With high hopes and aspirations graduates of the 2nd Annual Youth Center Leadership Academy received their certificates of completion at a celebratory breakfast served by the Seal Beach Lion’s Club at the Youth Center on Aug. 23.
In all, there were 26 students in the six-week long academy which is designed to prepare youth for the real world, with workshops on everything from cooking and laundry basics to goal setting, resume writing and interview skills as well as the basics of budgeting and banking. Business entrepreneurship, car maintenance, careers in medicine, photography and occupational therapy were also featured.
Completion of the Leadership Academy heralds in the future for its students by teaching them to be strong leaders.
“It tells employers that they excel at what they do, are committed to any project they undertake and that they will bring the highest levels of success to their future life’s work,” said Youth Center Office Manager Julie Rubin, who presented for the first time at the event this year.
Returning for a second year was Youth Center Board of Director Member and mentor Karen Frankenberg, who said she is looking forward to mentoring and teaching in some role in future academies.
A mentee of Frankenberg was Dakota Costa, 16, of Rossmoor. The Los Alamitos High School student, who wants to go to college and study Biology or medicine, said the most valuable thing he learned was goal setting for his life’s plan.
“It’s the Leadership Academy that helped give me strategies for planning out my life,” Dakota said.
Dakota’s father, Cris, praised how the academy exposed his son to many different things and careers. “It was nice for him, and he was very excited,” he said.
Another student who said the most valuable thing he learned was about time management and setting goals was Ryan Elliot, 14, of Rossmoor. The Los Alamitos High School freshman hopes to use what he learned to become a pediatric oncologist or go into business.
“The Leadership Academy has shown me to set goals,” Ryan said.
Students learned from Long Beach City College Student Health Services nurse, Tina Cassar, R.N., and children’s book author about careers in medicine and nursing, while occupational therapist Vicki Vu taught about careers in her field.
Meanwhile, Celeste MacFarlane, 17, of Seal Beach who attends Los Alamitos High School said, “The most valuable thing I learned from the academy was all the opportunities there are in the world, and about all the different careers.” Celeste wants to attend college but is yet undecided as to her major.
Los Alamitos High School student, Lauren Mihkelson, 17, of Los Alamitos who also wants to go to college and is thinking of becoming a doctor, especially valued the workshop on budgeting but her most memorable workshop was on cooking.
“It was completely different from the rest of the academy,” she said. “I love cooking, and liked learning how to hold a knife left-handed.”
Students were provided with a professional cooking class from Amy Loe and Teri Villanueva, owners of Chef Tech Professional Cooking School. They learned how to read nutritional labels and how to cook healthy on a budget as well as how to do laundry properly.
Lauren’s father, Brian, said the academy taught “fantastic life skills.” Her mother, Kristy, said of the academy, “When we saw what the program offered, we thought it covered all the areas we should have been teaching her. It’s so amazing that all the people have come to teach these things.”
Professionals from in and around the community donated their time and resources to run the workshops. Some of the instructors served as mentors alongside members of the Youth Center Board of Directors, and remain in contact with academy graduates during and after the academy concludes.
One workshop instructor, Jody Roubanis, Ph.D. who teaches Family and Consumer Sciences at Point Loma Nazarene University, mentored and taught academy students on goal setting and communication skills.
“It’s so exciting,” Roubanis said. “This next generation is so skilled at knowing who they are and what needs to be done to make the world a better place. Sometimes the best leaders are the best listeners.”
Other instructors like Dr. Andy Galpin of the Cal State University Center for Sports Medicine taught about groundbreaking scientific research and working with professional athletes. Mark Mayuga of I.D. Energy AG taught business entrepreneurship, running your own business as well as resume basics and interviewing skills.
Tom Ingram of Viva Las Vegas, who organizes the Rockabilly weekend in Las Vegas every year, taught about a career in festival organizing, the importance of keeping your word professionally and personally. He also taught the importance of maintaining physical and mental health as well.
Many of the students benefited from the basics of budgeting and banking conducted by Josh Wilson of Southland Credit Union.
“My most memorable thing about the academy was the workshop on banking,” said Matbeal Tordecilla, 15, of Stanton who attends Los Alamitos High School. “I learned important life skills like cooking, managing credit cards and about credit scores,” he said. “The Leadership Academy influenced my future plans in that they made them clearer. I’d like attend college to be an environmental biochemist.”
Students also learned about investing from Certified Public Accountant James Davidson, something that comes handy for being able to plan and afford college.
Other instructors included Youth Center Board Member and Ganahl Lumber Sales Manager Brandon Petersen who taught the basics of car maintenance, Melinda Kim of Melinda Kim Photography who took professional photos of academy students and gave them the basics of the photography business, and Anna Mendioloa, a Park Development Officer with the City of Long Beach who taught about careers in architecture.
Teresa Pisani, 14, of Garden Grove voiced how the academy “taught you the basics of being independent,” and that she especially liked the banking and cooking classes. The Los Alamitos High School student wants to be a pediatrician. She said, “The Leadership Academy helped me on how to take care of my body and being out on my own.”
The Youth Center congratulates the 2014 Leadership Academy graduates including Courtney Allard, Hailee Allard, Samantha Chaffee, Dakota Costa, Viviana Diaz, Matbeal Tordecilla, Ryan Elliott, Sarah Enyart, Tyson Ezell, Jr., Indira Galvez, Jake Garkow, Chase Graham, Kelly Kessloff, Timothy Lee, Celeste MacFarlane, John Merrill, Lauren Mihkelson, Christina Mishreki, Dawn Penn, Sarah Pisani, Teresa Pisani, Jessica Saliba, Austin Thompson, Taylor Turpin, Crystal Villalpando and Victor Villalpando.
