day, and over 200 in the program. We are already seeing a difference. I go to visit sites where none of the kids were reading during my last visit, and now they are. I hear “please” and “thank you” for the first time. One thing that all the Fun Clubs have in common is that the kids don’t want to go home, and the volunteers don’t want to leave them either. The little community service club I started is has become one of the largest groups on campus, in less than 3 years. The money we raise goes towards buying basic supplies to use for activities with the kids like paints, glue, calculators, paper, sports and science equipment (balls, cones, magnifying glasses etc). We also try to offer the kids healthy snacks. When we started working at the site, every snack started with a "pop-" (poptarts, popcorn, popsicles), and healthy snacks like fruit, yogurt and granola bars cost a good deal more than the junk-food they're used to. All these things and more need to be provided for not one school, but 10, plus the main unit of the Club. The problem is that Fun Club participants need so much more help in terms of reading, writing, and basic social skills, than the limited staff and supplies at the Boys and Girls Club can offer. By dedicating their time, energy, and enthusiasm to working with the staff and children at Fun Club, Binghamton University students make a huge difference.