This month’s BTM Spotlight School is Monarch School in Barrio Logan, near downtown San Diego. Serving homeless students grades K-12, Monarch is a public school operated under the San Diego County Office of Education’s Juvenile Court and Community Schools educational program.
Serving up to 350 homeless students each day, Monarch students live in San Diego shelters, motels, single-room occupancy housing, double- or tripled-up with other families at camp sites, in cars or on the streets. And like other students in the San Diego school system, Monarch’s middle school and high school-aged teenage boys have a NEED for the wisdom, friendship and support of our group facilitators and mentors.Watch movie online The Transporter Refueled (2015)
We are currently holding two BTM groups weekly on Fridays at Monarch School, divided by age and grade (serving 7th and 8th grade boys) with 4 paid staff facilitators.
One 8th grade Monarch boy, Billy, said, “Boys to Men gives me a way to deal with my problems. You guys help me through BIG things and small things in my life.”
In addition to being homeless, these boys (for the most part) have no positive male role models in their lives and have to endure daily hardships most American teens could never imagine.
Boys to Men’s Program Director Anthony Hutchings said, “While these groups are sometimes much more emotionally “heavy” than other in-school groups, myself and our trained staff consider Monarch some of our most meaningful hours of circles every week.”
“BTM helps me control how I act and now I don’t get into trouble as much,” explained Antonio, another student from Monarch who attends weekly groups with Boys to Men. “I get help, I learn from your wisdom and I can lean on you guys.”
Anthony Hutchings continued, “Every boy, no matter his story, just wants the support of good men who will consistently show up and listen to their fears, praise their successes and encourage their dreams. At Boys to Men Mentoring, we ARE those men.
