Mission Statement

 

It is the mission of the Atlantic City Rites of Passage Program, Inc. to assist our youth in crossing that bridge from adolescents to young adulthood through recreational, cultural, spiritual, and educational enlightenment.

 

Vision Statement

 

It is the vision of the Atlantic City Rites of Passage Program, Inc. that every youth who completes the program will remain drug and alcohol free, arrest free, abstain from sex until marriage and will have the basic tools to not only survive but to succeed in life.

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History of the Rites of Passage Program

 

In June of 1996, the City if Atlantic City was looking for a mentor program for the young adolescent girls.  A young college intern Kimberly Dansby was given the task of researching and formulating such a program.  Her initial attempt was a 13 week program called “Teens in Control”.  The programs was almost what we were looking for, but still something was missing. 

 

The Rites of Passage program was founded July 1996 and was modeled after the national program sponsored by the African American Women on Tour Conference.  Shermaine Gunter-Gary saw the program in Philadelphia and gave her college assistant, Kimberly Dansby the assignment of organizing a rites of passage program for adolescent girls.

 

September 16, 1996 the first program with (25) twenty-five young ladies began on the quests to deter teenage pregnancy, stop gang violence and educate against drugs and alcohol.  The program consists of (12) twelve workshops, (2) two field trips, (1) sleepover, (1) orientation, and (1) crossover Program.  The workshops are Who I Am, ( a look into who they are), Herstory (a briefing on African American Heroines), My Body-My Temple (personal health and hygiene), Sex Sense & Sensibility (we introduce the Baby Think It Over Program and abstinence), Spirituality & You (gaining insight to their inner strength and learning to medicate and gain control of their rage),  Making a Difference (career and development), Etiquette & Ethics (developing value systems & table manners and etiquette), Economics & Self Empowerment (learning about money, saving & investments), I’m So Pretty (learning about your inner beauty & outer beauty), Quilt Workshop (creative workshop), Unity Call (expressing themselves in song, poetry, and dance) & I Am (a culmination of all the workshops and we send the initiates on a dream session).  We provided two sessions per year. Session one was from January to May and session two was from September to December.  Each session has (32) thirty-two youth both male and female.

 

The program has a small administrative cost as all of the staff are volunteers.  We have an average of (12) twelve volunteers who work with the youth each session. 

 

To date we have crossed over (1500) fifteen hundred young ladies and men.  After completing the Program, the young ladies and young men have a firm foundation and community support to continue on their quest to achieve greatness throughout life.

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Definition of Rites of Passage

 

Workshops and ceremonies by which age - class members or individual in  a group successfully come to know who they are and what they are about-the purpose and meaning for their existence, as they proceed from one clearly defined state of passage in their lives

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Overall Goal of Program

 

 To provide opportunities for male and female adolescents to prepare themselves - spiritually, socially, emotionally, intellectually, and culturally for passage to manhood and womanhood.

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Program Objectives

 

1. Develop an understanding of the importance of  well-being

 

2. Develop an understanding of self and environment as related to the present and future          

 

3. Develop an understanding of community and family values

 

4. Develop an understanding of health and the body

 

5. Develop an understanding of African and African-American history and culture       

 

6. Develop and understanding of Spirituality

 

7. Develop and understanding of cooperative economics

 

The program consists of  21 two-hour sessions held mainly on Tuesdays.

                                                       ORIENTATION 

                                                       Who am I

Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds

TRUNK OR TREAT 

SAVING IS SEXY 

BEING YOUR OWN

HISTORY/HERSTORY

THE BEAUTY AND STRENTH WITHIN

DRUG AND ALCHOL PREVENTION

BLACK MAGIC

SEX, SENSE, SENSEIBILTY 

TEAM BUILDING

Anger Management

Say no, no, no to drugs

YOUTH NIGHT OUT

SOCIAL ETIQUETTE

STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES 

AFRICA AND ME 

AFRICA AND ME  (PART 2)

GOALS 

BHM PROGRAM

                                                  CATCHING FEELINGS​

                                                  WASHINTON TRIP

                                                    RELATIONSHIPS 

                                                  CREATIVE ARTS 

                                                 UNITY CALL 

                                                  RHEHEARSAL 

                                                  REHEARSAL/ I AM 

                                                  CROSSOVER  

The beauty within

The Brain

Money Management

Creative Learning

Unity Call

I Am

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The Program is then culminated into a Crossover Ceremony whereby the initiates display their talents and the fruits of what they have learned.

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