Hood River Demonstration Site
A summary of key program outcomes for the
Hood River County Demonstration Site appears below. The outcomes relate
to the central goal
of the Oregon Outreach project and the specific educational
goals and objectives developed to address local needs and capitalize
on local assets. Reported outcomes reflect cumulative activities from
October 1997 to September 2002.
Key Outcomes for Youth
- OOPS After School Program. About 125 youth were involved in
the OOPS After School Program during a five-year period beginning in
the fall of 1997, reflecting an annual participation rate of 20-30 youth.
Evaluation data were collected from participating youth at the end of
each school year. In a 2002 survey, for example, data were provided
by 28 youth (93% of all participants and 100% of the core group). Results
are summarized below.
Participants reported substantial learning related to ten learning
areas representing a composite of learning objectives across the Oregon
Outreach sites. In the 2002 survey, for example, respondents reported
"learning a lot" about respecting themselves and others
(87%), working together as a team (76%), cooperating with others (76%),
making good decisions (63%), accepting responsibility for their own
actions (63%), communicating with others (62%), and serving their
community (54%). Mean ratings for these seven items ranged from 3.3
to 3.8 on a 4-point scale where 1 = learned nothing and 4 = learned
a lot. (Other choices were "a little" and "some".)
Mean ratings for the final three items were 3.4 for managing anger
and conflict, 3.0 for cultural heritage and traditions, and 2.3 for
working with computers.
Respondents also rated four goals in terms of each goal's personal
importance to the individual responding. Having recreation and fun
with friends was the top goal expressed by 96% of the respondents,
but nearly 70% also said that learning skills they can apply in their
future job or career was a "very important" goal for them.
Learning skills that will help in school was "very important"
to 60%. These three goals had the highest mean ratings, ranging from
3.6 to 3.9 (where 3 = somewhat important and 4 = very important. Lower
priority goals were learning how to become more involved in the community
(3.4) and developing cultural awareness and pride (3.1). Since these
five goals relate to program objectives for the Oregon Outreach project
in Hood River County, it is noteworthy that they appear to be congruent
with goals that participants identify as personally important.
Parents of participating youth were also interviewed (in 2000 and
2002) to provide perspectives on programming and suggest future program
activities. All parents expressed enthusiastic support for the program,
a desire for the program to continue, and hopes for other programs
to help serve their children while the parents are away at work. Parents
also commented that future program planning should reflect recognition
of the economic and language restraints that make volunteering in
an unfamiliar system difficult for them.
- OOPS Summer Day Camps. Day camps drew a total of nearly 150
youth from 1998-2002. In 2002, for example, 43 children in farm worker
and low-income apartment complexes were involved. Objectives were to
enhance social skills, develop a positive sense of self, and participate
in recreational and teambuilding activities. One 50-hour day camp served
20 youth ages 9-13, while two 10-hour camps served multiple-aged groups
of children from 5-15 years. High school and middle school students
who formerly participated in the program assisted as teen leaders. Programs
were well received and parents expressed interest in seeing more bilingual
and bi-culturally focused activities available for their families.
Seventeen youth (85% of the 20 core participants) responded to the
participant feedback survey for the 2002 50-hour camp. A substantial
majority of the respondents reported learning a lot about communicating
with others (76%), working together as a team (65%), respecting yourself
and others (59%), and making good decisions (also 59%). Nearly half
(47%) indicated learning a lot about accepting responsibility for
their actions, cooperating with others, working with computers, and
serving their community. Mean ratings for these eight items ranged
from 3.3 to 3.8 on a 4-point scale of learning where 1 = nothing,
2 = a little, 3 = some, and 4 = a lot. Mean ratings for the remaining
two items were 3.1 for cultural heritage/traditions and 2.8 for managing
anger and conflict. Results were similar to data collected in 2000
and 2001. (The youth involved in the day camps are different individuals
than those involved in the after school program.)
- 4-H Clubs. Volunteer-led 4-H clubs for Latino youth became
a part of the project in 2000 with the introduction of soccer activities
involving about 100 youth. In both 2001 and 2002, more than 200 youth
participated in soccer clubs along with about 10 Latino and native-English
speaking adult volunteer leaders. The Indoor Soccer League and the 4-H
Summer Soccer League are the only programs in the county that reaches
a significant number of middle-school Latino youth on a continued basis.
The programs offer recreational opportunities, teach teamwork, decision-making
and other social skills, and provide positive interactive experiences
for youth. Monolingual English as well as monolingual Spanish-speaking
coaches have met, organized, and played collaboratively, providing a
forum for youth and adults to interact cross-culturally while learning
about differing concepts of time, decision making, organizational priorities,
and rules of sport. In 2002, 66 non-Latino(s) youth were among those
registered in 4-H Soccer Clubs, demonstrating a trend toward more integration
of CYFAR participants with other community youth.
Additional 4-H clubs were established in 2001. By 2002 these included
three Folkloric 4-H Dance Clubs, one in each of the three rural towns
in the county, with Latino volunteer leaders, teen leaders, and parent
helpers providing support for more than 40 youth.
Key Outcomes for Families
- About 120 Latino parents (and some children) participated in bilingual
Computer Literacy and Technology Programs offered in 2000, 2001, and
2002. Evaluation data were collected each year. In 2001, midterm/post
tests were completed by 26 (79%) participants. About 95% of the respondents
indicated they had learned new information-84% reported gaining basic
computer skills, while 15% said they gained Internet skills. Although
only 16% said they currently owned a computer, 44% reported at the end
of the program that they were considering a computer purchase. Several
participants commented that the sessions were "very important"
for Hispanics and others with little or no computer experience. Many
expressed gratitude for the program in comments similar to one participant
who said, "Thank you so much for the opportunity you gave us to
learn and have success." (Overall results were similar for other
years.)
Key Outcomes for the Community
- The Hood River Community Forum featured a cross-cultural workshop
facilitated by Carmen DeNeve from the University of Southern California,
assisted by the local Oregon Outreach project director. Attending the
2001 workshop were 18 participants from OSU Extension, the Hood River
County Commission, the Hood River County Commission on Children and
Families, Mid-Columbia Centro Cultural, and The Next Door, Inc. About
half of the participants were Latino and about half were Anglo. In
an end-of-session evaluation form, participants supplied answers to
open-ended questions relating to the usefulness of the workshop information,
how they planned to apply some of the workshop ideas and concepts, and
suggestions and recommendations for future offerings. An item asking
participants to rate the overall effectiveness of the workshop on a
scale of 1-5 (1 = unsatisfactory and 5 = very satisfactory), the mean
rating was 4.8. Participant feedback also indicated the workshop was
an important step in enhancing individuals' cross-cultural understanding.
- In the initial years of the project, staff members collaborated with
other community groups to offer a Cultural Sensitivity Workshop for
members of the community and two Board Member Training Workshops focusing
on cultural values and how Latinos might become involved with community
groups and boards. In addition, project staff helped to establish a
coalition encouraging increasing involvement of Latinos in the greater
Hood River County community.
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