What's NEW at Cabrini Connections!!!

As the 2009-2010 tutoring/mentoring year came to an end a little over a month ago, we pretty much were already planning and brainstorming ideas of how to make Cabrini Connections bigger and better for the 2010-2011 tutoring/mentoring year. We are always looking for feedback from our students, volunteers, parents, and other staff on the team so we can continue to provide the best possible services that we can!

As the summer is continuing to wind down and the school year is quickly approaching we have already began making A LOT of changes that we feel will be well received! Here are a few of the many changes that we have made in the program so far:

-The computer lab in the program has been expanded with more laptops AND we have 2 DePaul University volunteers who have been cleaning up the computers and making sure all of the technology in the computer is working properly!

-We have updated our Student and Volunteer History and Tracking System (SVHATS) so our students now only have to complete their EXIT page before leaving the program on any given night.

-We have slightly changed the overall layout of the desk and big table patterns within the program to provide more space between rows and group sitting on tutoring/mentoring nights.

-We have been meeting with all returning volunteers and students (and parents) over the summer as "Annual Review Meetings" to discuss the pros and cons of the past year and to set goals and expectations for the upcoming year. These meetings have been extremely helpful and assist with promoting the new concept we're looking to incorporate in the program and that is getting everybody in the program to get in the mindset of Cabrini Connections being a job where the students are "employees" in their mentors are their "career coaches" or "supervisors."

-We have been recruiting more and more dedicated students and volunteers to join our team...so there are definitely some new faces in the program!

-Along with some new faces joining the leadership ranks in the program. By the first day of the 2010-2011 tutoring/mentoring sessions we will have 4 new Volunteer Coordinators in the program!!!

As you can see we are definitely doing a lot behind the scenes to continue advancing our program and provide the best possible services so that volunteer and students are not only getting the resources they need, but enjoying their experiences in the program also. We have Monthly Mixers coming, Monthly Engagement "Workshops," NEW College Tours ideas and MUCH MUCH MORE in store for the 2010-2011 year and beyond!!! If you would like to be a part of the change and/or know others that want to be a part or support that would only add to the program's success. Prospective volunteers and students and donors can visit our website to see how you can get involved.

Web Site Problems

For the past few weeks we've had constant interruptions of service on the Cabrini Connections and Tutor/Mentor Institute web sites. This affects SVHATS also.

We're working to get this fixed, but our options are limited by our fund-raising challenges. We, like many other small non profits, are working with very limited cash, which means that paying the rent, insurance, staff salaries are where the money goes first and their is not a lot left for flexible responses to problems that should be solved.

This is why Cabrini Madness, the Art Festival and other fund raising events are so important. They help raise the dollars we need to fix problems, and to pursue opportunities.

We'll get this fixed as quickly as possible. Thank you all for your patience and for helping us find the dollars we need.

Dan Bassill
President
Cabrini Connections
Tutor/Mentor Connection

Charles Hill: Student Reflection

First year student, Charles Hill reflected on year at Cabrini Connections through the our Student and Volunteer History and Tracking System (SVHATS) and I wanted to share this Cabrini Connections' supporters!The Year end dinner was great, I was not expecting to get ""Most Motivated"" award and since this was my first time there,I would love to experience this again next year. I plan on doing more things around Cabrini and to help Cabrini Connections, i'm planning on working more on guitar, maybe next year i'll even play a song. Nice work for Savon Clark a close friend of mine for winning the Jimmy Biggs award. Also Ana Tate who seems great at singing, I think she would be a great help for a singer when I start a band. Also EL Da' Sheon, Chris Warren, Jen King, my tutor Szu Han, you are the ones who have influenced me the most in winning the award for most motivated, without your help in the program I wouldn't be as motivated as I am now. I'd probably be lazy.So I want to say thanks for everything.Anyways, I've had a great experience this first year at Cabrini Connections and I plan on going there for a very long time. Until next we meet, I shall be taking my leave. Good Luck Cabrini Connections staff, mentees, and mentors.

Summer 2009 Schedule

While the formal weekly tutoring sessions end this week, we hope that youth and volunteers will continue to meet with each other and take part in Cabrini Connections activities throughout the summer, so that everyone is back with us as school starts in the fall.

