Blog Posts Related to the Young Americans
Mission to Med School
Posted by on May 25, 2012 at 9:24 AM EDT“Tales of Excellence, Achievement and Mentorship” or “TEAM” is a weekly series partnered with StudentMentor.org where we feature college students and young Americans from diverse backgrounds across the country who are using mentorships to move their career and educational goals forward. You will hear in their own words how mentors have helped them succeed and transform into the leaders of tomorrow.
Through StudentMentor.org, college students can conveniently find and collaborate with mentors to successfully graduate from college and embark on their desired careers.
Sherita knew her career goal was to become a physician. The challenge was navigating her way through undergraduate classes and then medical school admissions to get on track to make that goal a reality. With the help of several mentors with advice on different things from financial aid to med school admissions exams Sherita is on her way to achieving her goal with more confidence than she could have ever imagined.
My name is Sherita Black and I am a junior majoring in Biological Science. My educational goal is to get a MD. My career goal is to become a physician. With this I hope to use my skills as a physician to help provide medical care where it is not readily available within the US as well as abroad.
One challenge I have faced while going to school has been being the first in my family to go to college. I’ve been able to navigate through my undergrad; however, I thought that I needed more hands on guidance when it came to medical school admissions. The only people who I know that are in college are around my age, so I needed help connecting with people who were ahead of me since I was clueless to what I need to do to get to the next step of getting into medical school. My second challenge has been financial. My immediate family consists of my mother and myself, and from my senior year of high school until recently my mother has been unemployed. I found it difficult to cope with the changes of being a full-time college student, and worrying about the uncertainty of what was going to happen in the days to come.
Learn more about ServiceTurning the Page on Illiteracy
Posted by on May 23, 2012 at 12:11 PM EDT
Stacy Ratner. (Photo Courtesy of HelloGiggles)
It’s impossible to deny the importance of literacy. The President put it best when he stated that “Reading is the foundation upon which all other learning is built” and that “by passing a passion for literature on to our sons and daughters, we prepare them to be lifelong, successful readers, and we provide them with an essential skill necessary for academic achievement.” Without the ability to read, basic life skills like paying bills, reading signs or menus, enjoying great literature or even simply writing a note to a friend are impossible. While the United States overall has a strong 99% literacy rate, Chicago, IL for example has a rate of just 53%. It’s a number that needs to be raised, and through her used book store, one Chicago local is helping to boost that percentage.
This edition of “Women Working to Do Good” showcases Stacy Ratner, a bibliophile who opened her own non-profit used book store in Chicago to help improve literacy and educate people on the causes of illiteracy. The author writes:
“It takes a strong, visionary community member to create such an ambitious, multifaceted nonprofit with such an urgent mission. The Stacy Ratner story is a unique one about entrepreneurship, literacy promotion and community leadership that can inspire anyone to not only do what you love, but to turn a lifelong love into a valuable cause worth doing for a lifetime.”
Feeding the "Book Famine"
Posted by on May 22, 2012 at 5:59 PM EDT
Shannon McNamara. (Photo courtesy of Points of Light)
For the Win is a guest blog series featuring the remarkable initiatives that young Americans are advancing to win the future for their communities. Each week we highlight a new young person and learn about their inspiring work through their own words. Submit your story to appear in the For the Win guest blog series.
Shannon McNamara, 18, and a sophomore at Rice University in Houston, Texas, founded SHARE (Shannon’s After-School Reading Exchange) to empower girls in Africa through reading. Shannon is arecipient of the Daily Point of Light Award, presented by Points of Light. In 2011, Shannon was honored to be invited to speak at the White House by First Lady Michelle Obama at a reception celebrating the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day.
Dear Shannon,
Thank you for wanting to help the girls of Bukoba. We have so many challenges but as we say here, “It is little by little that the bird builds its nest…”
Thus began the email response from the Tanzanian community leader regarding my offer to help the local girls during an upcoming service trip to Africa. Never could I have imagined the events that would open my eyes,fill my heart and change my life.
