Skate to Relate: A Qualitative Study of a Therapeutic Skateboarding Program for At-Risk Youth
Document Type
Event
Faculty Mentor
Susan Noyes
Abstract
Skate To Relate is a positive youth development program that uses skateboarding as a therapeutic intervention tool, incorporating art and group discussions to increase emotional wellbeing, foster personal growth, promote physical fitness, provide mentorship and support, and build resilience in at-risk youth. The program focuses on mitigating the effects of adversity with positive, protective, and compensatory experiences, as well as support and mentorship from skateboarding instructors and an occupational therapist. This phenomenological qualitative study aims to assess the perspectives of participants of this occupational therapist-led therapeutic skateboarding program for students attending an alternative high school in Lewiston, Maine.
Skate to Relate: A Qualitative Study of a Therapeutic Skateboarding Program for At-Risk Youth
Skate To Relate is a positive youth development program that uses skateboarding as a therapeutic intervention tool, incorporating art and group discussions to increase emotional wellbeing, foster personal growth, promote physical fitness, provide mentorship and support, and build resilience in at-risk youth. The program focuses on mitigating the effects of adversity with positive, protective, and compensatory experiences, as well as support and mentorship from skateboarding instructors and an occupational therapist. This phenomenological qualitative study aims to assess the perspectives of participants of this occupational therapist-led therapeutic skateboarding program for students attending an alternative high school in Lewiston, Maine.
