MentorCares
Teen Leaders Celebrate Their Success
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: LeadershipCares 10181 Nightingale
Street Gaithersburg, MD
April 27, 2009-Caring
student leaders at
The annual MentorCares Scholarship and Celebration
Breakfast is
held to recognize the work of student leaders that participated in the
MentorCares program. The event is sponsored by LeadershipCares™
Students spoke about what they had accomplished while in the program.
During the school year students participated in
interactive workshops that focused on leadership and life
skills. Workshop topics included conflict resolution, cultural
diversity, finances, how to create a personal and professional vision
and time management skills.
Students also celebrated their community outreach accomplishments including:
- Adopting
Rosa Parks Elementary and conducting Saturday morning literacy
sessions.
- Working
to plan, organize and raise money for their annual hunger relief
program.
- Assembling
food boxes for 650 families as part of their 2008 ThanksgivingCares
outreach program.
- Planning
and hosting
the annual LiteracyCares Award of Excellence Dinner-held in
Inspiring speakers included:
- Mr. Anthony D. Castillio Sr. www.adcsystemservices.com spoke about how nothing should stop the students from becoming a success. He talked of his own road to success as a businessman and that each of the students could be successful if they continued to work hard, stay in school and reach out to help others. Mr.Castillio inspired all the students by reminding them that each of them can make a difference in the life of another person.
- Ms. Janice Clements-inspired the students and audience members by telling them to use the tools they had learned throughout the year. She talked about how important it was for each student to continue to climb the ladder to their success.
- Ms. Mikeisha Williams and Ms. Hafeeza Hassan-College Students and MentorCares Graduates talked about their college studies and how the things they learned in MentorCares were helping them. They encouraged all the students to stay involved and to bring others to the program.
- MentorCares
Student Speakers-spoke about how grateful they were for all they had learned
from Ms. Gertrude Ledwell the MentorCares Coordinator at
Northwestern High School and the other adults.
The underclassmen received a MentorCares
Certificate of Completion for their
participation in the program and the seniors each received a MentorCares plaque.
Scholarships were presented to seven MentorCares
students. Seniors Deuvarney Sanderson and Martin Ngwa each received a
scholarship to honor their outstanding leadership and 4 years of dedication
as MentorCares leaders. Other students received scholarships including
two freshman that were presented scholarships to recognize their
"above and beyond" efforts as leaders in the MentorCares
program.
Ms. Brenda Torrence and Ms. Sharon Chandler from the D.C. Metro Graduate Chapter of the Swing Phi Swing Social Fellowship Inc. also provided a generous contribution to the scholarship fund and presented gifts to the students in the program.
Everyone that attended the event was inspired by
the stories and work of the young people. They committed
themselves to grow the program and expand the work of
MentorCares.
The MentorCares program is a partnership with
MentorCares™ Youth to Youth Mentoring
The program trains high school students in
effective mentoring, coaching and leadership skills. High school juniors
and seniors use these acquired skills when they begin to mentor an
incoming 9th grader that is assigned to them by the MentorCares™
coordinator.
The goals of the program are:
- To
positively affect the life of the 9th graders and set them up for
success as they begin their high school careers.
- To
provide the juniors and seniors with the appropriate mentoring,
leadership and life skills that will be useful throughout their
personal and professional lives.
- To
provide training to fortify today's youth and adults with marketable
skills to take into the workplace and provide a training ground to
nurture self-confidence, personal responsibility and the value of
service to others.
- To
teach the concept of volunteerism by having the younger students
give back as mentors when they reach their junior and/or senior
year.
The program is focused on the one-to-one
relationship between the mentor and their mentee. The mentor agrees to
meet with his/her mentee for a minimum of 2 hours per month. He/she also
agrees to attend annual events centered on the four MentorCares™
themes. The interactive and "fun based" annual events are
aligned with the following themes:
- Building
Leadership Skills
- Building
Life Skills
- Exploring
Career Opportunities
- Celebrating Volunteerism
A caring adult is assigned to each pair of young
people to assist, guide and nurture the relationship. The adult works
with the pair to teach and coach them on the 12 leadership skills and
the 12 life skills. Adults receive mentor training that can also be used
to help them become more effective supervisors and managers in their
workplace. The adults offer guidance in career exploration, career
development and "hands on" leadership skills as they work with
the young people planning and organizing the annual events.
Expectations
and Commitment:
Young People (9th Grader/Juniors and Seniors):
- Attendance
at annual One-Day Leadership Conference
- Meet
as a team for two hours per month with their adult coach
- Participation
in three of the four annual events
Caring Adult:
- Attendance
at official orientation and training session
- Attendance
and participation at annual One-Day Leadership Conference
- Meet
two hours per month with their assigned pair of young people
- Participation
in three of the four annual events
For more information on MentorCares and the LeadershipCares Foundation please contact Ron Yudd at 301-540-5791 or visit www.leadershipcares.org.
