July 2016
A New Season of Transforming Young Lives
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Prodigy Sites
Got Talent? We’ve got class-es! Call or visit a site to learn more!
Hillsborough County
Pasco County
BGC Brandon Prodigy®
BGC Lacoochee Prodigy®
Boys & Girls Club of Tampa Bay, Inc. Bill Carey Brandon Unit 213 North Knights Avenue, Brandon, FL 33510 813-685-2006 abarrios@bgctampa.org
Boys & Girls Club of Tampa Bay, Inc. 38724 Mudcat Grant Boulevard, Lacoochee, FL 33537 352-583-0642 mvictor@bgctampa.com
FICS Prodigy® Florida Institute for Community Studies, Inc. 6704 Hanley Road, Tampa, FL 33634 813-249-8100 mercedesf@ficsinc.org
Prodigy Moves® University Area CDC 14013 North 22nd Street, Tampa, FL 33613 813-558-5212 x 303 sdelbridge@uacdc.org
THA Prodigy® Tampa Housing Authority 5301 West Cypress Street, Tampa, FL 33607 813-341-9101 diane.lindsay@thafl.com N
UACDC Tampa I Prodigy® University Area CDC 14013 North 22nd Street, Tampa, FL 33613 813-558-5212 x 217 mvazquez@uacdc.org
Orange County ONIC Prodigy® Orlando Neighborhood Improvement Corporation 101 South Terry Avenue, Orlando, FL 32805 407-648-1623 jennings@orlandoneighborhood.org
Saint Leo Prodigy® Saint Leo University Department of Social Work University Campus, MC2067, Saint Leo, FL 33574 352-588-7425 frances.ramos@saintleo.edu
Pinellas County YMCA Prodigy® YMCA of Greater St. Petersburg, Inc. 600 1st Avenue North, Suite 201, St. Petersburg, FL 33701 727-895-9622 vbrimm@stpeteymca.org
Polk County Girls Inc. Prodigy® Girls Inc. of Lakeland 1220 West Highland Street, Lakeland, FL 33815 863-682-3002 x 222 kayfields@girlsinclakeland.com
Heartland Prodigy® Heartland for Children 1239 East Main Street, Bartow, FL 33830 863-232-7036 mjones14@heartlandforchildren.org
Oasis Prodigy® Oasis Community Church 3330 Winter Lake Road, Lakeland, FL 33803 863-667-2000 x 150 daguilar@oasischurch.org
Osceola County EF Prodigy® The Foundation for Osceola Education, Inc. 2310 New Beginnings Road, Suite 118 Kissimmee, FL 34744 407-870-4855 mcosme@osceola.k12.fl.us
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Why Hello, DOE! As of July 1, 2016 the Prodigy Cultural Arts Program is now being funded by the Florida Department of Education. With this change, an opportunity has arisen to examine this remarkable state agency. Here are some fun facts Prodigy staffers and supporters can check out about the newest addition to the Prodigy family: Founded: 1869 Annual budget: $23 Billion USD Pictured above and on the cover: live art piece being worked on by a Prodigy student during the 2015 I Am Prodigy Music Festival.
Picture This
The Prodigy Cultural Arts Program is entering its 16th year of service with a new and improved way of transforming young lives. The program is still abundant in its cultural arts programming. However, it’s now adding a more holistic approach to assure young students and their families are successful in their life choices and endeavors. This approach means each and every student will be able to attend a Prodigy class in addition to receiving academic and family enrichment. Prodigy is not just turning students into believers, it’s turning them into achievers, too! Prodigy’s groundbreaking model will now follow students throughout the school year and life skills will begin to infuse math, literature, science and more. Each student will be assigned a Student Success Coach who will work with him or her to set academic goals and reach benchmarks. Parents and families will now be involved in helping students succeed the Prodigy way.
Headquarters: Tallahassee, FL Department head: Commissioner Pam Stewart Students served: 2.7 million Mission: The Department of Education is here to increase the proficiency of all students within one seamless, efficient system, by providing them with the opportunity to expand their knowledge and skills through learning opportunities and research valued by students, parents, and communities, and to maintain an accountability system that measures student progress.
So, now picture this: when students, families, friends and staff are asked What is Prodigy, the answer is a simple one: Prodigy is every child and the individuals who work to support each child’s success.
