The +swappow PLUS Foundation is an incredible organization that helps foster kids thrive through a combination of skateboarding and life-skills programming. This year, using Roarockit technology, +swappow PLUS integrated a build-a-skateboard component into their programming and it was a great success. I had a chance to interview Michael Shapiro, their Executive Director, to learn about how the program went and the story behind this wonderful charity.
Hi Michael, can you tell me a little about yourself and the Swappow+ Foundation?
First of all I love Canada. I actually walked from Mexico to Canada along the PCT in 2002. My wife and I also rode our bikes from Canada to Mexico in the mid-2000's. We have dear friends in Vancouver and love the gulf islands, mountains, streams, and people of Canada. I have been skateboarding since 1986 and have been mentoring kids through skateboarding for over 20 years. I was an elementary school teacher for 12 years and have been the Executive Director of Swappow+ for almost five years.
Our professional development course felt like a culmination of many of my life experiences. My experience running a skatepark at our local YMCA in highschool, coaching gymnastics, working at a nonprofit for Sudanese refugees, my tenure as a school teacher, and mentoring youth for the past 25 years along with making old school handmade oak and walnut skate decks for fun in highschool and presently has given me the experience to both run this organization and co-lead this course.
Do you skateboard? What inspired you to start this incredible foundation?
I have been skating for 36 years, our founder Joe Dunnigan has been skating since ‘78. The Foundation was really a culmination of both of us mentoring kids in the context of skateboarding for decades. Joe, in the context of co-founding Cowtown Skateboards and teaching the local shop kids about business while they helped out and got paid to work in the shop. We ultimately decided to formalize the work that we have been doing for years and focus it on our most vulnerable and extraordinary population - Arizona foster youth. This course is really the pinnacle of our programming beginning with skate events and workshops, personal development courses, and now professional development. The best way for our participants to thrive through skateboarding is by giving them the skills, motivation and resources to find meaningful and fulfilling careers.
How did you hear about Roarockit? What inspired you to bring skateboard building into the program?
Joe Ryan, an engineer and educator by trade, designed and built our exclusive curriculum and co-led the pilot course. He donated hundreds of hours of his time and expertise to make this course a reality. His contribution was and is massive! A few years ago he used Roarockit kits as a capstone project in a high school class he was teaching. It was his idea to incorporate Roarockit into our curriculum and early iterations of this course. As we offer this course to a larger demographic in the future we will also utilize a 9 board press donated to us by White Wave Longboards.
How do you feel this program benefits the foster youth? How do you work this into your curriculum?
Through the curriculum we were able to develop a comprehensive approach to teach business, design, and entrepreneurship principles in the context of manufacturing a skateboard. However, some of the most powerful lessons apart from the curriculum is overcoming the critical voice in our heads, overcoming perfectionism, comparison to others, the importance of working with others, and committing to finishing what you start.
An important lesson for the students that Michael shared with me is “Go fast, go alone - go far, go together”. Teamwork, leadership, self-motivation, and creating and actualizing your goals are all big parts of their program. As part of their curriculum, they also integrate further resources and links to further education, internships, and job opportunities related to specific aspects of the board build.
What were the youths’ reactions to getting to build skateboards? Do you have any special stories to share of the effects it had on them?
The stories are profound, each has a beautiful story. The dedication, hard work, commitment, cooperation, integrity, attentiveness to details, compassion... defied modern stereotypes of "at-risk youth." Every participant communicated that this was their first multi-step project that they completed and how proud they were of completing something that has real value and meaning.
Michael mentioned that there were students who were walking upwards of 40 minutes in order to get themselves on campus to take part in the program, as the subject matter relating to skateboard culture really resonated with the youth. 11 out of 12 of the students fully completed the course and successfully completed one professional quality handmade skateboard with the help of Roarockit technology.
How were you able to get skateboard building started in the program? How did you secure funding? Did you have to jump through any administrative hoops to get there?
Our program has been funded largely with the support of the Arizona Community Foundation. We also had an outpouring of support from our community. We are also very thankful for a strategic partnership with The Keys To Success Program of the Arizona Friends of Foster Children Foundation. Both of these organizations have been doing heroic work in the foster care community for decades. We were further convinced of their impact by the ways that the Keys social workers supported our participants with transportation, encouragement, and follow up. It is very apparent that they really care and want their clients to succeed in life. We were also very fortunate to partner with East Valley Institute of Technology and as a result had access to their world class construction workshop and classroom space. BlueTek Printing donated all of the labor and supplies needed to create a vinyl cut for each graphic. The response from our partners, supporters and community has been amazing and is a testament to their commitment to the AZ foster care community.
It’s incredible to see the support from the community surrounding the cause. Michael mentioned that the ability to have the students working in high-tech facilities such as EVIT takes away the mystical feeling that these skills are beyond their reach, and shows them that these facilities are there for them to use.
How did it turn out? Are the youth riding their boards afterwards, or do they use them more as an art project?
Each participant's project turned out better than expected. Their graphic was converted to a Vector file so it could be replicated and applied with professional methods so the outcome looked very professional. We did not want this to be a craft project, but rather an opportunity to create a high quality product.
Michael also shared with me that in the future, their goals for the program include expanding the program to allow the students to build multiple boards, including one to be given to a newcomer to the +swappow PLUS learn-to-skate program. This gives the builder the opportunity to have a profound effect on other youth just like them, giving the project meaning, value, and showing the youth that they can achieve anything.
Thanks for your time Michael! Any last words for the viewers back home?
We truly believe that this project was successful because of the power of collaboration. It literally took 75 or more people/groups to make this project a reality. This includes our amazing coaches, supporters and strategic partnerships. We especially want to thank: Joe Ryan, our coaches, our individual supporters, The Arizona Community Foundation, EVIT, AFFCF, KTS Program, Suja Juice, Liquid Death Water, Cloud 9 Griptape, Hella Hangers, White Wave Longboards, Zero, Bum Bag, SMS Financial and Advanced Physical Therapy.
We are also thankful for your accessible and easy to use product, we had no problems at all with your products and it really made this project enjoyable and attainable.
It is amazing what we can accomplish when we work together and we hope that this program will get even better with each new iteration.
Learn more about +swappow PLUS with these links below!
Press:
Imprint News - Falling Isn’t Failing: Skateboarding Program Teaches Arizona Kids How to Thrive
East Valley Tribune - Virtual Skateboarding Academy Teaches Kids In Foster Care
GCU News - Skateboarding Nonprofit Flips For Foster Children
ABC Arizona - Valley Skater Mentoring Others Through Foster Care System
BTS of swappow+ PLUS
Taryn O'Grady,
Roarockit Skateboard Company