J-Tech Institute, Inc.
a Non-Profit Corporation
Falcons Youth and Family Services
Southern California Falcons Youth Football & Cheer Organization
The Falcons Youth and Family Service Organization (FYFS), is a natural progression of the Southern California Falcons Youth Football and Cheer Program (So. Cal. Falcons). In the spring of 2005 Keith and Karen Johnson formed the So. Cal. Falcons a youth football and cheer organization. The goal of the program was to use sports as a vehicle to introduce and reinforce the concept of strong character, positive values, personal responsibility, social responsibility and academic excellence.
We believed that very few individuals have the attention of young people, coaches have that attention. Our goal was to utilize the relationship that coaches have with their players and parents to build and an effective agency to help meet the challenges our youth face in the community.
Our Mission is to repair the damage done to youth, families and communities by social messages that does not teach personal and or social responsibility.
Our Chapter Motto: "It's Time to Teach New School Kids, Old School Values"
In just 5 years we have been featured on local news KNBC News (twice) recently USA Football and Access Athletes have written articles about our program. (See links below) In 2011 we were awarded the “Best of the Best” Community Service Award and the Watkins Award for Community Service.
Most of the focus about our agency has been based on our success in changing the lives of youth within the community we serve in spite of these community facts:
Gangs: Our program is located in a park that is home territory to a street gang and is surrounded by 3 other rival gangs.
Crime: Our program location is in the LAPD 77th Street Division. Currently 77th Street Division has the highest incident rate of crime within the body of LAPD.
Community: In a recent article our neighborhood South Los Angeles was named Los Angeles' most dangerous neighborhood. The drive by killing of a mother on Christmas Day and a young child killed while showing off his Halloween custom are just two sad examples of the dangers that our children face.
Social Demographics: 53% of the resident’s posses a high school education or lower. 38.6% of children within the area are being raised by their grandparents.
Economic Demographics: 38% if families live below the poverty line.
Major Accomplishments
Falcons Youth and Family Services have developed several unique an innovative programs to address challenges around character, education, role models and health.
1. The Victory in Values program is a character development program, designed after the highly effective and nationally recognized Character Counts Program. Like Character Counts, our program is value based. We have chosen to use the values handed down through generations within the community.
2. Our Men in Training program (M.I.T.) and Ladies in Training (L.I.T.) are designed for boys and girls between the ages of 12-17. We developed a series of workshops to empower our boys and girls to become confident, successful young men and young women.
3. Our School Monitoring program is designed to give us weekly updates on our participants in five different areas.
4. Mobile Homework Trailer (MHT) is a 20 foot cargo trailer that has been transformed into a mobile classroom. Our MHT is at every practice. Participants, who need tutoring or have not completed homework, must do so before they are allowed to practice.
5. Our Coach/Mentor program was developed to address the lack of positive adults in the lives of our participants. Each staff member and coach is trained to be a mentor.
7. Camp H.O.P.E. (Helping the Obesity Problem End) is an 8-week healthy eating and wellness education and physical fitness program for the entire family.
Video Links:
President Speaking to players about the difference between a player and a Man
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRBw4bZNBdA
KNBC Los Angeles New Report on Falcons Mobile Homework Trailer
http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/sports/Homework_Trailer_Los_Angeles.html
News Articles:
Click here to read the USA Football Article about our Mobile Home Work Trailer.
http://www.usafootball.com/articles/displayArticle/7768/109
Click here to read Access Athletes, entitled
"Changing-Lives-The-So-Cal-Falcons-Way".
http://www.accessathletes.com/blog/blogdisplay.cfm?/Changing-Lives-The-So-Cal-Falcons-Way-702