In this Issue Listing of Prodigy Sites In the Spotlight The Rewind From Achievers to Believers On the Mic Monthly Event Calendar Summer Class Sampler
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: Prodigy Cultural Arts Program Visit us online at www.TransformingYoungLives.org
Commissioner Pat Stewart
Got a Story to Tell?
For content suggestions, please send an email to Davida A. Bowen at dbowen@uacdc.org.
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IN Programming Locations: 2
Brandon BGC and Freddie Solomon BGC
# of Prodigy Staff: 6
Brandon Boys & Girls Club
4 at Brandon BGC and 2 at Freddie Solomon BGC
Prodigy classes: visual arts percussion Step music production/DJ Other services offered: Y.E.S. Academy
Youth Employment Services Academy featuring paid internships for participants
Summer Care
Summer reading program provided by the United Way matches students with tutors and scholarships
Dental Care
Sun-Coast Dental sponsored program offers free on-site teeth cleanings and sealants
Career Launch
Pictured above: Prodigy students from the FS 88 Drum Line of the Freddie Solomon Boys & Girls Club
Well known throughout the Prodigy network for its phenomenal step team and drum line, the Brandon Boys & Girls Club is one of 18 clubs making up the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tampa Bay. With its reputation for stellar performances, it’s no wonder this remarkable site is slated to host the upcoming 2016 Turn Up IV Prodigy Dance Battle this July. With all of its cool moves, the Brandon Boys & Girls Club is not just a center for the cultural arts but a haven for other youth enrichment programs as well. Together, with Prodigy and agencies such as The United Way, the Brandon Boys & Girls Club is able to undertake its wonderful mission of enabling all young people, especially those who need us the most, to reach their full potential as productive, responsible, caring citizens.
Club teens ages 13-18 embark on a journey to find success in the world of work
Big Brothers Big Sisters
Meetings with children and their partnered sister or brother are arranged on-site
Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Department Donates snacks and school supplies and hosts events
Free Lunch and Snacks Provided at both sites
Walking School Bus
Provides trained escorts to walk with students to the club
How’d They Do That? At 88% BGC Brandon Prodigy has an outstanding retention rate. Site Manager Ana Barrios (pictured right) tells us why.
We always contact parents to see why students have not been attending. Our parents like the program and the perks that come with it (field trips, special events, wraparound services) so they encourage their kids to keep attending classes. We also try not to have any breaks between lesson plans. That way the kids are continuously enrolled and involved in classes. We also try to cater to their interest and make that apart of the classes or events that we plan. 4
Rewind The
Prodigy in Pictures THA Prodigy’s Mini Showcase June 30, 2016
Shown above (clockwise from top left): THA Prodigy student stands by one of his photographs on display, tabletop photos from THA Prodigy young photographers, THA Site Manager Diane Lindsay greets the crowd, a photograph from a THA Prodigy student is displayed at the event entrance, Prodigy Program Manager Josie Rocco and Music Production Instructor Adam Cartwright pose for the camera, guests look on as THA Prodigy students recall how the program has had a positive impact upon their lives 5
From Believers to Achievers 4 Cool Things about Prodigy’s New Student Success Model
Enrolling in Prodigy is not just about filling out an application. It’s about getting to know each student and his or her family so they can be better served.
Did you know over the last year the Prodigy Cultural Arts Program served students through thousands of hours of cultural arts classes? Here are four new and improved ways Prodigy’s network of staff and instructors will utilize those hours to ensure each child uncovers and develops his or her highest artistic potential while making Prodigy’s open behavioral and academic enrollment means strides.
immediate access for students! Once a student is enrolled, he or she can attend classes that very same day.
Prodigy’s promise to deliver life skills through the arts has gone 15 years strong! This year students will explore the arts through at least 3 hours of weekly programming lasting 30 days or more.
Every young artist will now have a Student Success Coach to help them achieve measurable enrichment goals. Parents and guardians will have goals, too, like attending a Prodigy class or show.
