This month’s Asset Champion focuses on communities that have found small, manageable ways to integrate the assets into their programs. Much of what they do does not require additional time or energy out of the day. They have decided to incorporate asset-building as part of the philosophy of who they are and what they do, but they have not co-opted their time or activities to do this. By structuring the assets into what they do, these communities have invigorated their programs and found another way to bring energy and meaning into their work.
YMCA Canada Aquatics Program integrates the assets!
When the YMCA aquatics programs in Canada decided to restructure in 2005, they were already walking the asset-building walk. They were already doing things like encouraging leadership development in youth and giving positive reinforcement for good things done in the pool. But what they did in 2005 was make everything explicit- the language, the actions, the intentions behind the swim programs- so that now parents, students and staff clearly know that the YMCA is an organization that builds assets in the community.
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Tiger Woods Learning Center builds assets with wallet cards!
Two and a half years ago at the Tiger Woods Learning Center (TWLC) in Anaheim, CA, staff wanted to find a way to make asset-building more present in their everyday lives- both in and out of the learning center. They needed something small and they needed something that wouldn’t take too much time. And this is how they came up with the idea of wallet cards.
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New Quick-Start Guide
To be released in late July…
A Quick-Start Guide to Building Assets in Your Prevention Program
Full of real-world examples and time-tested strategies, A Quick-Start Guide to Building Assets in Your Prevention Program helps you quickly and easily integrate a strangth-based approach into your existing prevention framework. This uniquely positive technique empowers schools, family-serving organizations, juvenile justice programs, and healthcare and other prevention programs to build relationships with young people and create environments that get results.
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