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Youth Services Martin Luther King Education Center E-Newsletter
| April 2010 |
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Horticulture Program
Students Welcome Spring
|  It's official - spring has sprung! Students from the Horticulture Program brought in the new season with a successful native plant
sale, selling an assortment of plants and offering gardening tips to dozens of
visitors.
In the Department of Youth Service's Farm, students weeded
garden beds to make room for new plants. Harvesting has already begun, with
greens and herbs ready to be passed on from the MLK Ed. Center's Greenhouse to the Culinary Arts Program.
This month, horticulture students continued to remove exotic,
invasive plants from Mt. Baldy for the City of Eugene. Crews have also completed
miles of trail work for the Bureau of Land Management project in the Coburg
Hills by laying gravel, building water features and blocking illegal trails.
The work doesn't stop there. Students continue to work to renovate the Fall Creek Trail,
which is now open to the public thanks to extensive repair work. MLK students'
contributions include building a 60-foot retaining wall in just one day.
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Spring Gardening Tips From the Horticulture Program
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The Horticulture Program puts a lot of time
and effort into nurturing its farm and crops throughout the seasons. Here are
some maintenance tips from our expert student gardeners:
- Tilling can expose pesky weeds to light, helping
them to thrive in your garden. Try pulling or burning weeds instead of tilling
the soil.
- A single footprint can result in 10 pounds of
pressure per square inch, crushing plant roots, keeping oxygen away from the
soil and preventing water from reaching plants. Maintaining established paths
around your garden will prevent soil compaction.
- Help deliver nutrients to your garden by
mulching with leaves, bark and old pine needles. Worms also help feed your
plants by distributing nourishment.
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| MLK Jr. Education Center:
By the Numbers | |
6 - types of lettuce, kale, chard and
spinach being harvested now in the culinary program greenhouses
50 -number of
customers at the Horticulture Program's annual native plant sale
60 -feet of
retaining walls built by students on the Fall Creek National Scenic Trail for
the US Forest Service in one day - a record distance
2,000 -tastes of
pork tenderloin lollipops and smoked beef tenderloin prepared and served by
culinary arts students at Chef's Night Out
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| Upcoming Events | |
April 27 - Job Corps presentation, MLK Jr. Education Center
May 3 - Culinary students compete at Lane County High School Culinary Competition at Lane Community College's Center for Meeting and Learning (Building 19) in Eugene. The competition is 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; awards presentation and dessert is 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
June 16 -MLK Jr. Education Center Graduation
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Culinary Arts
Students Display Talents and Skills at Chef's Night Out
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 Culinary Arts Program students participated in the 20th Annual Chef's Night Out last month, preparing and serving 2,000 tastes of pork tenderloin
lollipops and smoked beef tenderloin on crostini with horseradish cream.
Proceeds from the event benefitted Food for Lane County. Restaurants and caterers from the local
area participated in the event.
SweetWaters on the River Executive Chef Michael Thieme
praised students who participated in the event. "I was impressed with their professionalism, quality of
product and personal presentation," said Thieme.
Also this month, students participated in a butchery class
with Stephen Neel of Oregon Natural Meats. The meat cutting class incorporated lessons in biology, anatomy, and cooking and aging methods. Students learned how to cut meat for a variety of purposes and practiced cutting techniques.
Students also toured professional kitchens at
Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend and the University of Oregon. These experiences provided students
with valuable knowledge about different sectors within the food service
industry. |
Back to the Basics: Technology
Students Test Their Abilities
|  This month Technology Program
students learned the basic skills needed to maintain, repair and upgrade personal
computers. The students learned practical skills they can use later
in life, whether they pursue a career in technology or simply for their personal
needs.
Instruction started with the basics of identifying
individual components and worked up to complex skills including replacing and
upgrading a computer system's memory, diagnosing potential issues, performing
preventive maintenance and replacing the central processing unit and heat sink.
Next month will bring new challenges as the students
reassemble their computers! Students will need to keep their fingers crossed as they press the
power button on their newly assembled computers for the first time!
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Youth Perspective: Project Homeless Connect
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MLK Jr. Education Center students at Project Homeless Connect | By MLK Students Tyrone Johnson and Luke Neet
Have you ever imagined starting over? The two of us both
have. Growing up we made a lot of bad choices and ended up getting in trouble
with the law. If it weren't for our families and friends, we would have been
destined for a life on the streets.
For the last year and a half or so, we have been on
probation because of the mistakes we made. We both attend Youth Services Martin Luther King Jr. Education Center. On March 16th, we had the
opportunity to volunteer our services at Project Homeless Connect.
Through the MLK Ed Center program, Tyrone participates in the Culinary Arts Program
and Luke participates in the Horticulture Program. There is a Technology Program that some youth participate in as well. Youth from all work crews
assisted in providing over 2,000 meals at Project Homeless Connect. The two of
us, in addition to writing this article, helped with organizing food supplies,
preparing food, serving food, and clearing tables. People appreciated the
services that we provided, and many of them took the time to thank us
personally.
We were astounded to see so many young children and their
families at the event. It is a disappointing reality of our community, so many
people struggling to provide the essential basics. What can we do to make a
difference?
Over a thousand volunteers gave their time to the cause.
Medical care, dental, family resources, and a host of other services were
available. Youth at MLK Ed Center donated over 200
hours of community service to this cause. In addition to helping homeless in
our community, this opportunity represented the overall mission of the school
in preparing youth for future employment opportunities. We both agree that the
event was a huge success and very worthy cause because we helped a lot of
people in our community.
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Student of the Month:
Delfino Davila-Tamayo
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Congratulations to MLK
Ed. Center's April Student of the Month Delfino Davila-Tamayo! Delfino has demonstrated great progress
in both his attitude and effort. He has continually worked hard in class and
strived to complete all his work in a timely manner. His dedication and
attitude have been above and beyond what we normally expect from our students. MLK teachers say that Delfino is always focused and excited to learn and
participate in the classroom. He is a kind and respectful citizen of our
learning community. He is a consistent member of the Culinary Arts Program
and makes the most of vocational opportunities presented through that program. Delfino's exceptional
attitude and work ethic are appreciated by both staff and students. Keep up the
great work!
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| Transitions |
Casey Brocco and Steven Rider earned their GED diplomas, bringing the total number of GED graduates up to eight this year. Johnnie Cartwright has begun a Culinary Arts internship at the Campbell Center. Johnnie's internship responsibilities include preparing and serving meals to the Center's members. Several MLK Jr. Education Center students have completed scholarship and financial aid applications for post secondary education. A special thanks to the Delta Foundation Scholarship, Lane Community College Foundation, and the Philippine American Association for their scholarship programs for MLK students. |
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| Save 20% |
Save 20% on your next catering order of $50 or more with the MLK Jr. Education Center Culinary Arts Program.
Print this coupon and present it in person to redeem value. Limit one per person. Offer not valid with other discounts or prior purchases. | | Offer Expires: May 25, 2010. |
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