Youth Opportunity Breakfast - Serendipity Center

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Serendipity’s Youth Opportunity Summit is an annual event for our students dedicated to understanding and overcoming barriers. The Summit is based on a model developed by Dr. Donna Beegle, founder of Communication Across Borders (CAB), a nationally recognized leader in helping youth develop tools to deal with — and overcome — poverty. CAB acknowledges poverty as trauma – which is accompanied by grief, pain, and anger. These issues are especially overwhelming for youth who are also struggling with mental illness.

The goals of Serendipity’s annual YO Summit are to:

Remove the shame that poverty teachers
Rebuild the hope that poverty steals
Reduce isolation by connecting youth with community

“If we begin by teaching children about poverty in the K-12 system, everyone would learn about the true causes of poverty and the circumstances that perpetuate it. They would gain empathy and recognition that not everyone has the same chances. More importantly, children in poverty would learn the true causes and be able to externalize the shame taught by their own experiences. It empowers them to understand and change their current context.”

— Dr. Donna Beegle, Founder of Communication Across Barriers

A First For Oregon

The first YO Summit at Serendipity (also the first in Oregon) was held in March 2014. Dr. Beegle facilitated a highly empowering experience for our students, helping them to authentically understand core poverty issues and assist them in moving out and staying out of poverty.

Testimonials

“Serendipity helped me so much. I can better control my anger and Serendipity gave me more coping skills so that I know what to do.”

LukeStudent

“I carried Serendipity with me, in the form of this sense in the back of my mind that I had been cared for, listened to, and held accountable. I’d been give a place where I felt wanted, like I “fit”… “taken in” when that was just what I desperately needed.”

CindyStudent

“I cannot begin to count the number of times that the staff have gone above and beyond to make every effort to keep our son in school by continually altering and adjusting his school plan to accommodate for his needs.”

Parent

“By the time I graduated from Serendipity, I was a leader. I helped others and understood the importance of making responsible choices.”

William Student

“Serendipity offers consistent behavioral and emotional supports through carefully designed individualized plans that involve the student, parent, and district staff.”

Gresham BarlowProgram Director of Special Services

“The perseverance and dedication shown by the staff is second to none. We felt supported and encouraged by these folks in our daughter’s life. She has made a wonderful turn around and we know Serendipity played a major role in shaping her into the person she is today.”

Parent

“Serendipity provides more than just academic learning; it is a safe haven for children with extreme circumstances which would otherwise inhibit their social and learning skills which most of us take for granted.”

JosephStudent

“The classroom teacher, instructional aides, and case manager have endeavored to create sustainable change in the youths’ lives with whom we work… From cultural sensitivity, to empirically based, collaborative practices, I can’t say enough positive about my experiences with Serendipity staff.”

Consulting Behavior Therapist

“Serendipity has been such a blessing to our son and to our family. They have given my son confidence, self-esteem, life skills, peer relationship skills, and improved reading, writing, and speech.”

Parent

“Serendipity taught me… Coping skills to help handle my anger issues and help with thoughts of harming myself, Time management to help juggle multiple things at once, and more importantly; that I was smart enough. I was worth more than I could have imagined.”

TemariGraduate

“Serendipity is a trusted partner, a true innovator in the way they seamlessly blend learning and healing for severely troubled children. Students who have been failing for years will often turn their lives around at Serendipity, astonishing their families, teachers, and themselves.”

David DouglasSuperintendent

“Since he started at Serendipity, when asked about school, my son’s face lights up and he has nothing but positive things to share. He has never been excited about school before Serendipity.”

Parent

“Being held responsible for my own behavior at Serendipity prepared me to hold a job and to live in my group home. It was a good school to go to because it gave me a safe place to attend year round.”

WillStudent

“Because Serendipity provides developmentally appropriate curriculum and mental health services based on the individual needs of its students, innumerable youth have been afforded opportunities to experience academic and interpersonal success.”

Centennial SchoolSpecial Education Director

“My son gets one-on-one attention from staff. The classrooms are much smaller so he can receive help easier… He has learned more at Serendipity than in other school setting he has been in.”

Parent

“I know that Serendipity is a great place for kids that need a little extra help. I’ve never felt more safe and secure at any other school then I have at Serendipity. This school is a great fit for kids who have problems with school work, home issues, or just fitting in.”

JoanStudent

“Serendipity provides the essential environment and interventions for these children to begin to turn their lives around.”

ReynoldsSuperintendent

“Serendipity Center understands how important education with a mental health component is for someone like my son. By first healing his wounded emotional state, he gained the confidence to reach beyond his comfort zone, to try new things, to grow and learn.”

Parent