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About
The Center Viking Youth Club originally began in 2005 as an after-school program located in the Center Consolidated School District. At that time, school surveys and county data indicated high risk factors and low levels of engagement during out-of-school time for K-12 students. Local community members became interested in becoming involved with the development of members in the after-school program. In November of 2014, the Center Viking Youth Club became a 501c3 entity, allowing community members to take an active approach towards shaping students' futures. It was then named the Boys and Girls Club of SLV-Center. The Center Viking Youth Club's current location was donated to the organization in fall of 2015; the doors officially opened up to the community May of 2016. This allowed the Center Viking Youth Club to provide full summer programming to its members.
In 2018, the Center Viking Youth Club changed its name from the Boys and Girls Club of SLV-Center to the Center Viking Youth Club. It expanded to fit the needs of the community by offering Friday programming when the school district began a four-day school week. Currently, the Center Viking Youth Club strives to address community needs in an attempt to reduce the rate of risk factors and low academic performance through the integration and focus on the principles of Positive Youth Development, and restorative practices. In addition, the Club attempts to provide further enrichment by creating a safe-structured after-school setting, as well as parent programming.
Our Mission​
Our mission is to ensure that all children and youth, especially those who need us most, are offered opportunities to realize their full potential as responsible, caring, and productive citizens of a richly diverse world.
​Academic Achievement​
We aim for academic success. Through our center, we provide a responsive resource in which our youth are supported in order to learn and/or develop skills necessary to achieve academic success.
Testimonials
Our Staff
Lawrence loves working with kids from his hometown, Center, CO. He uses his knowledge from when he was their age to pay it forward.
Carmen is the Out of School Time Coordinator for Center Schools. She loves spending time with the CVYC students, especially when they go on field trips together.
Mariano is the Out of School Time Assistant Coordinator. He grew up in San Luis and after graduating high school went to college in Fort Collins at Colorado State University.
Brandon is a Program Facilitator and has been with the CVYC since August 2022. He loves working with Center Youth to achieve their dreams!
Jazmynn is a Program Facilitator and a graduate of Center HS. She is a senior at Adams State University major in sociology with an emphasis in criminology. She has enjoyed working with students.
Rachel is a Program Facilitator. She graduated from Creede High School in 2011 and then went to TSJC for an associates in Addiction Counseling. She now has a bachelor in Criminal Justice Human Services
Paul Salazar
Paul is a highly qualified counselor with a wealth of experience in conflict resolution and cultural sensitivity. With a master's degree in Counseling and 7 years of experience at CVYC, he is well-equipped to address the complexities of interpersonal conflicts and provide effective solutions.
Maria Fernandez
Maria is a program facilitator who was born and raised in Center and has worked at CVYC for the past 2 years. She enjoys working with the students and mentoring the high school staff memebers.
Leilany
Leilany is a talented member of the CVYC team. She has worked with students here for over a year. She is a great example of what it means to be a Viking student and employee.
Zuimi
Zuimi is a 10th grader who loves math class and has a passion the color purple. She enjoys the bond and the stories that the kids share with her after school. One interesting fact about Zuimi is that she is bilingual and is known for her caring personality.
Stefany
Esme
Esme, a 9th grader, loves seeing the kids at CVYC getting along and having fun. Her favorite color is teal and she enjoys traveling to new places. With her positive attitude and love for adventure,
Jose V
Favorite thing about club: “I like that there is a lot of fun activities for the students and we get to participate with the students.”
Jose is proud to be a concurrent enrollment student. He loves being a part of the ski/snowboard club.
Star
Nidia
Nidia is a talented 9th grader who enjoys expressing herself through art. She also loves spending time at CVYC, where she brightens up the day of children by making sure they have fun. In her free time, Nidia enjoys cooking and is quite skilled at it.
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