Boys & Girls Club updates board on teen lounge at Vista Grande, attendance and services

Matt Lundberg, representing the Boys & Girls Club, presented an update on the club’s teen programming in partnership with the district and the city.

Lundberg said the club began as an after‑school program for K–5 in 1998 and expanded into a teen program on the Vista Grande campus in February 2016 through a partnership with the City of Casa Grande Parks & Rec and the Casa Grande Union High School District. He said the program — known as the lounge — provides a supervised space that connects teens to tutoring, college‑ and career‑readiness programming, life‑skills activities and extracurricular supports.

Key figures Lundberg reported included 329 teens served in 2024 across seven club sites (about 15% of the club’s total served population), roughly 25 teens a day currently attending the Vista Grande lounge, and 1,898 total visits recorded at that site. He said 17 team members working in the lounge are from the Union district and that the lounge allows continuity of service for youth who started in younger grade‑level programming.

Lundberg noted the program’s value as an alternative to additional classroom time: "We wanna be a safe place for kids to go when they're not in school," he said, and described offerings such as tutoring access, college‑prep and life‑skills activities. He also invited board questions and acknowledged continuing partnership with school staff and city library personnel.

No formal board action was taken on the presentation; superintendent Lavender thanked Lundberg and noted staff would record the member attendance change.