Mentoring teens give boost to school kids

Kris Hill

Saturday, Jan. 6, 2001 | 2:49 a.m.

Jessica Clark stood in front of a group of second graders Thursday afternoon giving instructions while her best friend, Marissa Shaffer, handed out supplies for an assignment.

The pair, both 18-year-old seniors at Silverado High School, team up each week from October to April to teach children at Robert Lake Elementary School about topics ranging from the environment to gang violence. They are mentors through a program called Learning for Life, a subsidiary of the local Boy Scout council.

Students in Las Vegas have been participating in the Learning for Life program for the past 10 years. Staff from the Boy Scout council describe it as a curriculum designed to reinforce social, ethical and academic skills.

Alma Vining, principal at Robert Lake, is enthusiastic about the program, saying it fits into other programs at the school in which the staff teaches children what they sometimes don't get at home.

Vining cites several benefits of having Learning for Life at her school.

"It's a two-fold program because it teaches life skills and because it gives the high school students the opportunity to take responsibility," she said.

She also hopes it will encourage teens to become teachers.

Already community-minded through their involvement with Silverado's chapter of the volunteerism-oriented Key Club --which is sponsored by the Kiwanis club -- Shaffer and Clark found the mentoring program the perfect way to channel their energies.

Clark, who first heard about the program at a Key Club meeting at Silverado nearly two years ago, was attracted to it because she wants to go into education.

"I want to be an elementary school teacher," Clark said. She would like to teach first, second or third grade.

Shaffer, also a member of the Key Club, is not going into education, but she enjoys working with children, she said. She also likes working with her best friend to give back to the community, she said.

About 70 students from Silverado participate in the program, and nearly 200 from six Clark County high schools are involved, said Mike Miller, Boulder Dam Area Council spokesman.

Teens participating in the program are selected based on information provided in an application and an interview with Jennifer Tuggle, the program's coordinator. They then go through a two-hour training session before they enter the classroom, and then Tuggle meets with them for one hour every other month.

The program's curriculum consists of a variety of lessons. Last week Clark and Shaffer talked to the students in the two classes they present at Robert Lake about air pollution. They asked the children to give examples of how the air gets dirty as well as challenging them to think of solutions to the problem.

Over the course of the curriculum, Clark and Shaffer will present 60 lessons. In addition to working with children on environmental issues, they discuss how to make good choices, get along with their peers, deal with violence, as well as cultural and ethic tolerance and many other topics.

Learning for Life has become very popular at Robert Lake, where it is now in its fourth year, Vining said. The high school students have done such a good job that each year more teachers want to participate.

"They are excellent," said Billie Osman, a second grade teacher. She said her students get very excited when they know the teens are going to be presenting a lesson.

Teachers, administrators and students aren't the only fans of the teens' participation in Learning for Life.

Clark said her mother is also supportive of her involvement, she said. Her mom thinks it's a good experience for her, she said.

Shaffer said her parents think it's good for her because she's giving her time to children who haven't had life as easy as she has.

Clark and Shaffer decided to pair up to teach at Robert Lake because the school needed two students for its larger classes.

They will continue to spend a lot of time together after they graduate from high school. Both plan to go to the University of Nevada, Reno and are looking forward to being roommates.

While Shaffer will study to be a teacher, Clark will be preparing for a career in physical therapy.