Download pdf - Solar Youth's 2005 Year-in-Review Newsletter

often for the first time. “The most chal-

lenging part of the summer” explained

Jaleesa, “was transitioning from the

youth role to the staff role.”

Staff Training Retreat

This Fall, adult staff, Steward Team In-

terns and our Youth Advisory Group

attended our first overnight training

retreat. It was a great success, particu-

larly in terms of the bonding that oc-

curred among the youth, and be-

tween youth and adults. We hope to

repeat this for future training, pending

funding of course.

Youth employment is an integral part

of our programming. It gives older

youth experience working, provides

role models for younger children, and

gives our participants opportunities to

continue their leadership develop-

ment.

According to Sharnice Brooks, working

for Solar Youth “gave me an opportuni-

ty to have responsibility and also learn

at the same time.” Xavier Miller adds

that you get to “learn about others

and learn more about yourself.”

E ach Friday afternoon, teenagers

trickle into the office for their

weekly staff meeting. There are

smiles and jokes, laughter and chatter.

The meeting opens with an Intern lead-

ing a new game, then the Interns and

adult Team Educators discuss their

“Roses and Thorns” for the week, talk-

ing about their successes and chal-

lenges. After a brief introduction to

new curriculum, the staff break off in

pairs to prepare for the next week’s

program.

Friday staff meetings are only one

component of our youth employment

program. Solar Youth hires youth year-

round from high schools throughout

New Haven. Each undergoes a rigor-

ous hiring process that includes an

application, interview and references.

In 2005, Solar Youth trained

and hired 15 high school

students as leaders. This was

made possible through support from

Empower New Haven. Since our

founding, we have employed over fifty

youth.

During an intensive staff training, Interns

learn about ecology, youth develop-

ment, team-building, behavior man-

agement, as well as Solar Youth’s

hands-on curricula including songs,

games and chal-

lenges.

Our youth employ-

ment posi tions

teach job skills es-

sential for future

success including

leadership, respon-

sibility, and ac-

c o u n t a b i l i t y .

Through the oppor-

tunities they gain,

and the supports

provided by caring

adult supervisors,

they build essential

competencies in-

cluding positive self

-worth, a sense of

membership and

belonging, commu-

Volume 5

January 2006 2005 YEAR-IN-REVIEW

BOARD OF

DIRECTORS

Heather Gilbert Chair

Shakila McKnight Youth Co-Chair

Maureen McCarthy Treasurer

Javaughn Harris Youth Co-Treasurer

Rebecca Gratz Secretary

Jasmine Webb Youth Co-Secretary

Chris Cavallaro

Peter Davis

Charles Nixon

Joanne Sciulli

Kate Walton

nication skil ls and

more. Youth must main-

tain a passing grade in

all classes to emphasize

education as a priority.

We require youth to

open bank accounts for

di rect deposi t of

paychecks, to learn

money management.

Summer

Last summer we hired 3

Senior Interns (ages 15-

16) and 3 Junior Interns

(14). All Junior Interns

(Luquaia, LeShea and Angelica) were

past Solar Youth participants. This was

Senior Intern Jaleesa Freeman’s 6th

summer with us!

Both groups

gained experi-

ence develop-

ing and imple-

menting lesson

plans, executing

daily responsi-

bilities and cul-

tivating healthy

peer relation-

ships. Youth participants were excited

to learn about new subjects from other

youth just a few years their senior.

Much of the youth’s learning comes

from being in positions of leadership,

William is a freshman at Common Ground

High School, as well as a resident of

Westville Manor. He was one of our first

Stewards in 2001, and was with us for three

seasons. He joined us again in the Fall of

2005 as an Intern for our Neighborhood

Steward Teams. We now watch him lead

the same kinds of activities he used to

p a r t i c i -

pate in!

At school, he also volunteers at

the Downtown Evening Soup

Kitchen, and at his former ele-

mentary school, reads to chil-

dren and helps them with their

homework. “Will Will” has a

William at NST in 2001

William mentoring Steward

Staff, Interns and YAG at fall 2005 retreat in Branford, CT

Intern Xavier with a

Westville Manor youth

Youth Employment and Leadership By Rosana Garcia

INSIDE learn about our 2005

accomplishments and how

Kids Explore! Kids Do!

Kids Teach!

Solar Youth, Inc. provides opportunities for young people to

develop a positive sense of self, and a connection and

commitment to others through programs that incorporate

environmental exploration, leadership and community service.

