Our Pillars & Programs

Here’s What We’re Thinking

School is an establishment for students to progress educationally, but oftentimes the everyday abilities they need to navigate through life are neglected. It’s imperative that the youth learn soft skills such as communication, empathy, integrity, teamwork, healthy relationships and more in order to be properly prepared for adulthood. We believe that learning goes far beyond just homework and tests. Our students need to comprehend the basics of life while understanding the basics of academics. Character and education combined can assure achievement.

Here’s What We Will Do

LIT Academy

Leaders In Training or also known as “LIT” is exactly what the name says, training our youth to be leaders in their homes, communities and schools. The focus of this program is to teach the youth about essential and necessary topics that will prepare them for their future. We teach our young leaders what the educators in the school districts don’t have time for. Each session is informative and interactive and through the facilitation of these sessions, we are able to draw conclusions about the needs of the group and its individual participants. With these observations in mind, subsequent lessons are modified to target the areas of concern. By equipping these students with life skills, we believe our students will be more prepared for adulthood.

Here’s What We’re Thinking

The family structure is one of, if not the most important influence on a child’s life. Our students spend only a third of their day in school and many go home to environments that aren’t conducive to a quality lifestyle. We are aware that it’s not only important to support the student, but also to support the household the student resides in. If we can offer assistance to the households facing numerous amounts of barriers, we believe we can positively impact the student. Healthy families create healthy students and healthy students create healthy schools. We must support the members who play an important role in the lives of the students we serve.

Here’s What We Will Do

Homes For Hope

This is an all-inclusive method that matches trained volunteers with at-risk families with the hopes of cultivating an effective mentoring relationship that can be sustainable. Our mentors work with the families of students enrolled in the program to help them address day-to-day issues and enhance their quality of living through monthly meetings. Some of the common topics discussed are family dynamics, financial literacy and time management. We believe that if we can help heal the home, we can heal the student and sometimes it’s as simple as having a helping hand.

Another component of Homes For Hope is our workshops that are facilitated by reputable and trusted leaders within our community to educate families and their households. In these sessions, parents and guardians will receive parenting content along with other topics we believe are key to the growth and development of the family structure. Some of the other topics that families will be given the opportunity to learn about are financial literacy, quality relationships, health and wellness and more.

Here’s What We’re Thinking

An essential component to our student’s growth is having clean, inspiring and safe environments for them to occupy. The youth should feel connected to the communities they reside in, but that’s not the reality in many cases. We believe that in order for our communities and school districts to be more engaged with one another, there has to be a resurgence of pride and service. Our hope is that we can cultivate the relationship through volunteerism and change the perspective of how we view the neighborhoods we live. Community is about a sense of belonging and bringing people together through support for one another sets an example of what togetherness looks like to the youth.

Here’s What We Will Do

Collaborative Connections

This program is designed to bridge the gap between the communities and school districts by creating opportunities for students to serve in their neighborhoods, local businesses, churches and/or organizations. Every student needs exposure and experience, and every entity can use service and support. In addition to the support of students and community entities, we also would like to provide opportunities for local adults who would be interested in being a presence in our classrooms and hallways as chaperones who assist administration and teachers. If we marry the two together, we believe the benefits can be fruitful for our communities by and large.