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Tapping into the Teen
Scene
Revamped Mitchell Park
youth center adds computer lab, programs young persons requested
as part of teen-led redesign
by Sue Dremann
Scores of young persons had a chance to show off their
own creation to city officials and parents last week.
The event was an open house Jan. 10 of the revamped
Mitchell Park Teen Center at 3800 Middlefield Road — where
teen-led tours highlighted a brand-new computer center
and other features designed or requested by teens themselves.
The Palo Alto Youth Council, Junior Advisory Board and
Teen Advisory Board advised the city's Recreation and
Youth Sciences Division on everything from equipment
to increasing the level of staff participation.
The open house attracted scores of young persons, city
officials and even a few parents.
The refinished floors gleamed amid throngs of middle
school students who attended the mid-afternoon celebration.
Popcorn littered the newly cleaned carpets amid booming
hip-hop music and pattering Ping Pong balls.
Children's Theatre programs and the Palo Alto Art Center's
Youth Program are now based at the center, offering such
classes as fashion design and cartooning.
And there will be a plethora of scheduled programs and
activities, including regular dances and indoor soccer
and dodge-ball games in the main hall.
The renovations — which included removing asbestos,
repainting the entire area, refinishing floors and adding
new furniture and the new computer lab and homework station — cost
$12,300, according to Kim Parker, City of Palo Alto supervisor
of recreation programs for the Recreation and Youth Sciences
Division.
The entire cost came from grants. Approximately $7,000
from the Palo Alto Recreation Foundation went toward
furniture for the computer center, she added.
Students had said they needed computers to do homework.
A new computer center boasts 12 computers and both black-and-white
and color printers, donated by Hewlett-Packard.
And they're already in use.
Payat Mishra, an eighth-grader at Jane Lathrop Stanford
(JLS) Middle School, comes to the lab twice a week. His
friend George Xia attends two to three hours at a stretch.
Both teens said coming to the lab is more convenient
than going online at a city library: There is no waiting
in line, and thus far the computer center isn't crowded.
The computers allow Internet access, but material is
screened for age appropriateness, John Ancheta, the recreation
leader who oversees the computer center, said.
"It's an intense process. We make sure the kids
aren't hacking and we have a filter to screen new Web
sites that come up every day. There are a lot of tunnels
(ways to bypass security features) the kids know about," he
added, laughing, and noting that the staff has to be
extra alert for such filter-bypass efforts.
When the center opens at 3 p.m., the first hour emphasizes
homework in the lab. Structured activities are programmed
for later in the afternoon as an incentive to get homework
finished first, Parker said.
From 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., activities are geared toward
middle school students. Later in the afternoon and evening,
high school students filter in for table-tennis tournaments
or special events.
One such event is a "cram session" for Jan.
16 to 18, where high-school students can study individually
or in groups without the distractions of home. Complimentary
snacks and activities such as creating personal "stress
balls" will be offered, in addition to plenty of
break time to stretch, relax and socialize, Parker said.
Students said the combination of homework stations and
relaxing activities makes the center more attractive
than doing homework — or playing video games — at
home.
"You can do what you want to do. It's more fun
to come hang out with your friends. You can do your homework,
then hang out here and play pool," Mishra said.
Staff participation, which students said they wanted,
has also made the center better, he added.
"Before, they used to stand on the side with their
arms folded," he said, demonstrating by folding
his arms across his chest.
Staff member Chris Cooper, clad in the center's signature
forest-green T-shirt, took turns shooting hoops with
an eighth grader in the courtyard, then moved into The
Drop — the popular subterranean recreation room — for
a table-tennis match with another student. Mentors such
as Cooper can serve as buffers to teen stress and help
integrate the students and activities, according to Parker.
"It's relationship building — looking for
that older role model — and developing staff as
that role model. They (staff) are often the first person
the kids can talk to when some trauma or argument takes
place. They are helping them to break away from what
the crowd (does) and to make the right decision on their
own," she said.
Mentoring also comes from Youth Community Service (YCS),
which moved from Cubberley Community Center to offer
community-volunteer and mentoring programs that strengthen
life skills and social adjustment through community connections.
Students who are interested in volunteering have opportunities
to work through YCS on projects ranging from clerical
assistance to fundraising for war-ravaged families in
Darfur.
The Palo Alto-based Adolescent Counseling Services is
available each month to help young persons and their
families navigate personal crises and challenges, from
family conflicts to parenting classes, Parker added.
The center is attractive because of the opportunity
it affords to make new friends, students said. The Drop
is outfitted with new circular tables for art projects
and easy socializing. Teens drop in and take breaks from
homework to shoot pool, and play table tennis and video
games on a large-screen television.
During Wednesday's open house, boys gathered around
a large-screen television in The Drop, taking turns playing "Tricky," a
popular video game. They represent the multicultural
face of Palo Alto's students: Asian, African-American
and Caucasian.
"You can do things and meet new people, like friends — good
friends," said E.J. an African-American 6th grader
at JLS, as he affectionately shook the shoulder of a
small blond boy.
Sometimes the students clash in a school setting, but
the center gives them a chance to interact in a physically
and socially safe atmosphere, Parker said.
"I think the staff is dedicated to creating a center
where students feel respected — where they are
breaking down social and racial barriers they felt at
school. They are teaching them to speak their mind in
a respectful way," she said.
The goal of the renovation and major revamping of the
teen center is "to help kids — to focus on
daily life in Palo Alto and to deal with stresses kids
face in Palo Alto," said Richard James, director
of community services for the City of Palo Alto, the
department under which the teen center operates.
"Kids are so scheduled these days. They do a music
lesson and soccer practice. When do you have time to
do this?" he asked.
James said Mitchell Park is the obvious choice for continuing
expansion of teen-related activities because it is in
a "super-block" of nearby schools, the Mitchell
Park branch library and the nearby Cubberley Community
Center, with its own schedule of activities and programs.
Parker said it is too early to say what impact the changes
have had on student participation. The center reopened
in June; and the computer lab became available at the
beginning of the school year. But in its early months,
the center seems to be a success with a growing number
of teens.
"We've seen a change in consistency. More kids
are coming in on a regular basis — and special
events draw a huge crowd," she said.
Each afternoon, 25 to 50 teens from Palo Alto and East
Palo Alto arrive from across the city. Many come from
Terman, Jordan and JLS middle schools and from the high
schools, she said.
Some parents expressed relief that young persons have
a place to come to after school.
"It makes me feel safe. I'm not comfortable with
them playing in the park. I can call here to talk to
them and someone always answers the phone; there is never
an answering machine," said Rosa Burquez, whose
sons Randall and Brandon frequent the center.
"The wonderful thing is it's free."
Richard James grinned as kids in the nearby main hall
staged a balloon relay.
"When I was a kid, we had a teen center the size
of The Drop," he reminisced, looking around the
10,300-square-foot facility and listening to the booming
hip-hop music.
"I remember they played Tommy James and the Shondells.
The socialization — it's so hard as a kid. You
didn't go out of your way as a teenager. Having a leader
helps — it helps having an adult setting things
up."
Most parents live in a busier world today, making a
place such as the youth and teen center a crucial resource,
he added.
"When I was a kid, my mom was home. There is no
mom or dad at home anymore. They are both working," he
said.
Staff Writer Sue Dremann can be reached at sdremann@paweekly.com.
Printed with permission by the Palo Alto Weekly
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