2005 Adult Staff

Joanne Sciulli

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Hanifa Washington

DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION

Rosana Garcia

PROGRAM MANAGER

Stephanie Bergman

PROGRAM DIRECTOR (SPRING)

John Forte

SCA INTERN

Kendall Applewhite

SPRING PUBLIC ALLY

Gamaliel Moses

FALL PUBLIC ALLY

Danny Carrillo

TEAM EDUCATOR (SPRING) YALE COLLEGE

Brandi Collander

TEAM EDUCATOR (FALL) YALE SCHOOL OF FORESTRY AND

ENVIRONMETNAL STUDIES

2005 Youth Staff

Javaughn Harris

YAG COORDINATOR

INTERNS

Sharnice Brooks

Angelica Bryant

Lakisha Catlett

Jaleesa Freeman

Tamira Jones

Tiffany McCrea

Luquaia Melton

Xavier Miller

Andrea Moore

Candace Morrison

Jody Ann Purcell

LeShea Sparks

Adrienne Toney

William Winfrey

It’s official—we turned 5!! This newsletter gives a taste of our year’s activities

and accomplishments, made possible by our generous supporters. However,

we continue to struggle to stay alive financially. “Seed” funds got us off the

ground. We are now seeking sources of support we can count on year after

year. This is one of our main objectives in 2006—to strategize ways to become

financially sustainable. This work will happen as we continue to provide unique

opportunities for New Haven’s youth, and demonstrate the power of positive

youth development.

About 11 percent of our income last year, or $30,000, came from F.O.S.Y.—

―Friends of Solar Youth‖ - individuals who made our work one of their giving

priorities. This income is an essential part of our financial survival. Therefore,

whether you are an individual, parent, youth or business, a past, current or

future F.O.S.Y., we encourage you to join us in the new year. Thank you in

advance for your support.

Sincerely,

Joanne Sciulli

Executive Director

SOLAR YOUTH, INC. PAGE 3

Solar Youth Goes to

Japan! BY NICOLE DUNNAVILLE, YAG

If Javaughn and I could name this

once in a lifetime experience, we

would call it JAPAN: LOST IN TRANSLATION,

for the simple reason that it was really

a different world from where we live.

This summer we got to go to Japan for

the United Nation’s 2005 Children’s

World Summit for the Environment. This

conference went from July 26th to 29th,

held in Aichi, Japan. The mission was to

bring together children from all over

the world to discuss important environ-

mental issues and air their own con-

cerns on the state of the environment

on both local and global levels.

The Summit didn’t just get served to us

on a silver platter. First we registered

online and wrote an essay. When we

heard we were accepted, we got

down to business. We wrote a proposal

to the International Coalition for Chil-

dren and the Environment and asked if

they could help us fulfill this once and

a lifetime opportunity. We also ran

Operation Can Angel (where we

asked people if they can save their

cans so we can turn them in for mon-

ey), Yale Employee Support Campaign

(Javaughn’s mother asked coworkers

for donations). Nicole’s mom asked

different local businesses for donations.

Dominic Gilardi from A1 Toyota, Kathe-

rine Owens, Yale Office of New Haven

and State Affairs and other individuals

made the trip possible!

We headed to

the New Ha-

ven Public

Library to study

before our big

day — about

the language

and culture.

Chris Cavallaro

showed us

how to eat the

food.

The day we left

we headed to

JFK, where we

said our good-

byes. This was

Javaughn and my first plane ride. We

were very excited but nervous at the

same time. It lasted 13 long hours, but

it was all worth it.

The conference was packed full. Each

day had a theme, for example one

day we focused on water and the

next on energy. We had trips and

workshops based on those themes.

Workshops we attended were Chil-

dren’s Health (where they taught us

about how other countries don’t have

fresh water to drink like we have and

this causes illness). One of my favorite

was on wind farming because we got

to visit it and experience it first hand.

They taught us that it is a “safe” energy

for the environment, and also that one

windmill’s energy can power 100

homes and saves 27 tons of CO2 each

year. It was an amazing piece of tech-

nology. We asked about the contro-

versy of wind mills killing birds, but they

told us it was not a problem. But while

we at the windmill site, we found a

couple of dead birds on the ground.

Hmmm.

While in Japan we went to the 2005

World Expo. It was truly amazing. The

theme was “Nature’s Wisdom.” It is this

century’s version of the World Fair.

Different countries built pavil-

ions showing unique things

from their country. We stayed

there for that whole day, but

still didn’t get to see every-

thing.

During the conference we

asked kids why they came to

the Summit. Some said they

came to meet new friends.

Others said they wanted to

learn more about the environ-

ment. But overall, kids came

to have fun with different peo-

ple from around the world.

After the conference was

over, we stayed in Japan for

one more night (or so we

thought). We went exploring,

shopping and eating in Tokyo.

The hardest part was not be-

ing able to communicate with

most people.

On the train to the airport, WE

MISSED OUR STOP!! So we

found people who spoke Eng-

lish and they helped us get to

the airport, but not in time. We

had to leave the next day, but

got home safe.

On this trip we learned many

things, like that we are very

lucky to live where we live.

People around the world have

environmental problems we

do not have, but the problems

that hurt children around the

world should be important to

us. Finally, we learned that

before you visit someone else's

culture, you should do re-

search and learn about them.

We felt disrespectful and out

of place because we couldn’t

speak the language. WE were

the foreigners.

