Dear Editor:
On March 7th, 2015, New Canaan Teen Center (“the Outback”) will hold an important annual winter fundraiser. We hope the community will join us to support the Outback as we look to preserve its presence and continue to evolve the center into a place that meets the current needs of the youth and families in our community.
As you may have noticed the Outback has been featured in the news recently regarding its funding. Last year the Town of New Canaan provided a grant of $20,000 to the center and proposed $19,000 grant for next year. This amount falls short of the center’s financial needs and it may be in jeopardy.
The Outback is a non-profit organization that is 90 percent self-funded. The Outback opened its doors 14 years ago enriching our community by providing a positive environment where middle and high school students are able to socialize, participate in entrepreneurial and enrichment activities and contribute to the community in a meaningful way.
The very existence of a unique, centrally located facility dedicated to our youth is a tangible testament that youth are a valuable part of our community. Supporting the center sends a clear message to our community and, particularly to potential homebuyers that we value and care about our youth.
This past year usage increased by 30% through 122 programs and events such as cooking, study skills, self-defense, songwriting and recording, movie nights, band nights, ping pong tournaments, a winter coat drive, middle school parties, and college information lectures provided for 5th through 12th grade students. There were also 55 rentals for special events such as sport team dinners, middle school cast party, birthdays, meetings and cultural gatherings. Our Student Governing Board was busy planning social and community activities while developing leadership qualities and interpersonal skills. Despite these successes, covering operating expenses remains a challenge.
Year after year, the Outback Board of Directors, staff, parents, students and the community work hard to raise funds to continue the mission. However, the financial operating model that was originally established is no longer viable in today’s environment. Grants from corporate sponsors and foundations to support our operating budget are very restricted or no longer available.
Outback Board members have been working with Town Council members and the First Selectman for about a year to research teen center models and investigate the best way to maximize our resources for the youth in New Canaan. A 2013 review by the Harvard Business School Club of Connecticut, Community Partners found that (i) there is still a need for a teen/youth center in New Canaan, and (ii) successful models in neighboring towns indicate that integration of the center with town facilities as key to creating a financially stable operating model.
The review revealed that in neighboring towns, successful teen center models are supported by substantial town funding ranging from $90,000 to a fully funded teen center. These towns that include Darien, Wilton, and Westport, possess very similar demographics to New Canaan and demonstrate an outward commitment to their youth through a coordinated and centralized effort that includes a town funded center. In many of these towns, the Youth Services Director also serves as the Director for their Teen Center.
In line with peer community models, the Outback Board is proposing a public/private partnership with the town where the town helps fund the infrastructure costs of the building and staffing while the Outback Board along with community, parents and students continue to provide funds for programs. The Outback Board is looking to reorient and rebrand the Teen Center as a Youth and Family Community Center. While the emphasis would remain on middle and high school programming, we would like to extend our reach to families and community organizations that also support our youth. The center would act as an anchor and resource for all groups working with youth and families, and as a hub for information on what is available for youth and families in New Canaan.
The need for a teen center in New Canaan was conceived over 20 years ago and received public attention during the 1990’s with the formation of the Youth Commission and the release of two important studies, one by the League of Women Voters and the other by the United Way. These studies identified that one of the top three unfulfilled recreation needs in New Canaan was a facility for teens and that its absence posed a serious problem for the community. In response to this information, concerned parents and civic leaders formed the New Canaan Teen Center non-profit corporation. Over a period of five years, this dedicated group of individuals raised $2.2 million dollars from New Canaan’s residents, businesses and civic organizations using $1.8 million to build the teen center.
We need your help. You and the community can help keep our doors open by speaking up on the need for a designated centrally located facility to serve the social and enrichment needs of the youth and families in town. The town supports a similar center for the adults and seniors- Lapham. Our youth and their families deserve a center too!
The Outback is…
- A place for youth aside from their home and school where they can relax, socialize and be engaged in the community through leadership and service opportunities.
- A place where our youth can develop positive social skills, social competence, character and enhanced self-esteem – all of which are related to reducing risk-taking behavior and developing healthy interpersonal relationships
- A perfect venue for parenting activities and community organizations that share our goal of providing supportive programs for kids and their parents
- A unique and convenient multilevel facility with a recording studio and state of the art commercial kitchen available to the community for gatherings, meetings, banquets, performing arts events.
- A vital resource to our community’s young people and to the population at large.
Sincerely,
Outback Board of Directors
Sangeeta Appel, June Bird, Eileen Boyd, Lisa D’Virgilio, Mariola Galvais, Kristen Leopold, Claudia Pagazani