December 2, 2015
Page 5
Honored at the White House
C ontinued from P age 2
Caldera was chosen from a pool
of more than 285 nominations and
50 finalists from 50 states for im-
proving literacy, language abili-
ties, communication, performance
skills, and cultural awareness. It is
the first nonprofit in Oregon to re-
ceive this prestigious award.
“As I’ve said many times be-
fore, arts education is not a lux-
ury, it is a necessity,” said Mrs.
Obama. “It’s how we get kids ex-
cited about getting up and going
to school in the morning. It’s how
we get them to take ownership of
their future. And that’s why these
programs are so important.”
Caldera mentors youth with
seven years of continuous, year-
round arts and environmental pro-
gramming. Since its founding in
1996, the program has engaged
approximately 1,900 young peo-
ple—from both urban and rural
areas—who come to the program
with myriad strengths but limited
opportunities.
Caldera’s mentors and teaching
artists help the youth find their
own voices, self-confidence and
creativity, while helping them de-
velop problem-solving strategies,
work skills, and ways to exercise
their creativity in all aspects of
their lives. As a result, Caldera
youth transform their own lives
and often have a positive effect
on their families and broader com-
munities.
The powerful impact of the
program is also evident in school
success rates. In 2014, 100 per-
cent of Caldera’s eighth graders
transitioned successfully to ninth
grade, and 90 percent of Caldera’s
twelfth graders graduated from
high school.
“The chance to represent my
peers in accepting this award
from the First Lady of the United
States in the White House was an
experience I’ll never forget,” said
Caldera student Alena Nore. “My
experience with Caldera has been
life-changing. It’s exciting to see
that programs like this are recog-
nized and valued, because I know
there are many more young people
who need the kind of mentoring I
benefitted from.”
In addition to the national rec-
ognition bestowed by the pres-
tigious award, Caldera will also
receive $10,000 to support its pro-
gramming and build the long-term
sustainability of the organization.
“This award inspires all of us at
Caldera—youth, staff, board, vol-
unteers, supporters—to reach for
new heights in our work. We are
in this work for the long term, and
we are excited to learn about and
from the awardees,” said Caldera
Executive Director Tricia Snell,
who accompanied Alena Nore to
the White House. “We also hope
that the award will shine a light
on the amazing thing young peo-
ple can achieve through the arts,
through humanities, through car-
ing adult mentoring, and through
immersion in nature. Providing
this to every child is an investment
not only in those individual young
people, but in our entire society.”
Black United Fund College Fair
The Black United Fund is en-
couraging local students and
parents to attend their free 2015
College Fair, hosted at Concordia
University in northeast Portland,
on Saturday, Dec. 5 from 9 a.m.
to noon.
Many of the colleges and uni-
versities from Oregon and south-
west Washington will be repre-
sented, along with alumni from
historically black colleges and
universities. There will be infor-
mation sessions for students inter-
Students and parents can reg-
ested in scholarships regardless of ister for the college fair online at
their socioeconomic status.
bit.ly/2015BUFCollegeFair or by
A Scholarship Writing course visiting bufor.org.
on how to create an award-win-
ning essay will follow the college
fair. This workshop will take place
from 12:30 to 4 p.m. and only cost
$10, which covers the cost of
workshop materials and lunch. To
register for the workshop, visit bit.
ly/2015ScholarshipWritingWork-
shop.