An Overview of Nicasa’s LifeStar Program

Nicasa’s LifeStar program is an after school program that focuses on avocational interests as well as vocational potential. It addresses the needs of students in the critical after school hours. Myriad studies show that substance abuse and other problem behaviors jump exponentially from 6^th to 8^th grade. LifeStar intervenes at the middle school years that are a time when problem behaviors may emerge and negative peer pressure and the need to "fit in" are most powerful.

Research indicates that for youth to become successful in adulthood, they must learn to be productive. They must be given opportunities to connect to adults, peers, and the community. They must be given the skills to learn how to navigate a safe course through mixed media messages, negative peer pressure, and adolescent confusion.

Communities must step forward to help youth develop into healthy adults. It is the responsibility of each community to supply:

·         The opportunity for multiple supportive relationships with adults and peers

·         Challenging and engaging activities and learning experiences

·         Meaningful opportunities for involvement and membership

By implementing the LifeStar program your school system will develop the infrastructure of your community and strengthen its ability to provide youth programming that will give lifelong positive alternatives to your youth. The underlying assumption in LifeStar is that if you give youth the opportunity to pursue their strengths and interests you will significantly decrease the likelihood that they will become involved in risky behaviors.

LifeStar is a unique program in that it:

·         Utilizes existing community resources allowing program delivery to be extremely cost effective

·         Involves the community at large in youth prevention programming through the use of community volunteers who act as mentors, instructors, and advisory board members

·         Is designed and “owned” by the community who act as major stakeholders and design and implement the program

·         Can be held in a variety of community locations including schools, community colleges, churches, local businesses, cultural art centers, and local government office space

·         Is designed to reflect the interests and strengths of your students and your community

LifeStar focuses on what is right about each youth, and ensures that enough community resources and opportunities are made available so that all students can develop their own interests, talents, passions, and strengths.

A family component is built into LifeStar’s design.  It includes an introductory parent orientation, and periodic newsletters, and community celebrations. Through school and community collaborations, LifeStar impacts youth across multiple domains: individual/peer, family, school, and community.  As a positive youth development program, LifeStar promotes bonding, social, emotional, and moral competency, fosters a belief in the future, and provides opportunities for pro-social behavior and recognition for positive behavior. All of these objectives have been proven to reduce youth's involvement in substance abuse and other problem behaviors.

In developing its LifeStar program, Nicasa exhaustively surveyed more than 850 youth. Their interests broke down along four pathways: Science/Technology, Fine Arts, Performing Arts, and Sports/Recreation. Pathway activities include workshops, performances, field trips, internships, guest speakers, classes, and lessons. Corporate, educational, and community volunteers serve on LifeStar’s Advisory Board. This Advisory Board provides program oversight and its subcommittees design curricula for the pathways. Activities take place at various community sites including local schools, colleges, the YMCA, area businesses, and local theaters and sports venues. 

In LifeStar, youth have enormous opportunities and experiences that would not have been possible without the program. Students in the Fine Arts Pathway explore their creativity in a wide variety of mediums including sculpture, poetry, watercolors, jewelry making, and short stories. They meet and are inspired by local authors, artists, and artisans. Performing Arts students attend and stage performances, and learn about all aspects of a performance including lighting, make-up, costume design, stage management, and directing. Science/Technology students learn about careers in the health field, build rockets, visit airports, make compounds and crystals at local laboratories, and have even made casts of their own teeth at a dental lab. Sports/Recreation students don’t just play basketball. They go horseback riding, skiing, and canoeing. They learn about water safety at a local YMCA and martial arts from an enthusiastic community volunteer. They explore non-athletic sports careers such as sports medicine and physical therapy.

In Nicasa’s LifeStar program, the response of participants, parents, volunteers, and teachers has been overwhelming:

·         Students wish they could have LifeStar every day of the week.

·         Parents report that their children enthusiastically share what they are learning in LifeStar each week.

·         Teachers are finding that LifeStar participants are showing improved school performance, better attendance, and greater classroom participation.

·         Volunteers are, quite simply, “having the time of their lives” sharing their talents and interests with students.

LifeStar is an exciting community collaboration that gives youth a wealth of opportunities, gives volunteers the opportunity to get involved, and gives the community the chance to make a unique difference in the lives of its citizens.