Giving Tuesday is tomorrow and it’s important to reflect on what the giving season means. The giving season embodies the spirit of compassion and emphasizes the importance of helping those in need, fostering a sense of community and togetherness.
Santa Barbara’s nonprofit sector thrives on a shared commitment to the well-being of its diverse population and we encourage you to look at our community nonprofits who are in need of your support this holiday season.
Noozhawk is teaming up with local nonprofits to encourage you to take part in this international day of giving, which takes place on November 28th, 2023.
Our Good for Santa Barbara Nonprofit Section provides all the resources you need to donate this Giving Tuesday!
In this interview, Noozhawk spoke with Darren Brews, Director of Communications at Santa Barbara Middle School, to learn more about how the school is dedicated to setting the pace with an advanced academic curriculum for grades 6-9.
Santa Barbara Middle School
Question: What is the name and mission of your nonprofit?
Answer: Santa Barbara Middle School (SBMS). Santa Barbara Middle School cultivates in our students a passion for life and life-long learning, a deep sense of trust in themselves, strength and courage to succeed at life’s challenges, and compassion and respect for others.
Q: How long has your nonprofit been in service, and who are its founders?
A: The founders of Santa Barbara Middle School (SBMS) saw the need to provide a defining and transformative middle school experience unlike any other.
We believe that the middle school years are critical in the development of academic, creative, and interpersonal skills, and our teachers are specialists in adolescence. The SBMS educational experience was specifically created to serve the unique needs of this age group: intellectually, emotionally, physically, and socially.
We believe that targeted attention during these years of greatest growth and transition best serves the child, and ultimately translates into stronger adults. Students leave with an awareness of their personal strengths, a joy and passion for the learning process, confidence to try new things, an ability to advocate for themselves, and compassion for others.
Q: How is your nonprofit primarily funded and what are your greatest needs?
A: The majority of our funding comes from tuition. We hold annual fundraising activities which include an Annual Fund and Auction.
Our greatest needs are to continue to recruit and sustain the highest quality faculty, and to increase our funding for financial aid and scholarships we can offer on an annual basis.
Q: In what ways does your nonprofit utilize its funding?
A: All of our funding goes towards running the SBMS program. Tuition primarily supports our core operating expenses, while any additional funds raised go towards supporting teachers, scholarships, facility improvements, innovative education efforts and building community partnerships.
Q: What makes your nonprofit different from others?
A: SBMS is the only stand-alone independent middle school in the region and we offer a program that is like no other. We specialize in the middle school years and have dedicated ourselves to providing a transformative experience for our students that will define their lives and will always be remembered.
As part of our program, students may take about ten different electives a year and are provided with a variety of expedition opportunities. These choices foster agency for our students and provide an opportunity for collaboration between students and staff.
Expeditions could include mountaineering, “surf and cycle”, hiking Catalina, building a Kernic boat, or kayaking the Gaviota Coast. In addition, students have a full week of career studies, learn valuable skills in our teaching kitchen, and can participate in a number of community service projects during their time at SBMS.
Q: What is one best kept secret or fun fact about your nonprofit that not everyone knows?
A: Every year, we have a group of students who design, shape, and resin their own surfboards. Once complete, they go out for a week-long bike trip along the California coast, cycling with their boards from one surf break to the next during our March Trips.
Another hidden treasure of SBMS is our Friday sunrise swims. Most Friday’s throughout the year, students, parents, alumni, friends, dogs and faculty meet at Leadbetter Beach for an early morning gathering where they share poetry, circle-up and plunge into the refreshing waters of Santa Barbara.
Throughout a middle schoolers time at SBMS, they will complete over 500 miles on a mountain biking, spend over 80 nights in tents, and take over 40 electives. SBMS is also the only school in Santa Barbara with a Community Kitchen program that teaches students about nutrition and the culinary arts while partnering with local organizations to serve our community.
Q: Can you share one or two stories of individuals whose lives have been changed because of your organization?
A: Marco Andrade (Class of ‘94) returned to SBMS over three decades ago as a teacher and is now the Dean of Students. Marco is also married to Kelly Rosenheim (Class of ‘92) who came back to SBMS in 1990 to teach Life Skills and 9th Grade Spanish. SBMS has been intertwined in every aspect of their lives.
As was recently featured on the cover of Santa Barbara Magazine, Achok Majak (Class of ‘01) is now the global face of some prominent brands. Her parents came from South Sudan and, tragically, her dad passed away when she was 9 years old. Her dad’s wish was that his children get a good education. Achok quotes in that article that “I ended up at Santa Barbara Middle Middle School, and it changed my whole perspective on life. I felt safe, loved, and supported.”
Q: Why should donors trust your organization and are there other ways to help outside of donations?
A: SBMS is well known in Santa Barbara as an established middle school with over 45 years of experience. Our alumni have gone on to attend some of the country’s top universities and built fulfilling careers. We have established relationships with organizations all over the region through our trip program, Career Studies Week, and 9th Grade Community Services program. Our relationships extend to prominent nonprofit organizations including Bucket Brigade, Heritage House, Unity Shoppe, Friendship House, BICI, A-Z Cooking, and many more.
Q: Can you tell us one short-term goal AND one long-term goal that your nonprofit has for the next year?
A: One of our long term goals is to secure the future of the school through establishing a robust endowment. This will aid in recruiting and retaining our incredible faculty, increasing access to SBMS through scholarships and financial aid and allow us to transform our campus into a home that supports our program and contributes to our community.
Our short-term goal is to maintain the current financial needs of the school and continue to provide the transformative experience that SBMS is known for.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to share about your nonprofit that has not been mentioned above?
A: At our Core, we have three main elements; The Deal, Rites of Passage and The Magic:
The Deal
The SBMS education begins with a commitment, called “The Deal,” in which students pledge to be kind, learn how to give their full effort and contribute something authentic to our community. In return, faculty and staff return the same and commit to help each student to become leaders of their own learning.
We ask parents to make the same commitment through jumping in, getting involved, contributing their expertise and time to expand student opportunities and establish stronger community connections.
Rites of Passage
Through riding and other outdoor activities, students face challenges and adversity which leads to self-discovery and resilience. This process, called “The Hero’s Journey,”. The process is an archetypal and adolescent transformation celebrating Rites of Passage opportunities, practices and thresholds. Students experience both individual and shared adversity, mentorship, self discovery, relationship and community building.
Our students learn self-reliance, concern for peers and a life-long attitude of service.
The Magic
Ours is a powerful, integrated curriculum informed by archetypes, adolescent psychology and a variety of wisdom traditions. Students learn how to take appropriate risks: intellectual, social-emotional, creative, and physical, in safe and natural environments – allowing each of them to become leaders of their own learning. This leads to success in the classroom and in life.
Ultimately they move on, in the direction of their dreams, and in service of what matters to them in the world. Some call it magic; we call it Santa Barbara Middle School.
Click here to support Santa Barbara Middle School’s mission to honor and celebrate each student as an individual and integrate each student harmoniously into the school community.
Check out Noozhawk’s Guide to Giving for a full list of nonprofits to donate to this giving season.
If you would like to include your nonprofit in our Good for Santa Barbara section and Giving Guide click HERE.