The children enrolled in Americorp’s award-winning Energy Express program are not the only ones who benefit greatly from its unique summer curriculum. Kristen Siers, a senior Sport and Exercise Psychology major at West Virginia University, and mentor for the acclaimed program, says the program inspired and encouraged her to take the next steps in her academic career.
Energy Express, under the leadership of WVU Extension Service’s 4-H Youth Development program, takes place in more than 80 sites across the state of West Virginia and provides children, particularly in low-income communities, learning opportunities and nutrition to help prevent them from falling behind on reading levels during the summer months off from school.
Siers served as a mentor at Mason-Dixon Elementary school in Monongalia County and worked with a class of eight children in first and second grades on reading, writing and art skills. Interacting closely with these kids, she created lesson plans around their book of the week, each centered on a topic such as friends, family, or making the world a better place.
While there was definitely an emphasis on reading and writing, a big part of the program was also providing nutrition for the children.
“For breakfast and lunch, we would focus on family style meals where we sat together and passed around the meals which instilled a sense of family for our class,” explains Siers.
Siers incorporated fun activities such as art and drama, including a play put on for the parents at the end of the summer.
“Our classroom theme was “barnyard,” so we put on a play that followed the book, Big Red Barn, and it was an absolute hit,” exclaims Siers. “I have never been so happy or proud as I was of my class that night. We practiced that play for several weeks leading up to the open house.”
The children in the Energy Express program were not the only ones largely impacted at the end of the six weeks.
“I am currently applying to graduate school to pursue counseling as a career,” explains Siers. “I have always known that I wanted to go into a helping profession, but it really became clear to me thanks to my experience at Energy Express that I could help people through the field of counseling.”
Recalling her past summer experience with Energy Express, Siers had nothing but fond words for the program.
“This program does so much for the state of West Virginia and the kids throughout local communities. It was an absolute privilege to be able to work with the families and kids,” recalls Siers.
“Seeing them grow over the six weeks was something that helped pushed me towards my career and future, so I am forever grateful for having had the opportunity.”