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Family fun in the mountain sun |
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Written by Morgan Kriz
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Tuesday, 03 June 2008 |
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 Second annual fundraising event benefits local minority students involved with Adventure, Risk & Challenge Program
In coordination with the Adventure, Risk & Challenge (ARC) Program, a 501c(3) non-profit organization sponsored by UC Berkeley that is working to change the lives of local minority youth, Northstar-at-Tahoe Resort will host the second annual “Family Fun in the Mountain Sun” celebration on Saturday, June 14 from 3 to 7 p.m. in the Village at Northstar.
Family Fun in the Mountain Sun is a fundraising event for ARC that is open to the public and will include roller skating, live music, a pizza buffet at Rubicon Pizza Company, face painting, contests for adults and kids of all ages, bungee jumping, raffle prizes and more.
The results of an art project will be on display as local 4th and 5th graders will present their drawings of family fun for a chance to win a year’s worth of free pizza.
Raffle tickets
Raffle tickets will be sold for just $2 per ticket offering a chance to win great prizes including lift tickets, golf prizes, local dining gift certificates, professional sporting event tickets and much more. Other prizes such as two nights at The Ritz-Carlton San Francisco will be auctioned on event day. Pizza buffet tickets are just $12 for adults, $8 for kids and it’s just $5 to get out on the skating rink.
What is Adventure Risk & Challenge (ARC)?
Founded in 2004, the Adventure, Risk & Challenge Program is a summer school and year-round follow-up opportunity for English Language Learner (ELL) students.
ARC combines best practices from classroom teaching with place based, experiential and adventure learning experiences. Sagehen Creek Field Station, a University of California, Berkeley Research and Education Facility, located five miles North of Truckee, hosts and serves as an integral partner for this program.
The issue
Approximately 25 percent of the student population in the Truckee-Tahoe School District is designated as English Language Learner. Many of these students are achieving below grade level and will not pass the upcoming High School Exit Exam. 60 percent of these students drop out of high school before they graduate. Across California and Nevada these numbers are even higher.
In this area, motivated and high level ELL students currently have no summer school options to raise their literacy skill levels to test out of ELL designation and enter mainstream classes.
Research has proven that intensive literacy instruction combined with meaningful outdoor leadership curriculum can raise student grade levels up to two grade levels in one six-week session.
This population in particular is an important target group for spreading forest awareness, appreciation and conservation ethics. The majority of these students have never experienced wilderness/ forest service land before participating in this program.
The ARC program
Now in its fifth year, ARC offers a six week summer school program designed for motivated, high-level ninth and tenth grade English Language Learner students with leadership potential in the Truckee-Tahoe area. The intensive program focuses on the combination of a rigorous academic and outdoor education to raise literacy skills and encourage leadership abilities, and to introduce participating students to outdoor adventure opportunities they might not otherwise experience. The experience has been life changing for each student who has participated.
The ARC program has turned out 26 local graduates and accepts 8-10 new students into the program each year. Participating students are selected in partnership with the Tahoe-Truckee Unified School District.
For more information about ARC, visit sagehen.ucnrs.org/arc/.
To make a donation of goods and/or services, contact Katie Zanto at (530) 205-5649
Tahoe World Associate Editor Morgan Kriz had the chance to talk with ARC advisory board member, and owner of Rubicon Pizza Company, Ray Villaman last week about his involvement with Adventure Risk Challenge and giving away free pizza for a year:
Tahoe World: What do kids benefit most from the ARC program?
Ray Villaman: There isn’t another program for teenagers where, after you speak to them, they say the program has changed my life.
If you take students outside in the wilderness for 40 days (take away family, best friends, get them out of their life outside of their routine at home and school) it forces them to focus on a a number of different levels; academic, emotional, metal and socially. Some students may never have exercised and they are rock climbing up 30 feet in the air.
After going through the program they feel the sense of accomplishment and it allows them to dream and say “why not?” “Why not go to college?” “Why not try something new?”
It brings them to a whole other level.
Tahoe World: How did you become a member of the Adventure Risk & Challenge advisory board?
RV: ARC director Katie Zanto came out to a Rotary Club meeting and did a presentation on the ARC program. I volunteered when she asked if any members would like to come out and have the kids interview them. Once I was interviewed it was inspirational for me and I could relate to the kids who had the challenge in school of English as a second language.
I realized that to continue the growth of the program we had to formalize ARC and worked on forming an advisory board. I believe this program makes a difference.
Tahoe World: How do students enter to win the grand prize of free pizza for a year?
RV: We asked students around the area to draw a picture of their family doing something in the community together. Each student who turned in artwork, got a pizza.
In order for the student to win the free pizza for a year (from Rubicon Pizza), they must attend the event and view the artwork that will be on display. If the child and family attend, their name will be entered in a raffle to win. The catch is for students to show up and participate.
Tahoe World: How many pieces of pizza is that in a year?
RV: The winner will receive a pizza each week, for 55 weeks.
Tahoe World: What can you tell people about the event to encourage them to come out?
RV: It is Father’s Day weekend so there will be plenty of family fun and events for all ages. Some fun in the sun that weekend.
Coming out to the event will show support for the community in addition to supporting a great cause. This is the opportunity for the program to engage the community and the students can tell the community what the program does for them.
Come eat lunch at Rubicon Pizza and a majority of the proceeds will benefit the ARC program.
Tahoe World: Word association: What is the first word that comes to mind when I say “ARC”?
RV: Transforming. Those participating in the program really have their lives transformed, and is so rewarding.
Tahoe World: Do you see a lot of support from the Tahoe Community?
RV: We are getting there. We are definitely building more support and visibility and getting the word out. We really focus on quality and not quantity, so the problem is that people would rather hit a larger quantity of kids, even though children walk away saying this program changed their life.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 03 June 2008 )
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