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YMCA Community Assessment: Researching Facility Teen Friendliness

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Design Problem: The YMCA needed to submit Teen Friendliness Community Assessment reports for 8 facilities to meet requirements of a grant. 

 

My Role: UX Researcher

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Methods: Interviews, Spatial Walkthroughs, Ethnographic Research, and Rapid Ideation

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Observe – Research: Began by interviewing with YMCA Teen Program Directors and conducing a spacial walkthrough of each facility.

 

Interviews revealed that each facility had unique demographics with programs focused on catering to target markets:

  • White Rock: Lacked physical space so concentrated efforts on YMCA Youth and Government Program within schools.

  • Moorland: Stronger participation by young Black males and focused on Basketball Achievers and Leadership Program.

  • Plano: Higher levels of Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate students meant providing volunteer opportunities so students could meet their academic program requirements.

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Spatial Walkthroughs revealed physical areas Teens had access to and the overall ways Teens interact with the YMCA facilities.

  • Every Facility: Fitness Areas required guardian permission to use, but teens had no access to a bathroom or locker room without staff clearing the space of all adults.

  • Grand Prairie: Cubbie Area provided a place for Teens to store their belongings while they participated in YMCA Programs. The area also included a bulletin board with upcoming events for Teens to engage in or sign up for. 

  • Moorland: Reserved a Basketball Gym and Teen Room after school and during weekend hours for Teen-Only-Use. 

  • Irving: Teen programs used outdoor fields for recreation. All other facilities only used them for a separate intramural sports program.  

Make – Iterate: Ethnographic Research provided insight on the ways Teens interact in YMCA Programs.

  • Event Programs Overall: Revealed higher participation in programs from non-YMCA members.

  • Moorland and Oak Cliff are managed by the same YMCA Teen Program Director so they often Combined Programs outside of the facility. i.e. Organized College Tours and a Youth Summit, a day of learning about what it takes to attend Trade Schools, Colleges/Universities, Community Colleges, and join The Armed Forces. 

  • Grand Prairie: Focused programs on youth safety. i.e.Trunk-r-Treat Program provided teens a safe opportunity to celebrate Halloween.

  • Plano: Utilized programs to capture Teens needs need for volunteer credits. i.e. Fall Festival Program allowed Teens to run carnival style booths for younger participants in exchange for volunteer credits. 

Testing: Teens and Community Organizations were interviewed to identify overall friendliness of YMCA facilities and programs.

 

Teens were interviewed to see if they are members of the YMCA, what the biggest problem Teens face is, and what they would like to see at the YMCA:

  • 26% of program participants are members of the YMCA.

  • 89% of Teens cited stress induced by school as their biggest problem. i.e. Grades, Course Workload, Studying, Time Management, and Bullies.

  • Top 3 programs Teens would like to see include:

    • A place to hang out with just people their own age

    • Programs to practice and develop job skills.

    • Programs that allow them to practice hobbies: reading club, a creative-design workshop, and sports. 

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Community Organizations were interviewed to see if they know what programming the YMCA offers to Teens, if they partner with the YMCA, and what the biggest problem they think Teens face:

  • 61% Don't know what the YMCA does for Teens. 

  • 4 of the 7 community organizations that know about YMCA programs find business partnership opportunities.  

  • Drugs were the number one stressor the community felt Teens faced (56%) followed by Teen Pregnancy (44%). Stress induced by school was never mentioned. 

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Reflect – Brainstorm: Rapid Ideation produced ideas (Pink) to solve stakeholders needs, desires, and pain points (Teen Yellow, Adults Green) . Four categories emerged: Business Structure, Virtual Spaces, Physical Space, and Teen Programs, as areas of opportunity to improve YMCA Teen Friendliness.

  • Business Structure Improvement: Hiring a more diverse staff (women, LGBTQ, Asian, Latinx, creative, artistic) to work directly with Teens will help Teens to see a representation of themselves at the YMCA.

  • Virtual Space Improvement: The creation of a Volunteer Opportunity Portal to assist Teens in finding and tracking volunteer hours for school. 

  • Physical Improvement: Single stall restrooms for Teens and gender nonconforming can eliminate the need to monitor bathrooms and locker rooms.

  • Teen Program Improvement: Teen-led trainings to recognize stress caused by school can provide Teens with the tools to manage stress and adults with the skills to recognize when a Teen is under duress.

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Deliverable: Detailed reports to be used for grant submission.

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