As I said before, we are very

lucky. We can actually say

that we have been to Japan be-

cause of the wonderful donors who

helped us get there! It was truly a

once and a lifetime experience!

Eating Sushi in Tokyo

We

me

t kid

s from

…

Ne

pa

l… Fin

lan

d…

Jap

an

… Le

ba

no

n…

Tog

o…

an

d K

en

ya

.

Nicole with children at local elementary school

At the World EXPO in front

of Toyota Science Plaza

Mutual Housing-George St. The Mutual Team was a

renewed partnership with

Mutual Housing’s building

at 730 George Street.

They were very enthusias-

tic and spent a lot of time

exploring the local com-

munity, including West

River Memorial Park. Every

June, Mutual Housing par-

ticipates in Neighborhood Works Week, so as

their CSAP, the Team made signs to recruit

people in the community for a neighborhood

clean-up. The Team helped lead smaller

groups during the clean-up. For the PEF they

created posters and spoke about their neigh-

borhood litter clean-up.

John Martinez School

The Martinez Team in Fair Haven focused on

water-related issues because of their ideal

location on the confluence of the Mill and

Quinnipiac Rivers. Through their C-SAP pro-

cess, the Team had decided to plant flowers

in the courtyard of the school. The team de-

cided later that litter at Criscuolo Park was a

larger problem, and planned a very success-

ful, last-minute, clean-up there. For the PEF

they created posters and speeches about

animal classification, creating rules, teamwork,

ecosystems, and the C-SAP.

Hill Central Teams At Hill Central

Music Academy,

2 Steward Teams

are part of the

21s t Ce ntu ry

Community Learn-

ing Center pro-

gram that pro-

vides after school

programs for all

grade levels. Both

Teams learned about ecological adaptations

through a variety of games, working as a

group to solve the riddles their Team Educator

presented. For the PEF, they created posters

and speeches about their C-SAPs

Hill Central 1 The Monday/Wednesday Team identified a

messy trail on the side of the school as their

problem. They did a clean up and planted

annuals and wildflower seeds to beautify it.


AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS

RUN IN COLLABORATION WITH

NEW HAVEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS

AND COMMUNITY-BASED

ORGANIZATIONS

Celentano Music Academy During one of the TEAM’S walks around the

community, they noticed a lot of graffiti; espe-

cially on one of the local churches. They de-

cided that this would be the focus of their C-

SAP, and did a fantastic job painting over the

graffiti on the side of the Agape Christian Cen-

ter on Goffe Street. For Solar Youth’s Public

Education (PEF) Forum, they created posters

and spoke about their CSAP, field trips, and

feeling successful!

Katherine Brennan School The TEAM started off small, but grew into a

strong, large group that focused a great deal

of their time on team building activities. The

TEAM focused their C-SAP on removing graffiti

from the local park. Unfortunately, the day

the C-SAP was to take place, the weather did

not cooperate for painting, so they did a park

clean-up and painted a few days later. For

the Solar Youth’s Public Education Forum, they

created posters and speeches about litter,

their CSAP and graffiti.

Martinez NST at Criscuolo Park Clean Up

Hill Central 2 The Tuesday/Thursday Team identified the

weed infested flower beds around the school

as their problem. In total they counted 18

beds, of which they adopted two to de-weed

and plant marigolds. The Team also collected

rocks to border the beds.

Katherine Brennan School The Brennan Team, alt-

hough small, was strong.

Led by grad student Brandi

Collander from the Yale

School of Forestry and

Environmental Studies, for

their CSAP they chose to

clean up around their

school.

Mutual Housing-George St. The Mutual Housing Team chose the littering of

cigarette butts as their CSAP problem. They

ordered cigarette butt receptacles for around

their building and made buttons to encourage

the use of the receptacles, with slogans like

“Butt Free Zone.”

John Martinez School

The Martinez Team realized that there were no

recycling bins anywhere in their school. They

spoke with school officials and discovered that

the school will be starting a recycling program.

The youth decided to construct recycling bins

from cardboard boxes and placed them out-

side many of the classrooms in their school to

educate people about their schools recycling

program.

Planting flowers

at Hill Central

Celentano NST painting graffiti for their CSAP


Building a New Neighborhood Steward Team: Westville Manor

The top of West Rock Ridge

Hill Central 1 For their CSAP, youth chose to clean a trail

that runs close to the school and add a gar-

bage can colorfully painted by the Team to

encourage proper disposal of litter. However,

due to a situation in the neighborhood, the

Team had to stay close to school and come

up with a quick alternative. So they did a

school yard clean-up and planted flowers.

They also made and handed out magnets

with Anti-Litter Slogans to their classmates for a

Teach project.

Hill Central 2 Fifteen third graders made up the Hill Central 2

Team. An energetic group that enjoys games

and songs, they decided to plant tulip bulbs

around their school for their CSAP. The New

Haven Land Trust supplies us with the bulbs,

and advice, for a successful planting.

At the foot of West Rock Ridge State Park,

Westville Manor houses 151 families and is the

NEW home of the Solar Youth office, as well as

a new NEIGHBORHOOD STEWARD TEAM.

