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1st appeared 26 May 1998 Two Graduates Visualizing a Future for At-Risk Youths There is no disputing that UCSF medical students are an idealistic bunch. No young person finds the fortitude for medical studies without a compelling sense of wanting to better the world.
I "While these young men were incarcerated, they had a chance to think about what they were doing, but once they were out again, there was no positive counter-force to compete with life on the streets," says Bobinet. Vision Youthz is designed to be that counter force -- a comprehensive, intensive program for a small number of young men ages 14 to 21. Both Bobinet and Danek will work fulltime next year to put in place a program that will allow these young men to chart a new direction for their lives and keep to their course. One component of Vision Youthz that has already been developed uses the natural world to remove the young men from their usual urban environment and give them a new perspective on life's possibilities. The two run weekly programs at Log Cabin Ranch in the Santa Cruz mountains, a 640-acre compound where approximately 50 repeat youth offenders most at risk for recidivism are incarcerated. Bobinet, Danek and two other volunteers work with the young men in small groups to build self esteem and instill the beginnings of critical thinking skills through an examination of nature. "These are kids who have a wall go up when they are in a classroom setting, so it's encouraging to them to see that they can learn in less structured ways," says Danek. The young men have dubbed the program "Hug a Tree, Kiss a Deer," but they are signing up for it in droves. Nature can be a powerful tool, but Vision Youthz will also provide young men with support once they've left the woods and are back in the concrete jungle. They and another classmate, Adam Holmes, are recruiting volunteers to provide guidance and support for these young men when they move back into the community. They hope to have up to 10 mentors for each youth, so they can be exposed to people with a variety of perspectives and skills. Both young women stress that they get back much more than they've given to these troubled youth. "I'm a different person because of these kids," says Danek. "It's changed my perception of who I can relate to." Both encourage others to participate, either as a volunteer in the Log Cabin Ranch healing course or in helping to mentor youth when they return to the community. For more information call Vision Youthz at 241-1525. by Leslie Lingaas |
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DAYBREAK | ARCHIVES | CALENDAR | CAMPUS NOTES Copyright
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For Kyra Bobinet
and Jennifer Danek, who graduated last Friday, however,
the vision of a better society has grown in clarity over
the course of their training. The two recently received
$30,000 in grant funding from the New York-based student
public service foundation Echoing Green to support their
work as codirectors of an ambitious community-based
program to help troubled youth. Called Vision Youthz, the
endeavor is an outgrowth of their volunteer work over the
last several years with incarcerated and at-risk young
men at San Francisco's Youth Guidance Center.
t was while
participating in UCSF's MedTeach program at the Youth
Guidance Center, in which UCSF students teach a course
about health and personal responsibility, that Bobinet
and Danek tasted the rewards of helping these young men.
They saw, too, however, the limitations of sporadic
intervention programs.