Boys and Girls Club of Collier County

We strive to increase our impact on our “highly-engaged" Club members – those who attend the Clubs two times per week or more - through a targeted, outcomes-driven initiative. Past evaluations have proven that Club programming is most impactful for those who attend and participate regularly, helping them succeed academically, make healthy choices and lead and serve in their communities. To that end, our strategic plan includes a new, intentional approach to ensure that those youth who attend the Clubs frequently reach specific benchmarks of self-sufficiency. This means that Boys & Girls Club of Collier County is focused less on specific programs and activities and more on desired outcomes for individual Club members.

Our Strategic Plan is to ensure that 90% of our members who attend our Clubs three or more times per week will graduate high school on time with a plan for the future, adopt a healthy lifestyle, and give back to their community. Our fulfillment of this vision is measured by the progress we make towards operational and youth impact goals.

Our strategies are all centered on providing a high quality afterschool experience that includes a club environment that is kid-focused, supported by caring professionals committed to impact, and offers programs that are outcome-driven. Together, these critical elements contribute to creating consistently high-quality experiences for our Members enabling them to overcome seemingly insurmountable challenges and achieve great futures.

Our program philosophy is based in positive youth development where relationships are the core of our business. Ask a member what their experience was like in a club and they will most often refer to a staff person as the one thing that changed their lives. We believe that the BGCMA experience has more to do with relationships between adults and our members than it has to do with the specific programs we offer. We strive to adhere to a 1:17-20 ratio for most program areas. During many of our leadership and special focus groups the ratio is typically 1:10. Daily attendance is monitored in real time through our membership data base to ensure we utilize staff where we need them most and ensure a safe and productive environment for our youth.

Three outcome-driven programmatic pathways drive our work: Leadership and Service, Academic Innovation and the Arts, and Physical and Emotional Literacy. These encompass diverse offerings like creative writing, summer learning loss prevention programs, sports leagues, culinary arts lessons, and leadership development clubs. Fun, interactive and memorable Club programs are designed to help our students graduate from high school on time, live healthy and give back to their community. Our outcome-driven programs help youth advance their knowledge, character, health and leadership skills so they can thrive as adults. A key feature of our program strategy is the utilization of evidence-based programs and practices that have been shown to be most effective at positively impacting youth development in the communities we serve.

An additional strategy is our focus on professional development and training for our youth development professionals who staff our club sites. Professional development opportunities and focused training and technical assistance are provided to equip our staff to deliver a high quality club experience and to implement evidence-based programs. Our strategy for addressing areas we may lack expertise are strategic partnerships with external community stakeholders with demonstrated expertise in specific content areas.

Positive Environment and Experience
• Dedicated space
• Emotionally and physically safe
• Fun and engaging
• Active and experiential
• Innovative and relevant
• Comprehensive

Supportive Relationships
• Consistent youth development professionals
• Individualized support
• Small group interactions
• Partnerships with community and families

Youth Voice
• Programs based on youth interest
• Freedom to choose

Continuous Evaluation
• Clear goals aligned to impact
• Performance improvement
• Rigorous proof

Open to Youth Who Need Us Most
• Open and affordable to all
• Located in resource-constrained neighborhoods

Membership
• Continued support through multiple years and key transitions
• Frequency of attendance

Boys & Girls Club of Collier County accomplished much of its prior strategic plan, and is in the early stages of a new, multi-year strategic plan that strives for growth, greater financial sustainability and investments that make a positive impact on the communities we serve.