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Peter Dearth is at
the Community Organizing to Reach Empowerment
(CORE) Center, and is working on implementing
Public Achievement. Last year Colorado State
University and CORE started two Public
Achievement programs which were successful, but
there was no focus on capacity building or
sustainability. Peter plans on strengthening
the existing program and extending to a few more
site locations as well as focusing on the
sustainability piece. He is also working on
starting a Latino Running Club. This is
something that the students who come to CORE
have shown interest in and we think of it as a
healthy alternative to the gang activity which
is strong in the communities that we serve at
CORE. The Running club is inter-generational
and will have Junior High School, Upward Bound
students (High School), and CSU students
involved. We are also hoping that the younger
students will find some positive role models in
the older participants and coaches. I also have
a role in the planning of the Youth Leadership
Conference that CORE sponsors and the
neighborhood leadership council (Nuestro
Barrio).
My goal at CORE this year
is to provide some sustainability to the
programs that I am working with. I would really
like to see the running club be successful and
some growth with the Public Achievement
programs.
I became a VISTA volunteer
to add back to the community that I’ve grown up
in. I see a value in people being invested in
their communities and I saw the VISTA program as
a venue for my participation. I also took the
Bush Administrations call to service to heart.
It asks every citizen to dedicate two years to
service.
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