SANTA ANA : Council to Vote on Keeping Youth Kayaking Afloat
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In its quest for ways to help teen-agers at risk of joining gangs, the City Council Monday will consider spending $27,000 to continue a youth kayaking program for a second year.
Teaching teens how to kayak is part of Parks and Recreation Inspire Dignity and Esteem, or PRIDE. The comprehensive program combines 72 hours on the water with 48 hours in the classroom building reading and mathematics skills, recreation leader Ernesto Saldana said.
The philosophy behind teaching the students kayaking is to “have them do an activity they maybe are not familiar with,” Saldana said, “and accomplish something they have never done before.”
Participants are selected from four Santa Ana junior high schools, must also complete 10 hours of volunteer work for the city. The kayaking is done at the Newport Aquatics Center in Newport Beach.
About 45 students from each of the four schools participate in the program for 12 weeks on a rotating basis.
Saldana said the success of the program is monitored by checking the grades of the participating students.
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