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Contact us! |
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Phone: 337.269.0454
Fax: 337.269.1069
Email: info@acadianabigs.com
123 E. Main St.
P.O. Box 53267
Lafayette, LA 70505
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NEWSLETTER |
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Certified Under the Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations Standards for Excellent |
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Can 1 hour a week change a life? Yes !
The School-based program enables Big Brothers Big Sisters of Acadiana to reach out to more children and to utilize volunteers that find it easier to give their time during the work day.
This program matches children ages 6-15 with volunteers who spend ONE (1) hour a week with the same child for the duration of the school year. T he children have requested to participate in the program, or their teachers feel they can benefit from additional one-on-one attention from a special adult friend. Matches meet at the child’s school at a designated time and place for one hour once a week.
They can do a variety of things together including playing games, reading a book, helping homework, doing a craft project, or just hanging out.
Volunteers have the option of expanding their role and entering the Community-Based Program, but only after completing a more in depth screening process and obtaining
permission from the parent.
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Will one hour really make a difference? |
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64% o
f students developed more positive attitudes toward school.
58% achieved higher grades in Social Studies, Language & Math.
60% improved relationships with adults.
55% were better able to express their feelings.
64% developed higher levels of self-confidence.
62% were more likely to trust their teachers. |
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| Do you like to read to children?
The Everybody Wins program is a special division of our School-based mentoring program. Everybody Wins is a unique literacy and mentoring program that partners corporate volunteers with public elementary school children, primarily in the first and second grades. Once a week, the volunteers, called Reading Partners, share a school lunch, conversation and a good book. The goal is to reach the children while they are young and stimulate their interest in reading and school.
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 In our childhood, each of us was impacted by someone, other than our parents, in a simple but special way. Do you remember the magic?
The Community-based mentoring program enables Big Brothers Big Sisters of Acadiana to reach out to children who need more one-on-one time with a mentor outside the home or school. This also offers volunteers the flexibility of participating in weekend of after school activities.
This program matches youth ages 6-15 from primarily single-parent homes in our community with volunteers who spend one-on-one time with the same child for a minimum of twice per month for one year, in hopes of fostering a lifelong friendship. Matches in this program spend time outside of the child’s school and home on weekends or after school hours.
Matches in the Community-based program spend time doing such things as, spending a day in the park, catching a ball game, baking cookies, watching a movie, or most importantly, just hanging out talking and sharing laughs.
One of the biggest questions we get at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Acadiana is “Why did I wait so long to become a Big” ? “Bigs” realize when they spend time with their “Little”, they get to act like a kid again, and they change their own lives along with the child’s.
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This Youth Enrichment Program focuses on youth in state residential homes of Acadiana Youth, Inc. In the Acadiana Shelter for Girls, girls ages 12-17 are matched in a one- on- one relationship with an adult mentor. In Maison de Mere, teenage mothers are matched one-on-one with a woman who usually has had some parenting experience. Volunteers meet twice per month for community based activities. This program is similar to the traditional community-based program.
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Research and anecdotal evidence show specifically that BBBS one-to-one mentoring helps at-risk youth overcome the many challenges they face. Little Brothers and Sisters are less likely to begin using illegal drugs, consume alcohol, skip school and classes, or engage in acts of violence.1 They have greater self-esteem, confidence in their schoolwork performance, and are able to get along better with their friends and families.
Tierney, J.P., Grossman, J.B., and Resch, N.L. (1995) Making a Difference: An Impact Study of Big Brothers Big Sisters. Philadelphia: Public/Private Ventures
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