With West Rock Park, West Rock Nature Center

and Wintergreen Brook nearby, Westville Man-

or is an ideal neighborhood for a Solar Youth

Team, full of opportunities for youth to Explore,

Do and Teach. Due to the unfortunate pres-

ence of drugs and violence, there is also a

tremendous need for youth programming

here.

Although many of the children in the area

have been a part of Solar Youth at some

point, to build a Team we need to do out-

reach. In November staff led a hike through

West Rock for Westville Manor youth. It was a

beautiful autumn day and twelve youth joined

in. Intern Xavier Miller is a resident of “the

Manor” and his community knowledge helped

us reach youth.

Westville Manor youth also joined in our Satur-

day trips, such as the Garbage Museum. One

youth commented on his feedback form: “I

learned that you can have so much fun in one

day.”

We feel confident that the Westville Manor

Neighborhood Steward Team will be a strong

one, with many motivated and enthusiastic

youth willing to learn about their community

environment and improve it.

On Saturdays, we invited members of all Steward Teams to day-long adventures, to explore

new places and meet youth from around the city. Here are some highlights.

Hammonassett State Park The Bronx Zoo We found a dead

deer on top of

West Rock Park

Reptiles with

Ranger Joe,

WR Nature

Center

Garbage Museum

In Stratford

Fall Hike


adventures during the Citywide Steward Pro-

gram. We ended the summer with butterflies

in our stomachs as we explored the ups and

downs of Lake Compounce Amusement Park.

CAMPING AT GREAT MOUNTAIN FOREST by Tiffanique Dicks

On Thursday, August 4th at 9:30 we packed up

two cars and the bus and traveled 2 ½ hours

to Great Mountain Forest. Then we hiked up

about a mile to a campsite called Yale Camp.

When we reached the campsite we had

lunch and played games. Then we set up our

tents. After we set up we played some more

games. Next we searched for firewood and

leaned how to make a campfire. When we

went camping we learned how to make

s’mores. We also learned some cool stuff

about how the eye works and why winter-

green lifesavers make sparks in the dark.

Special Thanks to our program partners… Including...Wray Williams at West Rock

Nature Center; Southern Connecticut

State University for taking us to Outer Is-

land; New Haven Parks Department for

the bikes and canoeing; Susan Swenson

for her EE expertise; Star Childs and Great

Mountain Forest for camping site; Bushy

Hill for a day of adventure; Bank of

America for use of the 27th floor for our

Public Education Forum; and others!

Sponsors: LONG ISLAND SOUND FUTURES FUND

NEW HAVEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS and ANNIE E. CASEY FOUNDATION

T his summer, our theme was

watersheds! Each week of the

program was dedicated to a particular

part of understanding watersheds.

Youth learned about the chemistry of

water, water cycle, importance of water,

and how watersheds shape their lives.

Participants went on a total of 19 trips

during the 26 days of the program. They

identified environmental problems and

completed three Community Service

Action Projects. At the end of the sum-

mer, they taught their families and others

about all they had learned and accom-

plished. This year we had so many appli-

cants that we had to create a waiting

list! Overall, we had a GREAT SUMMER!

Week 1: Introduction Week! We explored the

basic concepts of a watershed and youth

used their eco-art skills to create a model wa-

tershed out of paper mache and recyclable

items.

Week 2: Geography Week! Taking field trips to

the Kellogg Environmental Center in Derby, CT;

Outer Island in Stony Creek, CT and New

Haven’s own East Rock Park transformed

learning about how water shapes the land

into a riveting adventure!

Week 3: Flora & Fauna Week! Youth learned

about the plants and animals that thrive on

CT’s water sources. We loaded up the bus

and went on a wet and wild ride during our

New Haven Watershed Tour. Youth used maps

to understand how water flows from a high-

point to a common body of water. With the

New Haven Parks Dept. we canoed Lake Win-

tergreen. Campers also had the special treat

of going to a rare Atlantic Cedar swamp at

the Bushy Hill Nature Center in Ivoryton, CT.

Week 4: Human Impact Week! This week fo-

cused on the human impact on water sources

with trips to the New Haven Waste Water

Treatment Plant and the Maritime Aquarium in

Norwalk. Youth also learned some watery his-

tory as we biked down the Farmington Canal.

Week 5: Kids Do Week! We started August

with youth-led Community Service Action Pro-

jects. After their hard work we headed up to

Great Mt. Forest for an overnight camping trip

(most youth’s first time camping).

Week 6: Kids Teach Week! At our Public Edu-

cation Forum (PEF) campers put on their dra-

ma hats and thinking caps to present their

As “Old-ladies of the Watershed,” Interns taught

campers the three rivers of New Haven through song.

