AROUND PLEASANTON
.%7 !22)6!,3 BY JEB BING
Dealing with stress among our youths — helping them achieve balance
opened this year, adding to the YMP’s call for more sports fields to serve the city’s still-growing youth population. The vision of the YMP is to nurture a safe, supportive community that is responsive to the full range of needs of all children, youths and their families. In partnership with the city’s Youth Commission and youth sports, schools and other organizations, such as the Scouts and 4-H clubs, the YMPIC t’s been more than a decade considers scores of requests and since I worked with others in ideas at its monthly meetings. city and civic organizations Just as important has been the to develop a Youth Master Plan committee’s focus on maintaining for Pleasanton. At the time, the and expanding a healthy and safe key drivers of a plan that would youth environment in Pleasanton. focus on the city’s growing popuStudies have shown high levels lation of youths from birth until of anxiety and depression among they reached the age of 21 were some youths, coupled with high Cindy McGovern, now a City achievement pressures in our Councilwoman and then on the community, fears of bullying or school board, and the late school discrimination on or board member Juanita near school campuses, Haugen. For me, in increases in drug and the years before we alcohol abuse among launched the Pleasanour young people, and ton Weekly, it was a participation in risky chance to meet many sexual activities. Workin elected positions, ing with local agencies on the city and school to improve services that district staffs, police address these concerns, lieutenants, business the YMPIC has develleaders and parents oped mentoring and who shared my interest counseling programs in developing a plan to Cindy McGovern where peers can exdetermine what teenagchange experiences and support ers and those younger needed in each others’ physical and mental Pleasanton, where often we heard well-being. that “there just isn’t anything for At a recent Youth in Governus to do here.� ment Day, 80 students from This grassroots effort led to the adoption by the school board and Amador Valley, Foothill, Village and Horizon high schools joined City Council of the Youth MasJulie Duncan and Kathleen Yurter Plan on June 4, 1998, which then established the Youth Master chak to “shadow� city and school district leaders and staffs of their Plan Implementation Commitchoosing for a better understandtee (YMPIC) to carry the plan ing of how these two governforward after thanking the 30 of ment agencies function. They us who had completed our inialso met together to discuss chaltial work. Over the course of the lenges and opportunities facing last 12 years, that committee has Pleasanton youths. Duncan is the worked to implement the plan’s school district’s coordinator of strategies. Some of these accomplishments include the creation of Career and Technical Education. the website P-town 411, the BMX Yurchak is the city’s Community Services Manager. Breaking into park near Shadow Cliffs, and eight discussion groups for the sponsoring several city grants to local non-profits that provide pro- afternoon, the students gave their ideas for programs that can grams and services that support help youths achieve “balance� the Youth Master Plan strategies. Some objectives have not yet been in their lives to deal with school conflicts, the stress of homework realized as city funds have been and academic competition, and directed elsewhere, including, the fear of rejection by social disappointingly, the construction of a teen center to serve both that groups and athletic teams. Their suggestions are being reviewed age group and a separate facility and will help form new strategies for pre-teens and those younger now under consideration as the that is still intended to be built city and school district updates in the Bernal Community Park. the Youth Master Plan at the start At least the lighted baseball fields of this new decade. N have been completed, which
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About the Cover Census workers will spread throughout town in the upcoming weeks to gather information from residents who do not return their forms by tomorrow night’s deadline. So far 74 percent of Pleasanton residents have responded, just short of their 2000 Census return rate of 78 percent. Photo courtesy U.S. Census Bureau. Vol. XI, Number 14 Pleasanton WeeklyÊUÊApril 16, 2010ÊU Page 3