West Point Youth Services realizes "today's children are
tomorrow's leaders." Many of the youth who come through our doors experience
personal growth and learn leadership skills by participating in the programs and
services offered by our sports, fitness, recreation and health programs. Our
main goal as program facilitators is to explore and refine the assets that each
child has to offer, and encourage youth to become involved in daily activities
that promote leadership and develop strong character.
Because every child
is unique, we offer a variety of activities to assist youth with development,
leadership and participation skills by concentrating our programming efforts in
following four core areas: 1) Arts, Recreation and Leisure; 2) Sports, Fitness
and Health Options; 3) Life Skills, Citizenship and Leadership Opportunities; 4)
Mentoring, Intervention and Education Support Services. Our
partnerships with 4-H and the Boys and Girls Club of America foster the growth
of our youth programs.
As an addition to our core
programming, West Point Youth Services is dedicated to integrating
Character Counts! into our activities. We operate under the tenet that good
character is not hereditary, but can be developed by learning through example,
and can be practiced by integrating the 6 pillars of character respect,
responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship into all programming areas. By
integrating Character Counts! into our core programming, we provide youths the
opportunity to emerge from our club as more productive, caring and responsible
adults. Character Counts also supports the six Army core values of loyalty,
duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal
courage.
The age of participants involved in West Point Youth Services
ranges from 4-18 with some instructional parent and toddlers programs beginning
at age 18 months.
Youth Services is housed in a modern 15,000 sq ft facility
that includes a state of the art Technology Center, two youth lounges and a full
sized gymnasium. The MS/Teen and School Age Services after school program is
based out of this building. Our teen program offers leadership opportunities
locally and nationally. Youth have an opportunity to earn college
scholarships through the Boys and Girls Club of America by the increasing their
volunteer hours in the community. Dances, trips and other youth
developed activities provide fun and excitement for
youth.
In addition to this main facility, Youth
Services utilizes 22 on and off-site locations in support of our youth Sports,
Fitness and Instructional programming. We offer a full schedule of instructional
programs under the guidance of Schools of Knowledge, Inspiration and Exploration
and Skills (SKIES). Our sports activities are year-round, designed to
develop children's skills and maximize their fun in the process.
The focus
for all programming is on skill and fun. Our goal is to introduce
youth to these sports and activities through positive experiences that will
foster lifelong interest and enjoyment.