Parents urged to complete Youth Center needs survey

  • Published
  • By Nick Stubbs
  • Thunderbolt editor
MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  The needs of MacDill's children and parents evolve, which is why the MacDill Youth Center tries to stay on top of the parents' top wants, something accomplished annually with a needs survey.

The latest survey is available online now at https://www.research.net/s/YouthCenterSurvey2013. Parents can fill out the survey through Feb. 18, and parents with children at the center are encouraged to use it to express their wants and ideas to improve the system.

"It's in the best interest of everyone to fill it (the survey) out," said Charlie Lechner, the Youth Center's youth program director.

Lechner said the information gathered by the survey is vital to the Youth Center in planning and adjusting offerings and program elements for the coming year.

"We use it for determining what types of classes to offer, requests and comments, and what is most needed to improve the facility," said Lechner.

There are common "threads of interest," from year to year, such as fees and hours of operation at the Youth Center, but the dynamics of families change each year, which means the Youth Center must always evolve and adapt to new needs.

"From year to year the population of families with children can change," said Lechner, who added that fact can dictate the direction of the center.

In the past, parents used the survey to express an interest in opening the Youth Center earlier during the summer (the center opens at noon during summer), when children are out of school, or offering Saturday programs. The Youth Center responded by offering "special" early events or offerings during the summer, and occasional Saturday programs, said Lechner.

Not all requests can be met, said Lechner, nor are all survey responses about wants.

"We get a lot of positive feedback about the things we are doing -- the things we are doing right," he said.

Once the survey process is complete, the results will be recorded and processed to identify the predominant interests among parents. The information is then passed on to leadership for evaluation and discussion for possible implementation, said Lechner.

"It's (the survey) a valuable tool for us to assess what the current makeup is and the current needs are," said Lechner. "It helps us make the program better."