Distance learning, isolation from friends and much uncertainty have challenged youth during the past 15 months.
But six young women embraced the challenge and focused on their goals. Now, those young women will graduate from high school as well as The Friendship Club, a program where they have learned many life skills, made lifelong friends and been prepared for the next step, whether it’s college, trade school or full-time work.
The Friendship Club, a 26-year-old organization, merged with NEO to become Bright Futures for Youth in summer 2020.
“Being a teenager is very difficult during the best of times, from the emotional and physical changes to the pressure from peers and school,” said Jennifer Singer, executive director of Bright Futures for Youth and co-founder of The Friendship Club, in a news release. “Add the challenges of COVID from the frustrations of online learning to the loss of in-person, quality time with friends and it’s been a very tough period for yo
Video of Nevada Union High School choir students’ songs are recorded onto a single track, where the class can be heard singing as one. Choir director Rod Baggett has used this system to be able to keep choir alive during the COVID-19 restrictions.
Photo: Elias Funez
Teaching in the performing arts can be a “performing art” in itself.
Effective teaching is essentially a performance art. During a pandemic in which most students are taught via distance education, performing arts teachers are faced with particularly complex challenges.
Nevertheless, performing arts instructors are adapting to the complications presented by remote teaching. They are learning to experiment with technology and to creative new approaches to help their students become performers.
In January 1848, six Mormon men bunked together in a small wood cabin along the South Fork of the American River in Cullumah, as the Nisenan named the land where they had lived for thousands of years, meaning “beautiful valley.” The men, part of the U.S. Army Mormon Battalion, had traveled from Iowa to San Diego to fight in the Mexican-American War, which, fortuitously or not, was close to an end upon their arrival. The war allowed the victorious United States to acquire more than 500,000 square miles of Mexican territory from the Rio Grande to the Pacific Ocean. Undeterred, the men headed north to become laborers at John Sutter’s sawmill
The Nevada County Fairgrounds recently announced that the 2021 fair will occur, prompting hundreds to volunteer during last weekend’s volunteer work day. Members of the community rolled up their sleeves to make the grounds presentable by raking pine needles, painting benches, and preparing the gold path for the iconic display of marigolds.
Photo: Elias Funez
More than 200 members of the community showed up Saturday for a volunteer work day at the Nevada County Fairgrounds, helping get the grounds ready for the 2021 fair.
Last month it was announced that the fair will run from Aug. 11 to 15, prompting members of the community to rally together to help clean up mountains of pine needles, paint benches, weed flower beds, and other tasks.