For three years, University of Montana student Shy Christensen has arranged her class schedule to make room for working with children and younger teens at Missoula’s EmPower Place, an interactive children’s learning program and library at Missoula Food Bank and Community Center.
“When a four-year-old remembers your name, you know you’ve made an impact,” says Christiansen, who wants to teach middle schoolers. “It’s been amazing to see so much growth.”
EmPower Place, free to all Missoula families, is a partnership between the university’s spectrUM Discovery Area museum, the food bank and Missoula Public Library.
Although available to everyone, EmPower Place was launched at the food bank to try to eliminate the stigma of seeking services, says Alex Sobin, director of spectrUM Discovery Area. Kids can get a snack and participate in the programs or read while their parents seek food bank services.
A $20,000 Blue Impact℠ grant from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana will help EmPower Place offer free summer and after school programming to low-income children to improve math, literacy, and social and emotional learning skills.
EmPower Place’s goals include helping Missoula’s most at-risk children overcome learning loss, access social and emotional learning and strategies, and engage with role models like Christensen to find paths to careers and higher education.
Through the Blue Impact grant program, BCBSMT awarded more than $475,000 to 14 community organizations statewide in 2024. The program partners with community organizations targeting social and economic factors that affect health, including economic opportunity and stability.
Christensen looks forward to helping kids grow emotionally and socially during the after-school activities she helps lead, including games, coloring projects, holiday parties and cultural demonstrations. Although she’s just 21, she is wise beyond her years. She observes and listens to the children, asking questions, modeling good behavior and respecting their feelings.
“The relationships the children form with the student educators are so critical,” says Sobin, adding that Christiansen and her peers are trained to help support children who have experienced traumatic events. “They are making sure the children are fed and having their most critical needs met in a healthy environment.”
“This partnership provides opportunities for children to develop relationships, establish a sense of belonging and build confidence, which are key components to overall health and well-being,” says BCBSMT President Lisa Kelley. “Partnerships like this go a long way toward addressing social determinants of health and improving overall population health.”
Established in 2017, EmPower Place provides 18 hours a week of educational time and offers science exhibits, literacy and science and technology programs, as well as books for children, young adults and parents. About 1,600 children participate in EmPower Place programs every month.
Christensen is among several student educators employed part-time to work with at-risk youth. Her positivity has left lasting impressions on many children, and some rush to hug and greet her when they see her outside EmPower Place.
“It’s those kinds of personal relationships I see that make the programs worthwhile,” Sobin says. “Our student educators are so good at connecting with the children.”
The connections are meaningful to Christensen, too. A mother recently confided that work Christensen had done over the years with her son to identify and manage his emotions had helped him become one of the best students in his kindergarten class.
“I have dozens of kids with whom I have moments like this and these personal connections,” Christensen says. “You have to remember they’re learning to do something for the first time. A little bit of grace is necessary.”