The high school years can be a confusing time for some students academically and socially.  They are unsure where they were heading in life:   "will I graduate or drop out? head off to college or get a job? and what is my place in the school and the community?"   Some are on the fence with many of these issues and would appreciate having interested adults outside of their immediate families and the high school with whom to talk and spend time.

BLUE SKIES is a project of the Portsmouth Rotary Club in cooperation with

the Guidance Department of Portsmouth High School.

Our Blue Skies program involves students in a variety of activities, occasionally at school, but mostly at Rotary luncheons, fundraising and volunteer sites, and recreational activities such as skiing, boating and other day trips, and career exploration days.

Blue Skies Students are assigned a Rotary Mentor who helps to involve them in all of these activities.  Blue Skies is not a counseling program.  It is an opportunity to spend time with interested adults and fellow students to have fun, explore vocations, and discover, through a variety of experiences, possibilities for the future.

Blue Skies Students and Rotary Club Mentors are expected to:

1. Participate in three luncheons at the high school for the purposes of planning and improving the program.
2. Attend eight to ten Rotary luncheons during the school year.
3. Participate in Rotary fundraiser events throughout the year: sell Christmas Trees, participate in our Entertainment Night, and help with the Thunder Chicken BBQ and Road Race.
4. Engage in two career exploration activities sponsored by the club.
5. Go on three or four special events: including a ski trip, a deep-sea fishing excursion, a trip to Boston, and a trip planned by the students.
6. Have a mentoring relationship: a signed agreement between Mentor and Student to be in contact on a regular basis by phone, email, or face-to-face.  Rotarian Mentors are expected to engage the student in all aspects of the program.
   

2008-2009 Blue Skies Student Members and Advisor, Phyllis Eldridge