NGM Boys+ Club
A positive corner of the internet.
As a parent, you know firsthand the significance of childhood friends, and you work tirelessly to try to connect your child to positive influences in his life. Sometimes, however, you’re not in the room. That’s why we help young people build and maintain resilient friendships.
NGM Boys+ Club is a safe space for masculine-exploring youth in Grades 7-9 to build connections with like-minded peers. Over the past two years, we’ve created a corner of the internet where boys’ mental wellness, anti-bullying and peer support are the norm.
By putting relationships first, we foster a community where youth feel known by each other and comfortable to engage on a deeper level.
That’s where transformation happens.
We meet young people where they are.
We started facilitating virtual programs as a way to support youth during COVID-19. When we originally asked boys how best to engage a community of young people online, they told us to meet them on Discord.
Our private Discord server has become a leader among youth-serving nonprofits and the home base for a network that stretches across Canada. Youth use the server every day to hang out, share what’s going on in their lives, and join weekly events like a Dungeons & Dragons campaign or Minecraft.
#introductions 🌱
Every new arrival gets specially introduced to the rest of the community and connected with another young person who would be a good fit.
#homework-club ✏️
Youth can drop in after school to get help from peers and experienced educators alike. Whether it’s essays or algebra, we help them keep up with the day-to-day.
#minecraft-server 👾
Gamers collaborate in real time or on their own time in the Next Gen Men Minecraft server. Currently playing virtual capture-the-flag.
#support-channel ⛅️
Youth asked for a space dedicated to talking about serious topics where they could be more vulnerable with each other. We gave it to them.
We also know that the rhythms of school mean that young people have lots of other things going on in their lives. We encourage youth participants to opt in or opt out depending on how busy or stressed they’re feeling.
Self-care is the name of the game.
FAQ
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All youth who identify as male or nonbinary in Grades 7-9. Next Gen Men programs are open and inclusive of 2SLGBTQ+ youth.
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The safety of our youth is our highest priority.
The Discord server is facilitated and moderated by our Youth Program Manager, Jonathon Reed (BA, BEd, MEd). Anyone who works with Next Gen Men youth programs has a vulnerable sector screening.
All participants on the Discord server are screened with a phone or video call before they are given access in order to ensure that it continues to be a safe place for our young people.
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Completely. One of our highest priorities is supporting youth throughout the pandemic and into the future, and we try to ensure that our programs are as accessible as possible. NGM Boys Club is sustained by folks who have become Next Gen Menbers—if you have the means, please join us.
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We support schools in implementing programs with youth on topics like gender stereotypes, mental health and healthy relationships. At first glance it’s stuff that guys don’t normally talk about, but every group we’ve been with has been interested in the topics and the way we present them.
We’ve been evaluating our youth programming for as long as it’s existed, and we’ve been a frontrunner in adapting to virtual programming since school cancellations began in the spring of 2020.
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It’s definitely a valid concern, especially in the midst of online learning and other COVID-related restrictions. We make sure our time online revolves around positive social interaction—things like Minecraft, Dungeons & Dragons and meaningful activities built from the Next Gen Men youth program.
We only facilitate a few times a week, and the fact that we’re on Discord means that youth can drop in and drop out when it works for them.
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Get a best friend to join too—we’ve had boys join in pairs before and that’s been a cool way for them to connect. No matter what, we regularly create opportunities for participants to get to know each other. We’ve seen boys become best friends while 600 km apart.