Jackie and youth construct a watershed

Canoeing with NH Parks Dept.

on Lake Wintergreen

For C-SAP’s (Community Service Ac-

tion Projects), youth are led through a

9-step process:

Explore Community

Identify Problems

Choose a Problem

Research Problem

Brainstorm Solutions

Choose a Solution

Develop an Action Plan

Take Action

Evaluate Results

To teach family and friends what they learned and accomplished during the pro-

gram, each youth wrote a short presentation highlighting one day, including the

theme of the day, where we went, and what activities we did. Each C-SAP group

created wonderful chants and skits about their Community Service Action Pro-

jects. The youth greatly enjoyed preparing for and presenting at the Public Edu-

cation Forum, and the audience benefited from not only hearing about, but see-

ing what activities the youth participated in this summer.

BAKE SALE FOR CHILDREN At Goffe Street Park, a group of youth orga-

nized a bake sale to benefit St. Jude’s Chil-

dren’s Hospital.

BEACH CLEAN UP AT LIGHTHOUSE POINT One of the CSAP groups decided

to clean up Lighthouse Point

Beach, which is visited by an

estimated 200 New Haven

beach-goers a day. The youth

filled three large garbage bags

with litter.

ENVIRONMENTAL SHOWCASE AND TALENT SHOW

WEST ROCK COMMUNITY CENTER, NEW HAVEN At the West Rock Community Center, Solar

Youth presented an Environmental Show-

case and Talent Show. Forty elderly and

mentally handicapped people elected to

watch the showcase. Through three well-

orchestrated, youth-led chants, the audi-

ence learned about the water cycle and

New Haven watersheds. The director of

recreation of the center urged the youth to

come back again.

In Parent’s Words… “My child has more knowledge of the environ-

ment and how what we do can affect it. He

has made friends and built a little more confi-

dence in himself.”

“She never looked forward to going to any

camp before. For the last 5 years we have

gone to many camps and after a week or less

she wanted to drop out. This is the first camp

she has wanted to attend.”

“My children have learned a lot of knowledge

that they could not learn in books.”

“How can you measure the confidence,

knowledge and love that Solar Youth staff

gave our kids for nature and the environment

and its processes? As a parent I love the fact

that [my son] looks forward to going to the

program. On the weekends he anticipates

going back on Monday. I can’t praise Solar

Youth and the staff enough.”


2005 YAG Members Javaughn Harris Christian Reyes

Jelisa Burton Nicole Dunnaville

Shakila McKnight Jasmine Webb

YAG AT THE PEABODY For the 2005 Martin Luther King Environmen-

tal Justice Festival at the Peabody Museum,

the YAG along with Hanifa Washington,

Director of Education, created an environ-

mental justice issues and events timeline.

The YAG also created a scavenger hunt on

environmental justice for the participants to

complete. We gave out prizes to the peo-

ple that completed the scavenger hunt.

JAPAN PRESENTATIONS Javaughn and Nicole presented their adven-

tures in Japan (see page 3) to over sixty children

and adults this fall. The first presentation took

place at the Connecticut Financial Center for

family and spon-

sors.

In the video they

produced, they

captured memo-

rable moments

including their first

time on a plane,

trying to decipher

subway ticket

machines, their reaction to Japanese-style beds

at their Tokyo hostel and a classic music video

of Javaughn, Nicole and Joanne doing their

unique rendition of Alicia Keys’ song, “Fallin’.”

Javaughn and Nicole also visited Solar Youth’s

after-school Steward Teams to teach partici-

pants about Japan and their trip. They taught

some basic Japanese words like konnichiwa,

which means hello and goodbye, and arigatou,

which means thank you. They plan to present

their adventures to other local after school pro-

grams in the coming months.

OTHER YAG ACCOMPLISHMENTS Gave presentations on international cultures

and cuisine at spring Youth Summit

Javaughn participated in New England Grass-

roots Environmental Fund’s grant-making

committee in New Hampshire

Participated in the Community Dialogue on

the Achievement Gap at the New Haven Pub-

lic Library.

Attended Environmental Justice conference in

Hartford

Started to organize a Food Pantry for the

Westville Manor community with Connecticut

Food Bank

Organized the Solar Youth Holiday Party

At a Tokyo subway station

Hands-on Outdoor Learning Adven-

H OLA is Solar Youth’s in-school program is run in collaboration with New Haven

Public Schools and New Haven Parks and Recreation. It provides opportunities for students in the 3rd to 5th grade to engage in in-depth explorations, facilitating an

understanding of science as it relates to personal, social and global issues. HOLA supports the Connecticut Core Science Curriculum Framework. Youth learn

through hands-on, outdoor, inquiry-based lessons both at New Haven Parks and on-site at their schools.

2004-2005 HOLA SEASON

Last year we ran the HOLA program at Barnard Environmental and Micro-Society Magnet Schools with overwhelming suc-cess. The curriculum was positively re-ceived by teachers and students. Teach-

ers greatly appreciated the curriculum being synchronized with the New Haven standards. As one 4th grade teacher not-ed, “the instruction is aligned with my sci-ence curriculum,” while a 3rd grade teacher said her students “learned about conservation, and the activities reinforced some of our social studies curriculum deal-ing with resources.” The students greatly enjoyed getting outside and learning, and after water testing, one student claimed they “felt like real scientists.”

