At 19 years old, Ernesto Gonzales is looking at a bright future. A recent high school graduate, he has earned a paid internship with a local non-profit and is taking courses to become a veterinary technician.
Gonzales is focused.
He has direction.
He has a second chance.
Rich Schmitt/Staff Photographer
Two years ago, Gonzales was struggling to navigate through high school and facing criminal charges that carried a 12-year sentence.
“I was headed in the wrong direction. It’s hard to have good attendance in school when you’re in and out of jail,” he said.
At the suggestion of his sister, Gonzales agreed to enroll in a program called K9 Connection, a non-profit that brings at-risk teens together to train and care for shelter dogs deemed unadoptable.
Founded by Palisadians Katherine Beattie and Pat Sinclair 10 years ago, K9 Connection offers 11 programs to schools in the LA area. It meets five days a week for two hours each day. Students, referred by counselors at continuation high schools, train the dogs in basic obedience to make the dogs more adoptable.
The hope is for the students to gain a sense of responsibility and pride knowing they helped save a dog’s life – and it’s working.
Gonzales is now a K9 Connection intern and mentor to students entering the program.
“K9 Connection had a very big influence in my life,” Gonzales said. “They gave me the strong nudge I needed in the right direction and it has made a big difference.”
Rich Schmitt/Staff Photographer
Taking Center Stage
Under the direction of program coordinator Nicole Gallardo and project director Juliet Beynon, students focus on setting personal goals – like graduating high school. At the end of each two- or three-week program, students demonstrate their dogs’ new skills in a mini-agility course in front of an audience before receiving their diplomas.
“Graduation is so important because for some of these students, it’s the first time they are called out in front of their peers to be honored – not disciplined or shamed, but to be honored,” Beattie said. “It’s amazing the change you can see – for the dogs and the students – in just a few weeks.”
Beattie and Sinclair met while volunteering for a humane education program and were so inspired by the bond they saw between at-risk youth and dogs, they banded together to establish an animal rescue program of their own that would pair at-risk students with shelter dogs. K9 Connection now conducts 11 programs annually and follows up monthly with program alumni.
After an application and interview process, the teens are selected and paired with rescue dogs. Beattie and Sinclair agree the program has an impact on the dogs. But what’s more important to them is the lasting impression made on the students.
“Most of our students are in continuation schools and are dealing with a lot of variables outside of the classroom. For a lot of them, graduating high school is their number-one goal and a major accomplishment,” Sinclair said.
Rich Schmitt/Staff Photographer
Top of the Class
To date, the program has graduted 611 students, many of whom have come from single-family, low-income homes or foster care and who struggle with regular class attendance. K9 is changing that.
“The students always tell us they start coming to school every day because they can’t wait to work with their dog,” Sinclair said.
That work pays off for the dogs as well. K9 Connection has a 100 percent adoption rate for all the shelter dogs that have gone through the program.
Since beginning in February 2005, K9 connection has placed 420 dogs.
“At the beginning of each program, we talk about the goal – getting the dogs adopted. It’s still bittersweet to see them go – even though we know that’s the goal and the best thing for the dog,” said lead trainer and adviser Lynn Medlin.
Medlin has been with the program since the beginning and credits its success to the steadfast leadership of the program’s founders.
“Katherine and Pat are relentless. They set the bar high from the very beginning and they’ve made sure it stays there. We’re learning as we go, but everyone involved in this is determined to see it succeed, come hell or high water,” Medlin said.
Both women are quick to pass the praises on to the program’s four-legged teachers.
“Dogs are able to connect with kids differently than we can. It happens naturally and we can sit back and watch as these students learn to follow direction, pay attention and take pride in their work,” Beattie said. “They’re seeing success very quickly and it makes them feel good about themselves – as they should. Not only are these students benefiting, but they’re setting the dogs up for success in their new homes as well.”
Alumni Relations
The relationship between K9 Connection and their students lasts well beyond the two- or three-week program. In an effort to build an alumni family, the program provides monthly check-backs to monitor student progress, share success stories and offer ongoing encouragement. Because the program visits each school twice per year, alumni have the chance to reconnect with the program as a peer leader.
“We don’t always see the results in class. Sometimes it isn’t until much later we see it sink in, especially in the students who come back as peer leaders,” Sinclair said. “It’s so important for these students to know they are a part of the K9 Connection family even after they receive their diploma.”
Working to reinforce the family dynamic, K9 Connection hosted its first alumni gathering at the recent “Strut Your Mutt” event at Will Rogers State Historic Park. A team of alumni from four different schools walked under a unified K9 Connection banner – and the common goal of graduating high school.
“We are working on making our presence known by getting out into the community more. We’ve been called the ‘best-kept secret,’ but we don’t want to be a secret. We want to get the word out,” said project director Beynon.
Model Students
Beattie shared that K9 connection receives an increasing number of inquiries from people and groups around the U.S. and the world requesting information on how to start similar programs in their area.
A start-up manual is now available upon request and the co-founders also consult by telephone or videoconference (at no cost) to provide feedback and counsel to people who are starting their own programs.
“This program builds confidence in both the dogs and the students and it gives the students a sense of pride and importance. They feel loved and the reward they get in knowing they helped a dog get adopted is very impactful,” Sinclair said. “Sometimes it’s tough and you wonder if you’re making a difference, but the dogs, they get to these kids. We’ve seen amazing things happen. This can be a turning point.”
K9 Connection has already mentored several projects, including the Underdog Project, which began in June 2011 in Cape Town, South Africa and the founders are eager to serve as a model for others to learn from.
“We’d love to share program and training methods with other organizations who would like to duplicate it in some way to benefit both dogs and students,” Beattie said. “Is our program the answer to all of their problems or the cure-all? No. But should we try to make a difference? Yes. We have to. Absolutely.”
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