Here's the schedule of activities planned for this summer. Keep watching the web site and email newsletter so you're informed of new activities.

Art Club will continue throughout the summer: Mondays 5:45-7:15pm

Tech Club will continue throughout the summer: Tuesdays 6-7pm

Writing Club (TBD)

Open House Nights: Wednesdays 6-8pm
Very similar to tutoring/mentoring session for any student and volunteer who wants and needs to meet in the center throughout the summer

College Zone will be open (By appointment only during this time)

Edgewood Experience: July 6-8th (9-2:30 Monday and Tuesday 9-12:30 on Wednesday

Jimmy Biggs Memorial Cabrini Connections Golf Benefit, July 16 (http://www.cabrinitmcgolf.org )

Annual Great America Trip: Date (TBD)

Throughout the summer we hope volunteers will make time to review the planning wikis, and volunteer talent to help us update the plan for the 2009-10 school year.

We also hope you'll use SVHATS to keep us informed of contact with students off site.

Finally we hope you'll read articles on the Fund Raising blog and help us expand the network of donors who make Cabrini Connections possible.

3rd (Spring Quarter) Upcoming Events

This week starts our 3rd quarter of our 2008-2009 tutoring/mentoring year and we just wanted to share a few of the many upcoming events during this quarter:

- Interns - Northwestern University student, Diana Castaneda, will be the newest member of the Cabrini Connections’ Team! Diana will be interning in the program from March 30th-June4th

-Birthday Celebrations - During the first tutoring/mentoring sessions of April and May we will be celebrating the birthdays of all our students, staff, and mentors with special treats.

-Art and Video Festival is taking place this Saturday, June 4 from 5-10pm, at the Palette and Chisel. Click here and here for more information.

-Career Week (April 6-10) The students, staff, and volunteers will be taking in Career week where our students will be visiting various workplaces of our volunteers on the 6th and the 7th to get a better understanding of various careers that the students are interested in. And on 8th and 9th several of our volunteers will be providing presentations during the tutoring/mentoring session about their careers and the path they took to get to their current careers.

-FREE Bike for Student! The students who earned 400 points or more during the 2nd quarter will be receiving their free bikes during the month of April.

-A new addition to the Art Club, Johnny Li, will be bringing his talents and services to the Art Club during the month of May. Johnny Li will be conducting an Art Therapy type of project for the students taking part in Art Club

-On May 28-29th we will be hosting our Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference at Northwestern University Law School http://www.tutormentorconference.org/

- Year End Dinner - On June 4th we will be concluding our 3rd Quarter with our Annual Year-End Dinner that will take place from 6-8 p.m., at Cornerstone; located at 1111 N. Wells in Chicago.

Please read the Weekly Newsletter to stay informed and use SVHATS to share your ideas and ask questions.

Donations are always needed, especially in this difficult economy. Stay tuned to fund raising activities by reading the Cabrini Fund Raising Blog

Finally, we hope many of you will join in the visioning and planning that helps us improve Cabrini Connections from year to year. You can read about our strategies on the planning wikis. If you'd like to volunteer as an editor of the wiki, or have ideas you'd like to add, you can log in using your SVHATS passwords.

Only 2 weeks left to earn points for free bikes and scholarship money!!!

Only 2 weeks left to earn points for free bikes and scholarship money!!!

As we have been announcing at tutoring each week and on our blogs , all students who earn more than 400 points during this winter quarter will receive a FREE BIKE, courtesy of our partners The Recyclery and Working Bikes Cooperatives.

Students earn points through attendance, each time they log into SVHATS, completing reflection sheets and through handing in their report cards each quarter. However, to enable every single student who is interested to earn a free bike, we are permitting students to turn in ANY AND ALL GRADE CARDS THAT THEY HAVE from 7th grade to the present!

For each report card that students turn in, they will get 25 points plus: 25 points for each A, 15 points for each B and 5 points for each C. Therefore there is no reason why every student shouldn’t turn in all of their report cards, especially those from before they started coming to Cabrini Connections.

We will copy them and immediately return them to you. High school students are encouraged to bring transcripts and 8th graders are encouraged to bring their cumulative report cards if possible.