Learning about population dynamics by playing

“Oh Deer!” at West Rock Nature Center

Classmates learn about the 3 R’s by Recycled

Bingo at Coogan Pavilion.

Participants put their skills to the test and water

testing at the Mill River in East Rock Park.

The mission of the YAG is to is “to advise Solar

Youth on what kids like to do, act as a youth

voice, support the success of Solar Youth, and

help youth grow in their attitudes, business life,

public speaking, knowledge and skills we will

need in the future.”

This is a poster for a Japanese

theatre production of “Driving Miss

Daisy” in Toyota City, Japan.

HOLA creates an outdoor classroom

Kids Teach! Day 3 of the Summit was again hosted by

Common Ground High School, where partici-

pants were given a farm tour, highlighting the

poultry pen, chicken hatchery and plant nurse-

ry with incubator, and the vegetable rows

where they tasted home-grown organic pro-

duce. Later, participants created educational

games to pass on lessons learned through their

Solar Youth experiences.

economic activities and cuisine. Youth also

learned about healthy eating and nutrition

from Kendell Applewhite, our spring Public Ally,

who presented about the food pyramid, and

led a game reinforcing food pyramid facts.

Kids Do! Day 2 was held at East Rock Park, where par-

ticipants split into three groups and together

completed a cleanup of Rice Field. Later, we

hiked up the Great Steps to the summit of East

Rock.

S olar Youth held its annual Youth Sum-

mit during the New Haven Public

School spring vacation, from April 19-21.

The Youth Advisory Group chose this

year’s focus: Health and Nutrition—

important elements of youth develop-

ment.

Kids Explore! Day 1 was held at Common Ground High

School where participants learned about

d i f f e r e n t

c u l t u r e s

from mem-

bers of the

Y A G ,

t h r o u g h

posters and

s p e e c h e s

on Japan,

China and

Puerto Rico,

highlighting

c u l t u r e s , At the East Rock Park Clean Up: Look at all the trash!

At Common Ground Farm

Teaching the Food Pyramid


O ctober 1, 2005 dawned cool

and clear. By mid-day is was

warm, sunny, and, at West Rock

Ridge State Park, it was a perfect

day for a festival.

Inspired by youth of the New

Haven Environmental Justice

Advisory Board of CT-DEP in 1996,

the goal of the festival is to high-

light the resources of West Rock

Park and to provide a fun, edu-

cational opportunity for New

Haven families.

With four sites, the festival

had something for every-

one. The New Haven Parks

Department hosted canoe-

ing on Lake Wintergreen as

part of their Canoe New

Haven Program.

At Common Ground Farm, there

was a Farmer’s Market, farm tours,

hay rides, Bike Jamboree, folk music

and drumming with Dave “Baba”

Coleman.

At the West Rock Nature Center,

Park Ranger Wray Williams showed

off some of the animals in the Rep-

tile and Amphibian House. Children

and adults enthusiastically painted

pumpkins on the porch of the center

and, in the parking lot, tried their

hands (and feet) at the mobile

climbing wall.

At the Summit, there was a free

cookout of hotdogs and Tofu Pups.

The Eco-Fair, with earth-friendly,

hands-on fun, had recycled paper

making, lessons on how to make fire

with a bow drill, and an exhibit

about the flora and fauna of West

Rock Park. After his stop at Com-

mon Ground, “Baba” brought his

drumming to the Summit, sharing his

instruments and rhythm. The day

ended with a performance by

“Luggage” the Band.

Solar Youth reached out to the com-

munities that surround the Park prior

to the event. Solar Youth’s Public

Ally, Gamaliel Moses led drum cir-

cles in Westville Manor, Brookside,

Valley Townhouses and McCo-

naughy Terrace public housing to

“drum” up interest in the festival.

We wanted

everyone to

know that free

shuttle busses

would be run-

ning not only

between the

four sites, but

also in and out

of their neighborhoods.

A special thanks to all our

volunteers, who acted as

guides, cooks, canoe

launchers and more, smil-

ing the entire time! We

couldn’t have done it with-

out them!

Overall, it was a great day,

with many people learning about the re-

sources available right in their backyard. If

you missed it this year, make sure you join us

next year for a West Rockin’ good time!

West Rock Park Day Organizing Committee:

SOLAR YOUTH

NEW HAVEN ECOLOGY PROJECT

NEW HAVEN PARKS, RECREATION AND TREES

WEST ROCK PARK SENIOR COMMISSIONER

ASSOCIATION

CT DEPT. of ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

Event Sponsors:

West Rock Ridge Park Association

Mayor’s Community Art Grant Program

Community Foundation Neighborhood Prog.

Connecticut Food Bank

Lake Wintergreen

Climbing Wall

Pumpkin

Painting

Drumming with Baba

Drumming for the Rock!


