DPN Visits Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley

The Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley invited VCCF to visit their Santa Paula club and discuss the exciting expansions to their Middle School Mentor Program. There, we spoke with CEO Pearl Galvan to learn more about the program, the successes they’ve seen so far and the road ahead as they expand this program within the Santa Paula Unified School District.

One central part of the program is the mentors who work directly with the students. “The Middle School Mentor Program is a program that follows a group of 30 students for a three-year cycle, from sixth grade to eighth grade,” Pearl said. “And the mentor helps them improve their attendance, their behavior, their confidence and problem-solving skills to hopefully guide them in the right path so when they do go to high school, they succeed.”

She further elaborated on some of the key outcomes they hope to achieve, stating, “One is their confidence, them understanding the importance of school and ensuring that they have a voice, that they are learning to be leaders and not followers. That’s one thing that we aim for, as well as just building a better community and who they surround themselves with.”

During their presentation, the BGSCV team played a video from program alum Vicente at their recent award ceremony, where he shared how this program changed his life in a moving speech.

“Before I joined, I wasn’t always making the best decisions for myself,” Vicente said. “I would skip class, lose my focus on my work and sometimes not take school or my future as seriously as I should have. Honestly, I knew the quickest routes around campus better than I knew some of my assignments.”

Reflecting on the impact of this program on his life, he thanked his mentor, Manny Ortiz. “He helped me realize that I am capable of more than I thought,” Vicente said. “He never gave up on me even during times when I wasn’t giving my best effort. And that made a huge impact on me.”

Pearl also shared her hopes for the program’s future and the development potential for this successful program. As of now, the program has operated exclusively within Fillmore Middle School, and the expansion into SPUSD presents an exciting opportunity to bring these benefits to even more students.

“We just want to expand it and be able to give the same opportunities to the kids in Santa Paula at a high school level, and this is the first time we’re tapping into high school, so we’re excited,” Pearl said. “With your support, I think that we’ll be able to do amazing things; even provide not one, but maybe two mentors in the future as long as it’s successful, and be able to provide more services for more students.”

To learn more, visit bgclubscv.org.