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The holidays are here! It is time to gather the ingredients to cook up something special to share with friends and family.
We at FabNewport have one recipe we’d like to offer, one we think makes a big difference in the learning outcomes of the middle and high school students we serve in Newport and Providence.
And while I am introducing this recipe, I want to acknowledge a key ingredient – you, a FabNewport supporter. We wouldn’t have been able to develop this recipe without friends like you. For that we are grateful. You’ve been a critical part of our success.
Below is our recipe. It encapsulates FabNewport’s recipe for youth development.
Engagement + Belonging + Opportunity = Positive Future Vision
Engagement: Means creating dynamic learning experiences that capture young people’s imaginations through hands-on learning where there is freedom and choice. These experiences keep the youth coming back for more.
Belonging: This refers to the student having a connection to people and places. It’s the experience of mattering – of feeling cared about, accepted, respected, valued, and important – to one's community (class, campus or town) and self.
Opportunity: This is about possibilities: exploring interests, meeting people, exploring new places. Seizing the experiences that often spark an interest that becomes a life-long passion.
At FabNewport, these ingredients come together in the mixing bowl of Place-Based Education; community-based learning “immersing students in local heritage, cultures, landscapes, opportunities and experiences, using these as a foundation for the study of arts, mathematics, social studies, and other subjects.”
Together these ingredients establish a sense of personal identity which germinates a well informed Positive Future Vision. Think for a moment what it would be like to not have these concepts – positive, future, vision – working together in your life. At FabNewport, we can think of no higher ambition for our youth – for all of our youth – than to help them develop a Positive Future Vision.
The card above introduces you to Richard and Autumn, two students who have developed a Positive Future Vision during their time with FabNewport. It is clear Autumn and Richard are inspired by their lives, their plans, and their passions. They are two of our success stories for 2021.
Here’s how we reached many more students this year, through our recipe:
1) Offer place-based learning programs for Newport and Providence middle and high school students: In 2021, we hosted eleven hands-on, experiential learning programs – ranging from two weeks to year long – that engaged more than 1,000 students in Newport and Providence.
2) Offer partner organizations and local educators technical assistance and training to develop their own place-based education programs: In 2021, we partnered with more than 25 community partners, such as Providence Public Libraries, Newport Art Museum, Cottrell Farm, Sail Newport, Providence After School Alliance, Sail Newport, Gnome Surf, Buttonhole Golf, and Jackson Studios.
3) Advance the adoption of place-based learning, with a specific focus on influencing and engaging education practitioners and community leaders: In 2021, our own Ellen Pinnock became the “Director of Community Engagement” within the Newport Public School system. She is leading a community effort to get more students, especially those from the black, indigenous, people of color communities, more engaged in learning.
Please help us continue to follow our recipe of success.
On behalf of FabNewport’s staff and Board of Directors, I hope you will be inspired to support our mission and programs with a year-end contribution.
With your support now, FabNewport will start 2022 in a strong financial position. This, in turn, will allow us to not only continue implementing our existing programs but also develop new opportunities that help Autumn, Richard, and all the other FabNewport and PVD Young Makers students along their way achieve their Positive Future Visions!
With optimism,
Steven Heath
Co-Founder/Executive Director