Mentors from ListoAmerica and The Best Buy Teen Tech Center @ Hennepin County Library-Minneapolis Central participate in The Clubhouse Network’s Youth Leadership Summit in Washington, DC
From January 28 through 31, 2020, The Clubhouse Network held a Youth Leadership Summit in Washington, DC where teen mentors spoke to their legislators about the power of mentoring, presented “Youth Voices” panel discussion at the National Mentoring Summit, and toured historical landmarks and museums on the National Mall.
On Tuesday, January 28, MENTOR held Capitol Hill Day where mentoring professionals from every state spoke to their legislative offices about the power of mentoring. Mentors were often the only teens in the meetings who were both participants in mentoring programs as youth and also mentors. They led discussions about the impact mentors had on their lives and how they helped to support them in following their interests, find their voices and empower others to do the same.
Christine Monska, Youth Leadership Program Manager with the Clubhouse Network, described working with teen mentors to prepare for meetings with Congress. “It was inspiring to see how legislative aides encouraged our teen mentors to speak about their experiences and own their power at the table. They learned about how leadership works in our Congress and were encouraged to keep speaking up for what they believe in. Each left wanting to talk with their legislators back home.”
Mentors later participated in a panel at the National Mentoring Summit, Youth Voices: A Youth Perspective on Mentoring. The panel centered teen mentors who talked about The Clubhouse Network STEAM learning and mentoring model. They began the session with a challenge to find nonconventional paperclip uses to spark the audience’s creativity. The group also displayed their projects, including an Augmented Reality t-shirt.
Here’s a look at the AR t-shirt we designed for our presentation at the 2020 National MENTOR Summit! The Clubhouse Network
Posted by ListoAmerica on Friday, 31 January 2020
In addition to their leadership with MENTOR, the group also toured The White House, Capitol Building, Air and Space Museum, African American History and Culture Museum and ARTECHOUSE – a museum showcasing works by groundbreaking artists who work with new technology and new forms of creative expression. A group of members from Computers for Kids in Virginia had the opportunity to join for a night of interacting with code and art.
Gustavo Madrigal, Director Creative Tech Learning and Development and mentors, Metztli Mora and Alejandro Miranda represented ListoAmerica in Tustin, CA. Maivncais Her, Mentor Program Coordinator and mentors, Kristopher Cubias Lennon and Hamza Noor represented Hennepin County Library in Minneapolis, MN. Christine Monska, Youth Leadership Program Manager from the Clubhouse Network organized and led the event. Jennifer Bourgoin, Mentor Program Manager, attended the National Mentoring Summit while in DC to represent TCN at national meetings.