For the past six months, as part of my Sociology 100 class, I participated in UBC’s Community for Engaged Learning Trek program where I was a volunteer with the Kids First Program that is run out of Hastings Elementary. Founded 16 years ago, the Kids First Program offers children from Hastings and its annex Tillicum, many of whom are potentially at risk youth, a safe and inclusive after-school program from 3 to 6 P.M. Partnering with this community organisation has been a great experience and especially dear to me as I grew up in the neighbourhood (I even went to Hastings Elementary myself!) but beyond my own personal connection, the program has offered me an ideal environment to take my learning beyond the University setting. For almost half a year, I have volunteered regularly with the program, attending for two hours once or twice a week to tutor and play with children. While going in to the program I had a deep connection to the area and some of its challenges, approaching this experience with a critical, analytical lens all while creating relationships with students in the area, has allowed me to deeper understand some of the underlying social issues in the community and society in general.
Getting involved in the community through some sort of volunteering is something I would recommend to anyone and everyone, but why specifically Trek? For me what stood out about Trek was its connection to my education and the subject matter I was so often learning in my classes. In courses like geography and sociology, we constantly explored and critiqued the systems and institutions our society functions within and tackled various issues relating to – among many other issues – poverty, education, socio-economic inequality and housing. Through lectures, readings, and projects, my classmates and I were beginning to form a sophisticated understanding of these issues and for me Trek became a critical supplement to what I was learning. My knowledge I had gained in my academics gave me a new lens through which to see many issues, but Trek allowed me to use this lens and grow my understanding of the challenges many communities face first hand. At Kids First I was beginning to witness these issues while also being exposed to solutions – in many ways my placement gave much more meaning to what I was learning. It was a constant reminder of the significance of what I was learning but also an opportunity to add what I was seeing and experiencing in my placement to what I was already learning, giving me a much clearer understanding overall.
Specifically, to my experience, I was able to further understand the underlying social issues many families face in the neighbourhood of Hastings Sunrise in East-Vancouver and reflect on some possible ways to fix these issues. A vibrant and ethnically diverse community, gentrification and poverty are two of the most pressing issues the community is facing. One in five children in the area experience food insecurity and live in inadequate housing, and at Kids First, these at-risk elementary students are the target of the program. In my time volunteering I helped out as a tutor, helping students with their homework, but also providing social and emotional support by building meaningful connections. In the time I spent at kids first, I built many relationships with many kids and saw how impactful programs like Kids First are. It was truly a great experience and something I will do again and would absolutely recommend to anyone!