I grew up with my parents telling me I had won the “birth lottery” in life by being born in America. They instilled in my siblings and me the motive for giving back. So when our family trip to Africa in July 2008 coincided with completing my Girl Scout Gold Award, I knew the chance to make a real difference had arrived. Before departing for Bukoba, Tanzania, I researched this region of the world and learned about the “book famine,” as well as the cultural bias that discourages education for girls. Determined to empower these undervalued girls, I collected 500 pounds of school books and supplies by distributing flyers to my neighbors, family and friends, and transported it all on the plane to Tanzania. My goal was to bring the opportunity of a better future to the girls by creating an after-school reading program just for them.
Learn more about ServiceThe Power to Program
Posted by on May 17, 2012 at 9:24 AM EDT“Tales of Excellence, Achievement and Mentorship” or “TEAM” is a weekly series partnered with StudentMentor.org where we feature college students and young Americans from diverse backgrounds across the country who are using mentorships to move their career and educational goals forward. You will hear in their own words how mentors have helped them succeed and transform into the leaders of tomorrow.
Through StudentMentor.org, college students can conveniently find and collaborate with mentors to successfully graduate from college and embark on their desired careers.
As a young boy, Gabriel’s mother brought him to the US seeking new opportunities and a better life. His childhood was tough, but his family was strong and with their dedication to his education he was able to complete his GED and get into college. Gabriel always worked full-time while attending college and now is reaping the benefits of his labor and is just one course away from completing his AAS in Web Graphic Design with a bright future ahead. Hear how his mentorship helped him focus his online portfolio work and improve his job seeking prospects.
My name is Gabriel Valdivia and when I was 6 years old my mother brought us to the US. Growing up we didn’t have much of anything. In fact, I remember weeks on end when our only meals were varied combinations of beans, potatoes, eggs, powdered milk and Kool Aid. As an adult I’ve never had much financial success and I’ve always had low paying jobs that I didn’t like. Some years ago I remember reading a study that concluded that people with a GED earn the least and those with higher levels of education earn progressively more money. Earning more money has been one of my motivating factors but the most important reason for enrolling in college was that I wanted to set an example for my teen daughter. Financially speaking it’s been a real challenge. Fortunately, government loans covered most of my education. I’ve had to work full-time and attend college full-time. I remember many evenings where I would’ve like nothing more than to go home and crawl into bed, however I had several hours of coursework and looming deadlines. Now I’m just one Algebra class away from getting my AAS in Web Graphic Design. I would have loved to continue on towards my bachelor’s degree, but I ran out of college loans. That’s another challenge I’ll need to overcome in the near future.
Learn more about ServiceThe First Lady Reminds HBCU Students of Their Legacy In America's History
Posted by on May 16, 2012 at 3:38 PM EDT
A&T Chancellor Harold L. Martin Sr. presents First Lady Michelle Obama with a hood signifying her honorary degree following her commencement address during the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University commencement ceremony in Greensboro, N.C., May 12, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
On Saturday, May 12, First Lady Michelle Obama delivered the commencement address for the graduating class of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical University (NC A&T), a historically black university located in Greensboro, North Carolina.
The First Lady began by noting the many A&T alumni who broke through glass ceilings in fields of law, science, and business:
You have produced some of our nation's finest leaders in business, government, and our military. The first African American Justice on the North Carolina Supreme Court was an Aggie. So was the second African American astronaut. And so were those four young men who sat down at a lunch counter 52 years ago and will stand forever in bronze in front of the Dudley building.
Mrs. Obama also retold the story about the Greensboro Four --students who did more than participate in a sit-in at Woolworths to desegregate lunch counters during the 1960s. They were also an inspiration for justice and civil disobedience during the collective effort toward equal rights for all Americans:
It all started because a small group of young people had their eyes open to the injustices around them. It all started because they decided, as one fo the four told the newspaper on the first day of the protests, that it was "time for someone to wake up and change the situation." And that, more than anything else, is the story of our nation's progress right from the very beginning.
