New Program Offers Mentoring, Online Education to At-Risk Students
A new nonprofit in Flint, MI, Gearup2Lead,
will offer at-risk
students throughout Michigan the opportunity to earn a high school
diploma
online and participate in activities in which they work with mentors and
act as
mentors themselves.
In conjunction with Graduation Alliance, students selected for
the Heroic Leadership Academy, beginning with the 2015-16 school year,
will:
- Work through Graduation Alliance's online alternative
curriculum to earn a high school diploma with free laptops and
wireless access;
- Attend weekly leadership training sessions and life
skill
workshops offered by Gearup2Lead;
- Work with local organizations and businesses on
projects
designed to build better communities where they live;
- Meet regularly with community and college
mentors; and
- Be mentors themselves to younger students at the
Whaley
Children's Center in Flint.
"Our core mission is to help student achieve a high
school
diploma and draw out the best characteristics that are already within
them,"
said Gearup2Lead Executive Director Adam Hartley. "We want our students
to feel
what it's like to be a heroic leader."
Students who are ages 15-19 from throughout the
state of
Michigan can apply to enroll in the program through Michigan's Schools
of
Choices initiative.
Graduation Alliance, which offers online alternative
education
and training programs, recently
announced its participation in a similar partnership
with the Davenport Community School District in Davenport, IA.
About the Author
Michael Hart is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer and the former executive editor of THE Journal.