AFTERGUARD
SAILING ACADEMY
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LEARN TO SAIL WITH CONFIDENCE
Raise your sail 1 foot and you get 10 feet of wind.
Chinese Proverb
Afterguard Youth Programs
About This Cause:
Afterguard Sailing Academy provides a sailing education program primarily for the Emillio Zapata Oakland Street Academy, and additionally a few other schools have worked with us over the years. Funding has been one of our biggest hurdles. The Street Academy programs have been running continuously since 2006. These High School classes host 7-16 youth each trimester, and sail on Wednesdays, totaling an average of 32 weeks per year. The students earn PE credit from OUSD and credit for attending an internship. Afterguard is a recognized vendor for the Oakland Unified School District. In 2006, the teacher who asked us to provide this school program, was asked to document the operating budget of running the youth academy, and discovered it to be in excess of $20,000 per year. Since January 2010, when the district became financially strapped, Afterguard Sailing Academy has stepped in as a not-for-profit that has filled the financial gap with the help of a few key consistent and dedicated volunteers. This is why we can unfortunately only extend the outreach to one high school at this time.
Afterguard Sailing Academy is committed to providing a youth program for at-risk High School aged inner city youth. Because of our work with these young people, the Sea Scout group 'Bay Area Youth Boating Council, Inc' has made our program a "Special Project" of theirs. BAYBC, Inc provides Afterguard youth programs with 501c3 status in exchange for covering expenses, restoration and upkeep of several boats donated to their group. We also have full use of these boats for our students and courses.
Most of our programs have been funded and supported by our adult and open enrollment ASA sailing courses. Our hope for the future is that we can extend this opportunity to other underprivileged high-schools who have asked for this program and help fund the upkeep of our fleet of sailing instruction vessels. Additionally, we would like to offer more paid staff-teaching positions in service of this youth program, and provide sailing education opportunities to teachers, to keep the program alive in the future.
Please donate toward an endowment for youth sailing:
Mission Statement:
We deliver sailing education to expand the horizons of inner city youth and break the hold of gangs and parents who may not know what opportunities are available after high school. We call our youth program "Destination Graduation", with the aim of getting youth out of their 3 block neighborhoods, and providing a new way to enter the world as adults with more confidence. By teaching these youth to sail, we teach leadership and teamwork skills, risk management, and responsibility through skippering or being crew-mates for a peer group aboard a boat. This is a whole new way to view their world and get excited about what awaits them after high school. We also take them on field trips to introduce them to CSU Cal Maritime Academy, Bar Pilots, and to see the SF Bay Model. We spend numerous hours observing those who's professions are on the water, in and around the Port of Oakland.
"Destination Graduation" is an mentoring incentive program; as long as the students maintain a C average during freshman through junior year, they can participate in our sailing program and in-turn will be more likely to graduate high school. Most go that extra mile to make it to the podium as a result of the encouragement and confidence gained in the program. While in the sailing program, students are allowed to attain progressive ASA certification levels at not cost to the students. Youth also receive high school credit with Oakland Unified School District for attending these courses. Afterguard gives first job employment opportunities at our school, to those who excel and want to try working summer jobs/part time/or after the program. Students and former students must stay in college/trade-school/junior college to work with us part time, with a career goal in mind.
We ask each student 'Which college they plan to go to' on our very first session, and encourage them to apply for scholarships throughout our time with them. We show interest, and support their efforts to reach for their educational goals as well as teaching them to sail.
Please donate toward an endowment for youth sailing:
Veterans:
Afterguard encourages Veterans, who have given so much for our beautiful country, to contact the office to see how you can volunteer or try sailing to see if it is for you a stress relief that can shift your gears to home life.
Become an Afterguard volunteer! Contribute your time to youth sailing!
Is sailing important to you?
Do you have spare time and would like to volunteer as crew?
Do you have skills to help work on boats that need love?
Do you have any special skills that would benefit our nonprofit?