The First Lady closed with a call to action for the 1200 graduates to not just focus on climbing the career ladder job titles, but to continue fighting to change the many injustices that still exist today:
Each generation lookas at the world around them and decides that it's time to wake up and change the situation. And we've always looked to our young people to lead the way. We always have.
So graduates, now it's your turn. It's time for you to take that baton. Take it. It's time for you to carry the banner forward. It's time for you to wake the rest of us up and show us everything you've got.
Click here to read Mrs. Obama's full commencement speech to the 2012 Graduating class of North Carolina A&T.
Heather Foster is an Associate Director for the White House Office of Public Engagement
Learn more about EducationJuggling Many Arts
Posted by on May 15, 2012 at 11:30 AM EDT
Negin Singh. (Photo Courtesy of HelloGiggles)
One of the great things about art is that anyone can participate in artistic pursuits. Art can be found in theater, painting, literature, and dance. While that doesn’t mean that anyone can be greatly artistic—my painting skills for one are nothing to boast about though my dance moves are above average—art provides an outlet for creative stimulation, relaxation, and amusement. And for those who haven’t had the chance to experience a myriad of art forms, one motivated young woman is spreading her love for all art nationwide.
This edition of “Women Working to Do Good” spotlights Negin Singh, a multicultural 25 year-old who calls art her “one constant.” To continue her passion, she founded an incredible organization that produces live art, theater and film as well as teaches everything from clowning to juggling. The author writes,
Losing Yourself in Service
Posted by on May 14, 2012 at 2:10 PM EDT
Erin Adams. (Photo Courtesy of Points of Light)
For the Win is a guest blog series featuring the remarkable initiatives that young Americans are advancing to win the future for their communities. Each week we highlight a new young person and learn about their inspiring work through their own words. Submit your story to appear in the For the Win guest blog series.
Erin Adams is a freshman at Bishop Watterson High School in Columbus, Ohio. She plays soccer on the varsity soccer team, serves on student council, is a member of Blink 180 (an anti-bullying task force) and sings in the Liturgy Choir. Erin has been actively volunteering for years: gathering more than 500 kids from her elementary school to write cards for patients at Columbus Children's Hospital, visiting nursing homes, feeding the homeless, loading trucks for the St. Vincent de Paul Society at church and delivering Thanksgiving meals to parish neighbors. This year on Make A Difference Day, with the help of her grandparents, Erin collected 344 lbs. of food for the People in Need food pantry in Delaware, Ohio.
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” Mahatma Gandhi
Recently, my grandparents and I were awarded $10,000 to go to the charity of our choice for our efforts on Make A Difference Day 2011. To celebrate, Make A Difference Day my grandparents took me out in the morning and we collected 344 pounds of canned food. We collected cans from 8 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. in two different neighborhoods. At one point during our trip the little red wagon we were using broke down and some cans fell out. We thought we would have to go home and waste time trying to fix it. To our great pleasure, a neighbor came out and checked our wagon to see if he could fix it. After a few minutes of rummaging around in his garage, he came out with a bolt and some tools. With a little work and time our wagon was back to new. I believe that man who came out and helped us was a symbol of service. It was early in the morning and he came out and helped us without delay. Without him, we may not have been able to carry on with our collecting.
Learn more about ServiceMy First Job: Valerie Jarrett
Posted by on May 9, 2012 at 12:21 PM EDTSummer Jobs+ is a call to action for businesses, non-profits, and government to work together to provide pathways to employment for young people in the summer of 2012. It's about helping people find their first jobs.
Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to the President, says her first job taught her about working with people who are under enormous amounts of stress, the importance of paying attention to details and something that virtually every worker deals with each day--showing up to work on time. Check it out:
So far, employers have committed to providing more than 300,000 jobs, mentorships, and other employment opportunities this summer through Summer Jobs+.
You heard about Valerie's first job. Now go find yours.
Learn more about Economy