JOHN FORTE

J ohn Forte hails from Georgetown, Guyana.

After receiving his degree in environmental

studies from the University of Guyana, he moved

to New Haven where his mother is getting a PhD

from the Yale's School of Forestry and Environ-

mental Studies. He joined Solar Youth as a Team

Educator in the Fall of 2004, but became our full

time Student Conservation Association intern in

January 2005. As an educator of our Steward

Teams and summer program, John brought hu-

mor, energy and a unique style to our family. He

is known by youth for his crazy renditions of

“Fried Chicken Wing” and

the Solar Youth chant. In

addition, John became our

database guru, and assisted

Joanne in every aspect with

fundraising. We wish you

luck in graduate school, and

we will miss you John!

Thank You Stephanie! After three years as Solar Youth’s Program Director, Stephanie Bergman

is taking her love of nature and youth back to the wilderness. This sum-

mer she left New Haven to

become Director of Education

at Clearpool Education Center

in Carmel, NY. Stephanie was

an invaluable part of Solar

Youth’s early years. She dedi-

cated her energy, creativity

and passion to building our

programs. According to youth

Maryann Calo, “Stephanie is

fun and she has GREAT charis-

ma.” We are in great debt to

her, and wish her luck and

happiness on the next leg of

her journey.

Republic Art Thanks to a grant from the Connecticut Com-

mission for the Arts, we partnered with rePub-

lic Art as part of the “Color Project.” The goal

is “to expand the nature of art in public plac-

es through participatory art projects that

h e l p b u i l d c o m m u n i t y

and public appreciation for the arts as a vehi-

cle for positive social change.” This year’s

street banner theme is Diversity. After a les-

son on New Haven’s biodiversity, our youth

drew designs for 16 banners. The Youth Advi-

sory Group, staff and others then painted the

banners—which can currently be seen hung

on street poles in Downtown New Haven.

Thanks JoAnn Moran for your dedication to

youth and art in New Haven!

Clockwise from top: Stephanie and Mary see a salamander at

Lake Wintergreen; Hike up the Great Steps of East Rock; Josiah,

LeShea and Jaleesa-summer 2005; Nelson at the Wastewater

Treatment Plant.

In the Press...

Joanne and Nicole accept a

Long Island Sound License Plate

Fund grant from Governor Jodi

Rell, head of CT’s DMV and DEP

Commissioner Gina McCarthy for

summer 2006 program —

CITYCOLOGY(stay tuned!).

Solar Youth has traveled around the world, and the

world has come to Solar Youth. Our staff include

John from Guyana, Hanifa from Texas, Gameliel from

Dominica, Rosana from Puerto Rico and Joanne

from New Haven (at least for the last 12 years).

F.O.S.Y. 2005 Friends of Solar Youth

to our...

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF NEW HAVEN (In-Kind Office Space)

CAROLYN FOUNDATION

LONG ISLAND SOUND FUTURES FUND

THE WATERSHED FUND (REGIONAL WATER AUTHORITY)

US ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

NEW ALLIANCE BANK FOUNDATION

MUTUAL HOUSING ASSOCIATION

PUBLIC ALLIES CONNECTICUT

ANNIE E. CASEY FOUNDATION

LONG ISLAND SOUND STUDY

INTERNATIONAL COALITION FOR CHILDREN AND THE ENVIRONMENT

COMMUNITY FOUNDATION – NEIGHBORHOOD PROGRAM

MAYOR'S COMMUNITY ARTS GRANT PROGRAM

YALE OFFICE OF NEW HAVEN AND STATE AFFAIRS

NEWMAN’S OWN ORGANICS

...AND PARTNERS CITY OF NEW HAVEN DEPARTMENT OF PARKS, RECREATION AND TREES;

BROOKSIDE COMMUNITY; KATHERINE BRENNAN/CLARENCE ROGERS SCHOOL; HILL

CENTRAL MUSIC ACADEMY, CELENTANO MUSEUM ACADEMY; JOHN MARTINEZ

SCHOOL; BARNARD ENVIRONMENTAL MAGNET SCHOOL; MICROSOCIETY MAGNET

SCHOOL; NEW HAVEN ECOLOGY PROJECT; SCSU SCIENCE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT;

STUDENT CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION; PEABODY MUSEUM; AND MORE...

NEW HAVEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS

There are many ways YOU can be a ―Friend of Solar Youth‖:

Donate on www.solaryouth.org - or send a TAX-DEDUCTIBLE check to:

Solar Youth, 425 West Rock Avenue, New Haven, CT 06515

Sell things on Ebay? Donate a % through Missionfish.org

Extra Car? Donate to SY and take a tax deduction

Extra Time? Volunteer time for trips, Committees or Board of Directors

Tell a Friend about us—and join the FOSY Posse!