Transforming Young Lives Now Means “More” Prodigy’s greatest investment is the Prodigy student. To see the biggest return, students are now encouraged to remain in the program throughout the school year. This new commitment will give students more: more cultural arts classes, more opportunities to shine in showcases, more life skills, more enrichment academically, more events for families and friends. The arts are a highly impactful way to help transform the life of a child and with Prodigy, more is better! 6
J U LY 2 016
Brandon Boy & Girls Club 213 N. Knights Ave., Brandon FL 33510
University Area CDC 14013 N. 22nd St, Tampa, FL 33613 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Networking 9:30 am
HAPPENINGS & EVENTS
July 16, 2016 | 12 pm - 5 pm
East Lake Elementary 4001 Boggy Creek Rd., Kissimmee, FL 34744
The Day We’ve Been Waiting For “As our youth and families are ever changing and growing, Prodigy has to change and keep evolving” It’s a new day!
families. While Prodigy has implemented some wrap around services over the years, we have only been able to scratch the surface in delivering a more holistic approach to youth development. Now under DOE, we will be able to go deeper with youth and family support. This is a very good thing. At our core, Prodigy is and will always be a cultural arts program. Our life skills infused arts classes, our showcases, our special events like our dance battle (coming up
Prodigy’s move to the Florida Department of Education is here and its monumental. Prodigy called DJJ home for 15 years and so it wasn’t an easy switch to move an entire program from one department to another. However, just Continued on page 8 as our youth and families are ever changing and growing, Prodigy has to change and keep evolving. Let’s be real. We know that many of our youth face About the Prodigy Cultural Arts Program extraordinary challenges at home and in their community. Many of them struggle academically The purpose of the Prodigy program is to provide the instruction, tools or with mental health or health issues. Many of and resources that will lead to transformed lives. Youth are encouraged our families, as supportive as they are, also face a to explore themes and ideas that develop a sense of self-worth, as well as myriad of challenges often preventing them from appreciate the worth and value of others and the world in which they reaching their potential. Let’s be real about live. When youth have a better understanding of who they are and how something else. Prodigy may have been the first they connect with their communities, they are better prepared to become place where a student or parent felt comfortable productive and socially responsible adults. enough to talk about or outwardly show they were struggling with these sort of issues. Prodigy For more information, visit www.transformingyounglives.org. has always been a safe place for youth and their 7
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Culinary Art Fashion Art The runway meets the Prodigy way in this creative class designed to introduce students to the world of fashion design. UACDC Tampa I Prodigy Tampa, FL Ages 10 - 13 813-558-5212 x 217 *More classes available! Call or email a Prodigy site for a schedule. See inside front cover for a complete listing of sites.
Discover Prodigy’s perfect recipe for teaching children that cooking is an enduring life skill that can be artistic, creative, and quite tasty! Girls Inc. Prodigy Lakeland, FL Ages 14 - 17 863-682-3002 x 222
African Dance & Culture Journey with Prodigy to explore the rich and colorful culture of Africa. Prodigy Moves Various locations and ages 813-558-5212 x 303
Event information Location Brandon Boys & Girls Club 213 N. Knights Ave. Brandon, FL 33510 Date/Time Saturday, July 16, 2016 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm* *Doors open at 12:00 pm
Itinerary 12:00 pm Check-in 12:30 pm The Cypher dance exhibition 1:00 pm Event kick-off 1:15 pm Special guest performance 1:30 pm The Battle begins - Round I {Preliminaries} 2:30 pm Turn Up Dance Team Challenge 3:15 pm The Cypher dance exhibition 3:30 pm The Battle continues - Round II {Top 16} 3:45 pm Special guest performance
Continued from page 7 on July 16th) are top notch. But, let’s be real one last time. Prodigy has had a knack for reaching some of our hardest to reach young people and their families. It’s that, “gravitational pull” as one Prodigy staffer said a few months ago. People are drawn to the energy that Prodigy provides. This will not change under DOE, it will be expanded and multiplied and as that is happening not only will youth be exposed to and cultivate their art talents but also build skills and supports in other areas – making them even better artists, better dancers, better musicians, better students, better sons and daughters and better members of their community. Thank you to DJJ for 15 years and welcome DOE to the Prodigy family. We’ve been waiting for you! - Mike Trepper Prodigy Director
4:00 pm The Battle Continues - Round III {Top 8} 4:15 pm Win Big Raffle 4:20 pm The Battle continues - Round IV {Top 4} 4:35 pm Turn Up IV Awards: Top Dance Team Top All Styles Competitor Cypher King and Queen Funk Fresh Dressed- kid, adult 4:45 pm The Final Battle - Round V {Top 2} Turn Up IV Trophies Ongoing activities and the concession stand will be available throughout the course of the event. For more information, contact Davida A. Bowen via email at dbowen@uacdc.org or phone at 813-558-5212 x 209. 8