Watch: Boys & Girls Club Comes to Olympic High

held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday to christen its new branch. 

The new club facility is located in classroom 17 on the school's campus at the corner of Ocean Park and Lincoln boulevards.

"The good part about the club being at this school is that this is a continuation school, and so a lot of these kids are given a second or third chance," said Jeremy Davis, Boys & Girls Club Olympic Branch site director. "So we want to nurture that and let them know that ... just because they're on their second or third chance, that doesn't mean that that's the end of the road."

In this video: Interviews with Bill Dawson, chairman of the Santa Monica Boys and Girls Club board of directors; Santa Monica Mayor Richard Bloom; David Ramirez, 2011 club youth of the year; club member Aziel Pina; Jeremy Davis, Olympic Branch site director; and Janie Yuguchi-Gates, principal of Olympic High School.

Stay connected with Santa Monica Patch throughout the day on Facebook and Twitter. Subscribe to our free daily newsletter for email updates.