The Third Street Community Center provides educational programs and enrichment opportunities for children in San Jose. We offer youth with a safe, positive, and stimulating environment to explore learning and experience academic and personal success.
The Third Street Community Center provides educational programs and enrichment opportunities for children in San Jose. We offer youth with a safe, positive, and stimulating environment to explore learning and experience academic and personal success.
We provide academic support through our After School Academics Program (ASAP), and Summer of Learning (SoL) Program. We engage youth in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) through a design challenge in our Young Engineers Program (YEP). All programs provide mentoring opportunities that connect children to positive role models from local universities.
At Third Street, children improve skills in reading and math, receive help with homework, strengthen their sense of self-esteem, and build confidence.
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Our goal, to have every child strive for a college education, is ambitious and requires a strong academic foundation and building youth assets so children have the confidence, skills, and motivation to pursue a college education. To accomplish this goal, the Third Street Community Center developed a unique whole child, whole family, whole community approach to engaging families, and adopted project-based learning as our primary educational strategy.
Project-based learning is an educational strategy that engages children through hands-on activities. This interactive approach enhances learning by helping children make connections between complex math or science and every day life. We utilize this strategy in all our youth programs.
Our whole child, whole family, and whole community approach takes into account the importance of volunteers in the lives and education of children. Each year, our agency welcomes over 125 volunteers who serve as mentors, tutors, positive role models, and more. Our volunteers create an energetic learning environment that helps children envision the path towards a college education.
The Third Street Community Center is inclusive of the many diverse cultures that live, go to school, and work in San José. Diversity is celebrated and our accomplishments are due in part to our willingness to embrace diversity as an asset.
Our vision is a community where students are equipped and inspired to be college bound and pursue STEM careers. They are instilled with an awareness of how important it is to have a "pay it forward" mindset. Families are enriched and more confident about their lives.
The Third Street Community Center provides comprehensive and enriching support to Greater Downtown San Jose youth including college preparatory STEM education, peer role models and mentors, and family engagement in a safe and nurturing environment.
Community leaders in San Jose founded Third Street Community Center (TSCC) in 1997. Spearheaded by the then Reverend Lindi Ramsden from the First Unitarian Church of San Jose, her passion for social justice brought together a multi-disciplinary group of key stakeholders who shared her vision of creating a more equitable community. This group included community members, city leaders, elected officials, public health representatives, educators, business leaders, and others.
In 1998, Third Street incorporated as a non-denominational non-profit organization. The first year of operation was accomplished with the support of volunteers from the First Unitarian Church of San Jose many of whom provided their time, talent and service to help build our programs. Since this humble origin, Third Street has served over 3,000 economically and socially disadvantaged children and individuals. Today, Third Street is a well-respected agency and a leader in serving disadvantaged children and families living and working in the shadow of Silicon Valley.
At Third Street Community Center (TSCC) we use a unique whole child, whole family, and whole community approach to engage our participants in life-long learning practices. We believe that community is crucial to helping children that are eager to learn, reach their full potential. We know that parents do have a great influence over their child's academic and social achievement. Staff engages with parents to promote participation in a variety of activities that directly contribute to their child’s success.
Our approach recognizes that a child’s success sometimes requires more than willingness and participation. We also incorporate teachers, staff, volunteers, and mentors who often become adult role models that help to create a healthy, dynamic, and thriving community for our kids to shine. This inclusive approach inspires volunteers from all backgrounds, cultures, beliefs, and professions to take an active role in our children’s education and well being. Our Volunteer Program is just one of our many strengths and a prime example of how our whole community approach empowers individuals to give back to our community.
