Students have access to one-on-one tutor support with general homework help, tutoring, and English language development. Many students utilize the Garage’s computers and internet access to do research for school, apply to colleges and employment opportunities, and work on homework assignments.

The Garage prioritizes incorporating STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) programming into our weekly curriculum. These activities give students the opportunity to explore technical fields, develop their creativity, and use critical thinking skills.

MAPS (Motivating, Advancing, Powerful Students) is a program which focuses on guiding students as they prepare for and transition to life after high school graduation. MAPS is run by our Graduate Coordinator, who works with current Garage students while also maintaining relationships with Garage alumni to act as a continued resource for newer graduates.

Career Compass is an 8-week, paid summer internship experience for Garage students. Participants are placed at professional businesses and organizations throughout the community that are directly related to their career interests and aspirations.

Learn more about Career Compass

The Garage Makerspace is a fully equipped art studio space with pottery wheels, paints, sewing machines, digital art and design, and more. Here we offer instruction and one-on-one creative consultations with students. The Makerspace is open to Garage youth during programming time. It is also open to the greater community during events and workshops.

The Garage Body Shop provides a safe environment for students to pursue their physical fitness goals and build their confidence. More than just lifting weights, The Garage Body Shop our students with values such as confidence, perseverance, and the satisfaction of working hard to achieve their goals.

The Garage recognizes that health is more than physical upkeep, but mental and emotional as well. Our Self Care programs provide students with tools to navigate complex emotions and to form healthy relationship skills. The Garage partners with New London Counseling Center to provide more structured mental health programs, such as providing individual onsite therapy sessions for students.

One of The Garage’s core values is to encourage students to reach their potential as members of their community. Students work with staff and volunteers on various projects throughout the community, such as sorting donated clothes at Wings for Success, teaching technology to seniors at the YMCA, and cleaning up our local parks.

The Garage provides a nutritious lunch or dinner at each in-person session. These meals not only nourish our students physically, they also provide fuel and focus for the day’s activities.

Peer leadership opportunities are a great opportunity for older Garage students to build confidence, take on greater responsibility, and gain leadership experience that is not often given to school-aged students. The peer leadership team is meant to be mutually beneficial, impacting our students academically and socially while also benefiting the peer leader.

The Garage Honor Roll incentivizes students to strive for long-term success. We reward students who are self-motivated and organized enough to complete their homework by allowing them to make choices that will benefit their mental and physical health and creativity. In addition, any Garage student on Honor Roll is invited on one of our four quarterly field trips.

Wyman’s Teen Outreach Program® (TOP®) is a nationally-recognized, evidence-based program empowering teens with the tools and opportunities to build social-emotional skills, strengthen relationships, and avoid risky behaviors. TOP youth become prepared to navigate life’s challenges through their teenage years – and beyond – and to make a difference in their communities.

The Garage received continued support via a grant renewal of the research-based anti-bullying Olweus program. Developed at Clemson University and monitored through Penn State University, the program’s goals are to reduce and prevent bullying problems among school children and to improve peer relations. Olweus has been found to reduce bullying among students, improve the social climate of classrooms, and reduce related antisocial behaviors such as vandalism and truancy. This project is funded by the PA Department of Health and Human Services, and The Garage is one of only six grantees in the state of Pennsylvania.

The Garage received a 2-year grant through the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board to provide the research-based Botvin Harm-Reduction program as part of our Out of School time programming. The program’s goals include building effective defenses against pressures to use tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs, all while enhancing self-esteem, developing problem-solving abilities, reducing stress and anxiety, and managing anger for better mental health. Botvin Curriculum is recognized as a Model Program by the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.