To give just one example: Cabrini Connections Senior Dominique Dobbs recently turned in 7 report cards, which earned her 635 points. This makes her eligible for a free bike and $63.50 in additional scholarship funds (aka FREE CASH MONEY) when she graduates this spring! So please, follow Dominique’s lead and bring in your grades before this quarter ends! You can also print them off from online from the CPS student portal at: https://student.cps.k12.il.us/pc/studentlogin.aspx

So, there’s no excuse, bring in your grade cards and get a free bike and money…it’s that simple! Volunteers and parents, please encourage students to take advantage of this unique opportunity before it’s too late!

Be the CHANGE.

I hope that 2009 brings health, happiness and prosperity to everyone in the Cabrini Connections family. We thank everyone who has volunteered time and talent, and dollars, in the past year and look forward to working with your through 2009 and beyond.

Through Facebook and Linked in, as well as SVHATS, we are building an on-line network of Cabrini Connections students, volunteers and alumni. I hope that each of you will help us expand this, by inviting your own friends, and by helping us reconnect with former students and volunteers.

We're also building "outposts" in a variety of other forums, such as Change.org. I hope you'll visit these places and help us build an identity, and that you'll also help us connect in other places that we don't yet know about, or that we don't have time to visit ourselves. I've created a list of social network sites where we are active and encourage you to add to this as you find and join other sites.

We have much to do in 2009 to help our current kids make the decisions that will lead them through school and to jobs and careers. We also have much to do to help our former students, and their own children, because many of them are still struggling to find security and a place for themselves and their families in this 21st Century Society.

Through these social network spaces we can find more help, more ideas, more friends and more resources. This expands our world, and expands the world for our kids and volunteers. We need the help of all of you, students, volunteers and alumni, to maximize our potential in this new world.

Thank you all for letting us be part of your lives.

Staying Connected During the Summer

If a guest visited Cabrini Connections during the summer looking for a room full of mentors and mentees meeting and working together, the guest would not probably think our program was closed for the summer. But that assumption would be incorrect.

Cabrini Connections is one of the many unique tutor/mentor programs in which the staff encourages the mentors and mentees to meet outside of the actual program site. We feel that meeting out in the city at various locations gives the mentors and mentees the opportunity to strengthen their bonds and expose the mentees and possibly the mentors to new and exciting sites!!!

Even though these interactions take place off site, the staff remains connected to the mentors and mentees and their summer interactions through the use of the SVHATS system (Student & Volunteer History and Tracking System). After the mentors and mentees enjoy one of these summer outing together they are required to log into the SVHATS system and provide a brief description of what took place during the outing. By completing the SVHATS, Cabrini Connections staff not only has a history of interactions between mentors and mentees, but we have an opportunity to stay connected to the pairs during the summer months!

EL Da' Sheon Nix

Administrative Coordinator

Introduction and Preparation

Dear Volunteers and Mentors

I just wanted to formally introduce myself to any volunteers and mentors who were not present last week, and reintroduce myself to the mentors who were. My name is EL Da’ Sheon Nix and I am the new Administrative Coordinator at Cabrini Connections, and want to say THANK YOU for being a volunteer or mentor. I also want to THANK YOU for sharing not only your time but your lives and experiences with the students in the program! I don’t personally know all of the volunteers and mentors at this point, but just the fact that you have taken on this role leads me to believe that you truly do care about the youth and their future.

The purpose of this short note is again to introduce myself, to make myself available to any and all volunteers and mentors of the program, and to assist the staff with preparations for the summer and fall. My email address is eldasheon.nix@gmail.com and my contact number is 312-492-9614. Please don’t hesitate to contact me whenever you have questions, concerns, or comments, and I will gladly assist you in any way I can.

I will also be getting into the habit of checking the SVHATS on a regular basis so if you post questions, concerns, or comments at that location I will get those also.

As our team begins to prepare for a successful summer that will hopefully lead us into a strong program in the fall I would like to get a sense of which volunteers and mentors will be available in the summer and can and will continue to be with the program in the fall? I understand that it is rather early and may be hard to determine your availability at this point, but we are just trying to get an idea so we can plan accordingly. So if you know if you will be available in the summer and will be around in the fall, please inform myself or another staff member when you can.

Thanks for continuing to make a difference!

Sincerely,
EL Da’ Sheon Nix