What is it like to be a kid? To play. To run. To experiment. To fail and to try again.
Here at Upower, we understand the importance of movement and play. Whether it’s trying something new, scoring your first goal, or beating your own personal best score. We take pride in providing fitness opportunities that are safe and fun to teens who wouldn’t otherwise have access.
We understand the unique circumstances, and differing lives of the teens we serve; this is why here at Upower, we take a trauma-sensitive approach to fitness. We work in a variety of settings; in schools, juvenile detention centers, and with migrant youth.
At Upower we recognize the importance of having positive adult role models who provide a healthy learning experience.
Our unique approach to fitness and wellness offers teens an age-appropriate, therapeutic physical and emotional outlet. This is why at Upower we begin each class in a restorative circle, allowing our coaches to check in with our teens and provide a safe space to be heard.
Through sport and play, Upower not only raises heartbeats and gets teens moving, but also helps them to build confidence, self-regulation skills, and cultivate leadership.
For one hour our teens get to run. To play and try something new, finding freedom from life’s stressors.
For one hour our teens get to be kids again.
Upower Program
Research shows that youth who develop attributes such as positive identity and social confidence do better in all aspects of their lives. Youth learn these attributes by playing sports – which helps them to do better in school, in a job, and in their community. These attributes also help youth make good decisions.
Upower classes are designed to encourage these attributes. Our approach is trauma-informed, meaning that we provide a safe, empowering, and healing environment for students to exercise and progress on their own unique “school-to-success” life path. The class vibe is all about safe play!
Upower implements our positive development curriculum while programming across all site locations. Upower has developed a positive youth development curriculum that is tied to Washington State OSPI Health & Education standards. Upower’s curriculum was developed under an Ecological Model framework that includes three domains: Movement & Play, Positive Relationships, and Empower & Educate.
Upower coaches come prepared with a topic, lesson, and activity in alignment with the three domains. The class vibe is all about safe play! To build consistency and trust (a keystone of trauma-informed care), all Upower classes follow the same structure. But we switch up programming to maximize the physical and emotional benefits of exercise, and importantly, to meet students where they are on that particular day. Class activities may include a mobility warm-up, an active icebreaker, cardio-focused activities, strength training, a workout, and game time.
Finally, Upower performs an organization-wide evaluation to analyze our efforts in providing access to the benefits of physical activity to underserved youth. The program evaluation helps inform our team about the ways in which our programming is having an impact on positive youth development and will further develop/modify our programming to better the communities we serve.
Train the Trainer
In an effort to best serve the community, and our partners Upower is developing a two-tiered Trauma Training. The basic Trauma Training focuses on the science of trauma and the ways in which it affects the mind and body, what are trauma-informed practices and how to implement them.
The second tier Upower Training provides an in-depth overview of coaching with a Trauma-Informed lens and Upower programming. This training will focus on how Upower uses movement and play to help teach important emotion regulation, and mental skill-building.
Both Trainings will incorporate four key areas of youth development; social, emotional, cognitive, and physical. Participants will receive a printed workbook shipped to them prior to training and access to Upower’s online toolkit after training is complete.
Upower DEI Training Calendar
Upower is committed to fostering accountability, reflection, and continuous education. To facilitate this commitment, we have established a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) training schedule, incorporating internal meetings dedicated to discussing pertinent and essential DEI topics. Below is the DEI calendar for 2024
