Spanish American Center Youth Programs

09/02/2026

🎒 Gear Up for Success! A Huge Thank You to the Corey C. Griffin Foundation & Police Athletic League (PAL)! ✏️✨

Our youth had an incredible time at Dorchester Park for the Corey C. Griffin Backpack Drive!

Thanks to our amazing partners at the Corey C. Griffin Foundation and Police Athletic League (PAL) MA, our kids joined hundreds of students for an afternoon packed with food trucks, games, and pure fun—all while receiving brand-new backpacks filled with essential school supplies! 🎒📚

Events like this make a huge difference in ensuring our youth start the upcoming school year feeling confident, prepared, and supported by their community.

Thank you to the Corey C. Griffin Foundation, PAL MA, and all the dedicated organizers for making this event so special for our families! 💙🌟

08/24/2026

🚔 A Huge Thank You to Our Local First Responders! 🚨👮‍♂️✨

Our youth had an unforgettable day connecting with local law enforcement! A massive thank you to the officers from the Leominster Police Department and the Massachusetts State Police for spending time with our campers across both age groups! 💙

Our younger group (ages 5–7) got a special visit from Leominster Chief of Police Malatos alongside Officers Cintron, Borges, and McQuade! Meanwhile, our older crew (ages 8–13) had an awesome time meeting MA State Police Lieutenant Jackson and Officer Holder.

The kids had an absolute blast stepping into the shoes of real officers—hopping into the driver’s seat of the cruisers, checking out the equipment, and trying on gear!

Opportunities like this build positive connections, foster trust, and put huge smiles on our kids' faces. Thank you to all the officers who stopped by to inspire our youth and keep our communities safe every day! 👏🌟

08/20/2026

💡 Lighting Up Curiosity! The Battery & Bulb Circuit Experiment ⚡️

Our young scientists took on an exciting hands-on STEM challenge: The Battery & Bulb Electricity Inquiry! 🔋💡

Through trial, error, and critical thinking, our kids explored basic electrical circuits to discover what it really takes to make a light bulb glow. By testing different arrangements with wires, batteries, and bulbs, they learned key principles of electricity:

Complete Circuits: Electricity needs a closed, continuous loop to flow from the battery to the bulb and back.

Making Connections: For the bulb to light up, one connection must hit the metal tip at the base, and the other must touch the metal side casing!

Problem-Solving in Action: The kids tested several setup options—discovering which configurations worked and analyzing why others didn't light up! 🧠✨

Watching our students' faces light up when their bulbs finally glowed was the best part of the day! Hands-on experiments like this build critical thinking, persistence, and a true love for science.

Way to go to our brilliant young inventors! 👏🌟

08/18/2026

Bringing Space Science to Life: Hands-On STEM in the Community 🚀☄️

Hands-on experiences are key to inspiring the next generation of innovators and explorers. During our recent summer sessions at Mechanics Park, local students got a first-hand look into space exploration with science educator Jim Zebrowski.

Aerodynamics & Motion: Students applied Newton's Laws of Motion and principles of gravity by building and launching NASA air-powered stomp rockets.

Extraterrestrial Science: Participants had the rare opportunity to handle real meteorites, discussing how scientists use space rocks to understand the origins of our solar system.

Earth Observation: Groups explored high-resolution imagery captured by astronauts from the Cupola on the International Space Station (ISS).

Special thanks to Jim Zebrowski for leading these engaging sessions and to the Leominster Cultural Council and Mass Cultural Council for their generous support in making these community STEM programs possible.

08/17/2026

🍦 The Coolest STEM Experiment of the Summer! ☀️

Our Summer Learning Week got a whole lot cooler thanks to our incredible crew of teen leaders—Jeziah, Meron, Jahdelyn, George, Jacob, Luana, and Franz! 👏

These rockstar teens led our kids through a delicious food science experiment: making Homemade Ice Cream in a Bag!

Our young scientists mixed up cream, milk, sugar, and vanilla in a small zip-lock bag, then placed it inside a larger bag packed with ice and rock salt. They measured the temperature drop and shook the bags until the liquid transformed into a smooth, tasty treat!

The Science Behind the Scoop: The kids learned that salt lowers the freezing point of water, making the ice cold enough to quickly freeze the ingredients inside. They also discovered that ice cream is a colloid—a special mixture where ingredients are suspended together without chemically bonding! 🧠🧪

A huge shoutout to Jeziah, Meron, Jahdelyn, George, Jacob, Luana, and Franz for leading such a fun, hands-on, and sweet lesson!

MassHire North Central Career Center North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce

08/12/2026

08/11/2026

🐛 From Caterpillar to Butterfly: Science in Full Bloom! 🦋✨

Our summer learning adventures continued with a fascinating lesson on nature’s most amazing transformation: the life cycle of a butterfly! 🌸🍃

Led by two of our wonderful teen workers, Bhavya and Julianna, our kids learned all about the four stages of metamorphosis—from tiny eggs on a leaf, to hungry caterpillars, to the hidden stage of the chrysalis, and finally, the stunning adult butterfly emerging to dry its wings and fly!

The best part? Our students didn't just read about it in a worksheet—they got up close and personal with live butterfly habitats and learned about different species like Monarchs, Spicebush Swallowtails, Tiger Swallowtails, Luna Moths, and Polyphemus Moths!

Seeing Bhavya and Julianna inspire our younger students with hands-on science and interactive learning is what our summer program is all about.

A huge thank you to our teen leaders for bringing science to life, and a round of applause for our curious young learners! 👏🧠🌟

MassHire North Central Career Center North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce

08/07/2026

08/07/2026

⚾️ Play Ball! A Huge Thank You to IC Credit Union! 🧢💥

Our summer program kids had an absolute blast at the Worcester Red Sox game, all thanks to the incredible generosity of IC Credit Union! 🏟️✨

From enjoying the stadium atmosphere to cheering on every play, the energy was unmatched. The absolute highlight of the day? The kids managed to catch FOUR foul balls! 😱⚾️ Talk about unforgettable summer memories!

We are so grateful for community partners like IC Credit Union who continuously show up for our youth and give them opportunities to experience unforgettable outings like this. Thank you for putting so many smiles on our kids' faces! 💙

08/06/2026

🧬 Science in Action during Summer Learning Week! 🧪

Our students became real-life genetic scientists during Summer Learning Week, all thanks to an awesome hands-on activity led by our amazing teen leader, Bhavya!

Bhavya led our youth through a fascinating scientific journey, providing step-by-step guidance as they successfully extracted real human DNA—using their own cheek cells! 😲🧬 The kids swished a sports drink, added special solutions, and watched in awe as invisible DNA strands magically appeared right inside their test tubes! The best part? They got to turn their real DNA strands into unique keepsake necklaces to wear home! 📿✨

Seeing our teen leaders step up to inspire younger kids while making big scientific concepts so much fun is what summer learning is all about.

A huge shoutout to Bhavya for being an incredible mentor, and way to go to all of our brilliant young scientists! 👏🧠🌟