SRO Newsletter: New Years 2010
Message from the Executive Director
As we rapidly approach 2010, a new decade, I have thought about SRO's first ten years. As many of you know, SRO is celebrating our 10th anniversary. More than being reflective of our past, this anniversary has provided me much to contemplate in terms of the next decade and what SRO will bring to the communities we serve.
It is also fortuitous that, after a challenging journey, we are putting to paper our strategic plan right as we are entering 2010 and transitioning from our first decade to the next. The plan itself has been a bit of a metaphor for SRO. It started slowly, but once a clear vision was set and we were able to add the right people and resources, it took off.
SRO's vision for the upcoming years is shaped by numerous stakeholders: board of directors, staff, volunteers, community collaborators, donors, and students. The plan, which charts our course for the next three years, encompasses the impact of the changing world around us, such as the violence that is plaguing cities and schools that most impact our students. It also encompasses some remarkable facts we know to be true about young people, such as if someone believes in them, holds them accountable, and sets high standards, they will rise to the challenge.
SRO's mission this next decade will very much remain the same: working with young people from underserved communities to help them develop long-term goals, improve their health, overcome obstacles, and build resiliency skills and confidence to prepare them for life. However, what will continue to evolve is how we will execute to deliver on this mission, why we are targeting this specific population and why it matters. Now the art and challenge is how best to capture and articulate these core ideas into the vision, mission, and values and have them permeate through all that we do. For my New Year's resolution I will hold out these pillars, the heart of what SRO is all about, as my compass.
"A vision is not just a picture of what could be; it is an appeal to our better selves, a call to becoming something more." - Rosabeth Moss Kanter
Happy Holidays and here's to a great 2010!
- Spencer Hooper
Training for Life: Overall Health
As always, Students Run Oakland is this season incorporating not just training runs but also programming that improves the overall health of young people through physical fitness, mentoring, and nutrition education. This season, we have already provided:
But Students Run Oakland does not simply hold a commitment to the overall health of individual students enrolled in our program. We are also committed to supporting and improving the health of our community, and we are joining other school and community leaders in this effort. Read more about our response to community violence in our blog entry.
Runners High Screening and Fundraiser, January 21st
On Thursday, January 21, SRO staff, volunteers, and students will be hosting a screening of Runners High, a documentary by local filmmakers about Students Run Oakland, as a special event and fundraiser.
The film will be screen at 400 Hawthorne Ave (behind Samuel Merritt Hospital) in the Bechtel Room at 7pm, and will be followed by a Student & Volunteer Panel that will be open for audience questions.
To purchase tickets ($25/each) you can donate online and indicate your donation is for the movie night in the "designation" line. Tickets purchase online can be picked up the night of the event at Will Call.
If you are interested in selling tickets on behalf of SRO, please contact Volunteer Coordinator Steve Roberts. For additional questions, please contact Fundraising Coordinator Katharine Sullivan.
Tremendous Thanks
Special thanks to Fleet Feet San Francisco and Mizuno, providing shoe fittings and running apparel for our students. Special thanks also to Thomas Arts, a full service marketing communications firm, for providing pro bono marketing services. Check our sponsors page for a complete list of supporters.
SRO's website is www.sroakland.org. Tax-deductible donations can be made online or by mailing a check to P.O. Box 10696, Oakland, CA 94610.
As we rapidly approach 2010, a new decade, I have thought about SRO's first ten years. As many of you know, SRO is celebrating our 10th anniversary. More than being reflective of our past, this anniversary has provided me much to contemplate in terms of the next decade and what SRO will bring to the communities we serve.
It is also fortuitous that, after a challenging journey, we are putting to paper our strategic plan right as we are entering 2010 and transitioning from our first decade to the next. The plan itself has been a bit of a metaphor for SRO. It started slowly, but once a clear vision was set and we were able to add the right people and resources, it took off.
SRO's vision for the upcoming years is shaped by numerous stakeholders: board of directors, staff, volunteers, community collaborators, donors, and students. The plan, which charts our course for the next three years, encompasses the impact of the changing world around us, such as the violence that is plaguing cities and schools that most impact our students. It also encompasses some remarkable facts we know to be true about young people, such as if someone believes in them, holds them accountable, and sets high standards, they will rise to the challenge.
SRO's mission this next decade will very much remain the same: working with young people from underserved communities to help them develop long-term goals, improve their health, overcome obstacles, and build resiliency skills and confidence to prepare them for life. However, what will continue to evolve is how we will execute to deliver on this mission, why we are targeting this specific population and why it matters. Now the art and challenge is how best to capture and articulate these core ideas into the vision, mission, and values and have them permeate through all that we do. For my New Year's resolution I will hold out these pillars, the heart of what SRO is all about, as my compass.
"A vision is not just a picture of what could be; it is an appeal to our better selves, a call to becoming something more." - Rosabeth Moss Kanter
Happy Holidays and here's to a great 2010!
- Spencer Hooper
Training for Life: Overall Health
As always, Students Run Oakland is this season incorporating not just training runs but also programming that improves the overall health of young people through physical fitness, mentoring, and nutrition education. This season, we have already provided:
- After-school tutoring at the school sites
- Individual pairing of students with volunteer mentors, through our Mentor Model program
- Stretching Clinic, thanks to SRO volunteer Becky Austin, MD
- Nutrition Clinic, thanks to Dr. Michele Mietus Synder
- Running Clinic, thanks to SRO staff members Alita Sanchez and Alphonzo Jackson
- Nutrition Clinic #2, thanks to Dr. Patty Siri-Tarino
- Injury Prevention Clinic, thanks to Brad Kraetzer
 |  |
Students attending a clinic at Lake Chabot | |
But Students Run Oakland does not simply hold a commitment to the overall health of individual students enrolled in our program. We are also committed to supporting and improving the health of our community, and we are joining other school and community leaders in this effort. Read more about our response to community violence in our blog entry.
Runners High Screening and Fundraiser, January 21st
On Thursday, January 21, SRO staff, volunteers, and students will be hosting a screening of Runners High, a documentary by local filmmakers about Students Run Oakland, as a special event and fundraiser.
The film will be screen at 400 Hawthorne Ave (behind Samuel Merritt Hospital) in the Bechtel Room at 7pm, and will be followed by a Student & Volunteer Panel that will be open for audience questions.
To purchase tickets ($25/each) you can donate online and indicate your donation is for the movie night in the "designation" line. Tickets purchase online can be picked up the night of the event at Will Call.
If you are interested in selling tickets on behalf of SRO, please contact Volunteer Coordinator Steve Roberts. For additional questions, please contact Fundraising Coordinator Katharine Sullivan.
Tremendous Thanks
Special thanks to Fleet Feet San Francisco and Mizuno, providing shoe fittings and running apparel for our students. Special thanks also to Thomas Arts, a full service marketing communications firm, for providing pro bono marketing services. Check our sponsors page for a complete list of supporters.
SRO's website is www.sroakland.org. Tax-deductible donations can be made online or by mailing a check to P.O. Box 10696, Oakland, CA 94610.
posted by Unknown at 7:07 PM
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