Lanna Akers, Carol & Frank Altieri, Janet

& Joe Ambrose, Christin Eve Arnini,

Barnes Group Foundation, Dave

Bechtel, Cordalie Benoit, Stephanie

Bergman, Molly & Chuck Birenbaum,

Nathan Bixby, Leslie Blatteau, Ona

Bloom, Robert & Kati Bradley, Zoe

Brookes, Alisa & Gordon Brown, Bill

Brown, Johnna Brown, Keishanna

McCalmon, Susan Brown, Frank

Bruchman, Beth Rosen & John Buell, Bill

Burch, Thea Buxbaum, Rebecca Gratz

& Joe Callaghan, Mitz Car, Wendy S. &

John Champion, Fifi Cheng, Marian

Chertow, Star Childs, Lisa Clark, J. Kieran

Coleman, Sean Corvino, Robert

McGuire & Ilene Crawford, Lee Cruz,

Charlotte & Donald Currier, Jim Martin &

Terry Dagradi, Che Dawson, Ellen Denny

& Andrew Richardson, William Doheny,

Eileen Eder, Karen Gilvarg & Eric Epstein,

Suzi Epstein, Kim Estes-Fradis, Sarah Fa-

bish, Josephine Robinson & Dean Fisher,

Kristen Phelps & Bob Fitzgerald, Jack

Fitzpatrick, Assoc., Sarah Fitzpatrick,

Alyson Fox, Brian Blakeley & Terry Free-

man, Carol Gaetjen, Dominic Galardi,

Matthew Garrett, Gordon & Shelley

Geballe, Chris Getman, Lindy Lee Gold,

Alfred & Irma Gonzalez III, Michelle

Gottlieb, Bill Gratz, David Heiser, Bonnie

Hill, Tom Holahan, Heather Hurst, Joseph

Illick, Annamaria & R. Franco Iuliano,

Thom Johnson,

Colae And Clint Jukkala, Peter & Meg

Kassen, Kelly Keefe, Knights of

Columbus, Jenny Laden, Susan Landon,

Sheryl Leamer, Trina & David Learned,

A. Lehren, Lenny Levesque, Rev. David

Lewicki, Joanne Price c/o Libby

Foundation, Gina & Scott Little, Sharon

& Bennett Lovett Graff, Steve Massey,

Laura McCargur, Maureen McCarthy,

Jen, Alex & Max MikoLevine, Susan &

David Millen, Florence Miller, G. &

Penelope Miller, April Mohr, Lenny

Moskovitz, Joelle Musante, John Navar-

ro, Lynne Tourville & Gregory Neagle,

Julie Newman, Sara Ohly, Elisabet Or-

ville, Bob & Inge Osborne, Susan Papa,

Mike & Ann Paulsmeyer, Melanie Payne,

Edmund & Elisabeth Peck, Geannine &

John Peck, Muffy Pendergast, Charles

Pillsbury, Cathryn Poff, Elana Ponet, Dev-

on & Kelly

Porpora, Stephen Press, Jo-Ann &

Michael Price, Andrew Rapkin, Matthew

Robb, Holly Robins, Jackel Robinson,

Helen Rosenberg, Marjorie Rosenthal,

Lynda Russo-Johnston, Elisa Sananman,

Erin Scanlon, Duncan Schmitt, Barbara

& Frank Sciulli, Chris Winters & Leigh

Shemitz, Deb & Dan Shepherd, Claire

Shubik, Heidi Sormaz, Shanna Strongin,

Martha Venter, Cassandra Vertefeulle,

Janna Wagner, Kate Walton, West Rock

Ridge Park Association, Rhonda

Williams, Robin Winnat, Yale University

Graduate & Professional School Senate,

Yarn, LLC, George Zdru, Louise Zemina

YOUTH SPOTLIGHT NICOLE DUNNAVILLE

By Javaughn Harris, YAG Coordinator

N icole Dunnaville has been in Solar Youth

since the summer of 2002, as part of the

Citywide Steward Program. Since then, she has

joined the Youth Advisory Group (YAG). As part

of the YAG, she has been to conferences with

other youth organizations and trainings on facili-

tation and leadership. Last summer, she attend-

ed the 2005 Children’s World Summit for the Envi-

ronment in Aichi, Japan.

The adult and youth staff at Solar Youth has only

good things to say about Nicole. Nicole is a

polite, compassionate person to be around.

“She’s wicked funny and always takes initiative

on projects,” says Joanne Sciulli, Solar Youth’s

ED. “We have seen her gain great confidence

over the years.” She’s very dependable and

helps other people on projects when they need

help. The only thing I can say about Nicole is

that she is a good friend that you can trust and

always count on. She’s always positive, has a

smile on her face and can always make you feel

better. That is why we chose Nicole as our Youth

Spotlight for 2005, because personally, I think

there was not a better choice.

Nicole with Russian woman in Japan,

2005

Nicole on a YAG Retreat in 2004

Nicole at a ropes course in 2002

54 Wayfarer Street

New Haven, CT 06515

(203) 387-4189

[email protected]

NONPROFIT ORG

US POSTAGE

PAID New Haven, CT

PERMIT NO. 67