COMPASS Programs’ holistic approach to wellness for youth aging out of foster care includes affirming services, resources, and partnerships. While in the program, young adults have access to peer-led groups, life skills training that covers topics like self-esteem and identity, social events with peers, and a supportive staff to lean on. The COMPASS Point center is a safe space for all people, regardless of identity, and features two gender-neutral bathrooms with access to personal-health items like pads, tampons, and over the counter birth control available to all participants. The staff at COMPASS Programs regularly undergoes diversity training to keep up with best practices when interacting with the LGBTQ+ community to ensure their needs are met. COMPASS also works with community partners, like Planned Parenthood, the San Gabriel Valley LGBTQ Center, local college groups, and mental health services to provide extra support to young adults during and after their time at COMPASS.
Beyond the physical and emotional needs of participants, COMPASS fosters an educational environment by providing a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Event each month focused on different cultures and identities. This month in honor of Pride, participants were supplied with two TED Talk videos dispelling myths about the LGBTQ+ community and the ties between the Gay Rights Movement and the Civil Rights Movement with a survey to reflect on what they learned and what Pride means to them.
To read the full article, click here.
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COMPASS Point holds quarterly Resource Fairs that focus on different areas of wellness. During this event, community partners talk about their services and resources that relate to the theme.
The fourth Resource Fair was held on June 15th, and the topic was Intellectual Wellness. Representatives from Mt San Antonio College, Citrus College, Los Angeles County Library’s Work Ready Program, Tri-Community Adult Education, American Beauty College, and Tri-City’s Workforce Education and Training Program discussed the different services and resources they offer that promote intellectual wellness. Some of the topics covered by presenters were certificate programs, job readiness workshops, and vocational programs.
David & Margaret’s own Director of COMPASS Programs, Marissa Scholefield, discussed ways COMPASS Point Drop-in Center promotes intellectual wellness, through things like Life Skills workshops, our COMPASS Training Program, and our Resource Fairs. The next Resource Fair will be held in September and focus on Social Wellness.
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Safety is important to COMPASS Programs and we provide young adults with various resources to learn how to be prepared in an emergency. We offer trainings on CPR, how to use a fire extinguisher, and an emergency preparedness training taught by the local fire department. Along with these trainings, COMPASS Programs also provide TAY with first aid kits and emergency equipment that they can keep with them in their apartments.
On June 30th, COMPASS Point will be hosting an event that focuses on health and safety. At the Drop-in Center, we will be showing videos and movies throughout the day that promote safety and health such as the series “Explained“ on Netflix, “Ask the Doctor”, and various YouTube videos focused on emergency preparedness. Young adults who participate at the Drop-in Center will also receive a safety kit containing: facemasks, band aids, hygiene products, and more.
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COMPASS Point recently developed a tiered system explaining how your contributions directly support the young adults in our programs. Throughout the four tiers, donations range from $25 up to $2,000. Donations can provide young adults with supportive gift cards, house warming kits, college scholarships, job placement internships, and more. The graphic below shows how the tiers are broken down, and what each amount can provide for young adults.
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These donations directly impact the young adults that COMPASS Programs serves. For example, Olivia was able to receive supportive gift cards, assistance to cover school expenses that financial aid would not cover, and funds from the COMPASS Training Program to attend her classes. These resources supported Olivia throughout her academic journey so far. Because of her hard work and support from COMPASS Programs, Olivia has achieved her dream of transferring to California State University of Los Angeles where she will pursue a degree in Social Work.
To read more about Olivia’s story, click here.
To learn more about the tiered system, or to make a donation, click here.
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Last month was foster care awareness month, and we asked the young adults in our program “What does being “Foster Strong” mean to you?” Here are some of the responses we received:
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Click each image to see a corresponding video on our Instagram page.
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