student
40 Cincinnati Students Received Project GRAD Scholarships
It’s so great to see organizations, volunteers and professionals all putting their energy together to help young people dream and realize personal success.
Project GRAD is a nonprofit partner of Cincinnati Public Schools whose goal it is to help students succeed in the classroom and in life. More than 2000 students have strengthened their academic skills, their relationships with parents and their self confidence as a result the organization’s programs.
And recently, forty 2011 graduates of Western Hills University High School were honored by Project GRAD with Rising Star Scholarships totaling $134,000. Scholarship recipients had a minimum 2.5 cumulative grade point average, completed the college recommended academic requirements and participated in two Project GRAD Summer Institutes.
Congratulations to them for all of their accomplishments…and thank you to organizations like Project GRAD for encouraging them to be their best.
Children Learn How To Live A Happy Life
Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Cincinnati Honor Youth Of The Year
Congratulations to Javele Jackson, a senior at Western Hills University High School who also spends after school time at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Cincinnati’s (BGCGC) US Bank Club.
Javele found out at the BGCGC’s annual Achievement Luncheon that he was selected as Youth of the Year for his contributions to his family, school, the community and the organization. And what an extra thrill it was for him to have received his award from Nick Lachey!
The youngest of five children, Javele is someone to whom his cousins look up. He speaks to them about having a positive self-image, the negatives of drug use, and taking care of oneself by eating right and exercising. Javele is not just a kind person in the Club, but also at Lee Chapel A.M.E Church where he serves as a Junior Usher and fundraiser. He played basketball at the Club and school until he hurt his knee, but uses his leadership ability to help the younger kids with their basketball fundamentals. Javele said that the BCGCG is “a place where the staff cares about your well being and where there are resources and opportunities that you can’t get off the streets.” He plans on attending Mt. St. Joseph College to pursue a career as an athletic trainer and nutritionist.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Cincinnati provide FREE daily meal and afterschool and summer programming for 10,000 children between the ages of 6 and 18 at ten locations in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. The organization provides a safe, positive environment focused on enrichment activities that support high school graduation, fitness-for-life and community service.
Caught Being Good
I love this. What a fun and creative way of encouraging positive values in children. When I visited the R.C. Durr YMCA preschool last week this caught my eye. Teachers there are on high alert every day…to catch good behavior. And from the looks of it, there is a lot of good behavior to recognize. It’s amazing how when you reinforce the behaviors you want to see more of, that’s exactly what you end up seeing.
Meet Greater Cincinnati’s Role Models Who Are All Under 18
I’d like to introduce you to some of Greater Cincinnati’s most outstanding humanitarians. They’re mentors, volunteers, fundraisers, athletes, and scholars. And they are YMCA of Greater Cincinnati’s Character Award honorees. I’ve got to say…one of my pleasures in doing public relations for the Y and working on the bios for this program is getting to know such outstanding role models. Each with their own unique story and gift to this world, they give so much and they truly understand what it means to be a good person.
Take for example…
Raquel Brown (pictured on the left), a student at Cincinnati’s School for Creative and Performing Arts, who has been described as a young woman with a smile that lights up a room and a maturity far beyond her years. Such a deep appreciation for living comes from her own inner strength as her determination overpowered juvenile diabetes that, at the age of 9, almost took her life and required multiple surgeries.
or
Wyoming High School’s Brandon Weiss (pictured on the right), an incredible teen who sees the need of those around him and strives for meaningful ways to make an impact. He has a passion for interfaith relations and spent last summer in Israel and Poland learning about the effects of the Holocaust.
or
Natalie Bryans (pictured below), a student at St. Ursula Academy, who has said some of her greatest inspirations, her heroes, are her friends because ‘they are all so kind and welcoming.’
With youth development being one of the YMCA’s core focus areas, the YMCA Character Awards are an opportunity to celebrate young people who exemplify the Y’s core values of caring, respect, honesty and responsibility. The YMCA Character Awards Event will begin at 6 p.m. on April 11 at the School for Creative & Performing Arts. Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for youth.
To register, please call the Community Services YMCA at 513-961-3200.
All 40 YMCA of Greater Cincinnati Character Award honoree bios are on the YMCA of Greater Cincinnati website. You may just know one of them.
