The Eastside Pathways grant committee recently selected Boys & Girls Clubs of Bellevue’s BE GREAT: Graduate (BGG) program as the 2018 Bill Henningsgaard Fund for Children recipient to support College and Career Readiness for middle and high school students in our community.

The three critical components in the BE GREAT: Graduate (BGG) program include:

• Mentor-Youth Relationships in which a youth who exhibits warning signs of withdrawal from school is paired with an adult mentor with the goal of building the member’s belief that he or she can be successful in school, Youth meet with mentors 3-5 days a week, as well as participate in at least one other Club program.
• Intentional tracking and case management of participants which involves the consistent monitoring of warning signs of withdrawal from school and working with youth to develop timely interventions that focus on addressing obstacles, and celebrating successes.
• Enhancing Club, school and family partnerships so all three work together to support youths’ success in school.

“I am excited that the Boys & Girls Club of Bellevue’s (BGCB) BE GREAT: Graduate (BGG) program has been awarded this year’s grant from the Bill Henningsgaard Fund,”Susan Sullivan, Co-founder and Past Board Chair of Eastside Pathways, said in a press release. “BGG has many different elements that support youth in their exploration and identification of career pathways, this year’s grant focus. BGCB has long been a partner of Eastside Pathways and in true collective impact fashion works to mobilize and engage other organizations to work together to support kids which is the purpose of the Bill Henningsgaard Fund.”

Falling under the BGG umbrella is the highly successful Diplomas to Degrees (d2D) and College to Career (c2C) programs. The mentors take the BGG model one step further to help prepare the 10th-12th grade high school members take the next steps toward successfully transitioning into their post-secondary education and/or career, and providing them with weekly opportunities for career exploration.

Through these programs, teens visit local colleges, prepare for SAT/ACTs and explore different areas of study. Career exposure through d2D/C2C includes business tours, career fairs, and mock interviews with local volunteers, job application trainings, and internships. In addition, they can take part in Keystone Advisory, a leadership and community service program led by the teens, with staff guidance. Keystone strives to engage our members as active citizens, developing their leadership skills and encouraging them to give back to their community.

The ultimate objective is to prepare youth in the community to be successful in college and careers, so they may have a productive and fulfilling life.