About Dreamcatchers
Our Program
Dreamcatchers is a six-year commitment that models the Aspirations Incubator program. Dreamcatchers connects young people with caring adults. These relationships help young people grow into resilient, thriving, responsible young adults. The key is that trusting bond between a student and a program manager that lasts a full six years, from seventh grade through graduation.
Rivers & Roads has a close working relationship with MSAD72, Molly Ockett School in Fryeburg, Maine and Fryeburg Academy. Together through the Dreamcatchers long-term mentoring program we strive to meet the specific needs and interests of young people in our local community, develop stronger bonds between students, their schools and community stakeholders.
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Aspirations Incubator Partnership
The Aspirations Incubator has created a youth development model for raising aspirations of young people in rural Maine.
Over the last 8 years, the Aspirations Incubator has been working to develop strategic partnerships with colleges and universities in Maine to ensure that aspiring high school graduates from rural communities have more opportunities for admission and scholarships. The Aspirations Incubator program successfully increases the resiliency of young people and introduces them to new post-secondary pathways.
Rural Youth Institute Partnership
RYI is a youth development incubator empowering organizations and professionals by promoting effective strategies to strengthen and enhance the aspirations of rural youth.
By bridging research and practice, the Rural Youth Institute seeks to innovate youth development by offering immersive learning labs, transformative research, comprehensive training and strategic advocacy to strengthen youth-serving organizations. By employing evidence-based strategies, the Rural Youth Institute aims to foster innovation in the youth development field to elevate the aspirations of rural youth.
How It All Works
ACADEMICS: Molly Ockett students have the advantage with access to 360 degrees of support during the school day. Weekly 1:1 tutoring and 1:1 mentoring for academic & SEL support along with individualized enrichment opportunities.
Meredith is at school bright and early Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 8:00am to 12:30pm to ensure the well-being of our participants.
Collaborating with teachers in the classroom, administrators, guidance counselors, principal Matthew Lokken and superintendent of MSAD-72 schools Jay Robinson.
Year Round Support
ENRICHMENT: Students in our program will become involved in civic projects. For 2027 our focus is agricultural and culinary inventiveness. Learning how to garden, grow, and cook from experts. Providing delicious and accessible fresh food.
Build, create and re-imagine accessible food resources while we strengthen skills to cultivate, cook, bake and beyond!
Experiential & Travel-Based Education
COMMUNITY: We will travel to other parts of Maine and New England and the world, visiting college campuses along the way. We will engage in a variety of outdoor activities, including summer and winter camping, skiing, ice-skating, indoor rock climbing, ropes courses, canoe trips and hiking. What is most important is not the specific program or its activities; it is learning to be part of a community and developing powerful new relationships.
Relationships
RELATIONSHIPS: Young people form relationships with their adult mentors and other students involved in the program – people outside of their immediate family and social circle with whom they otherwise might never connect. Through these shared experiences and relationships over their six-years in the Dreamcatchers program participants develop the confidence to take on new challenges and dream bigger dreams.
Our Goal
NEW SKILLS, ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES: As students build strong and lasting support systems, their eyes are opened to new possibilities and a wide array of future career opportunities in Maine and throughout the world. These mentoring relationships also help them develop the emotional skills and resilience they will need to not only get to college but to stick with their education and obtain a degree no matter what challenges arise along the way. Dreamcatcher participants also develop the core skills that any future employer will be seeking: leadership, problem solving, collaboration, critical thinking, and communication skills.