May 2015 issue - In Reach, Inc.

It’s All College Access
May 2015
Celebrating Amazing Prince George’s County Parents 2015
IN REACH is pleased to present the 18 Amazing Parents
nominated for its Fourth Annual Celebrating Amazing Prince
George's County Parents Awards. Congratulations!
Inside this issue:
Girls of Worth
2
Quantum Project
2
YES 2015!
3
Mark & Monique Adams
Gwendolyn Allen
Nicole Barnett
Gayle Brown
LaShawn James
Mary Lane
Sharon Lewis
Janice Lofland
Robert Mathieu
Jerrod Mustaf
Dina Nance
Lisa Ojeda-Brown
Christine Price
Sherry A. Rather
Debbie Robinson
Ayanna Niambi Shorter
Cynthia Weaver
Who’s In Your Posse??
IN REACH is a community-based nominating organization to
the Posse Foundation for their Leadership Scholarship. This
scholarship is aimed at identifying public high school students
with extraordinary academic and leadership potential who may
be overlooked by traditional college selection processes.
In Reach, a 501(c)(3) communityfocused, nonprofit organization,
believes that all students should
always be in reach of a quality education, opportunities in their communities for development and,
ultimately, their dreams.
In order for us to be successful at
helping all students reach this goal,
In Reach prepares them for college,
work and life.
9701 Apollo Drive, Suite 301, Largo, MD 20774
301.744.9251
www.inreachinc.org
Twitter: @inreachinc
IN REACH can nominate 10 rising seniors (currently in the 11th grade) for a chance to
receive a four-year, full-tuition scholarship. Once the nominations are in, the Posse Foundation will extend selected students the opportunity to pursue personal and academic excellence by placing them in supportive, multicultural teams—Posses—of 10 students.
If you are a rising high school senior, a parent or guardian of a rising senior, or just know
of any rising high school seniors and you believe that he/she should have an opportunity
to join a “Posse” and they are not being nominated by their school, IN REACH is here to
help. Contact Mrs. Robinson via [email protected] or 301.744.9251 for IN
REACH nominating application materials.
In the meantime, visit the Posse Foundation website at www.possefoundation.org to learn
more about this amazing opportunity!
Girls of Worth Literacy Club @ William Paca ES
Congratulations to the Sophomore Class of GOW @ William Paca!
On May 6, IN REACH closed out another successful year with the lovely young ladies of the
Girls of Worth Literacy Program at William Paca
ES. Parents, relatives and other supporters were
able to cheer the girls on as they accepted their
Certificate of Completion as well as several other
rewards for activities throughout the year. We
look forward to seeing many of the girls in the
summer program.
Kudos to our awesome staff liaison and educator,
Ms. Brice (l) and college volunteer, Ms. Bell (r).
The Quantum Project @ Kenmoor Middle School
“Have fun taking on the world, we know you'll win!”
The 2014-2015 school year brought IN REACH a new middle school partner and a great group of 8th
graders at Kenmoor Middle School. With the tireless efforts of 8 th grade guidance counselor Mrs.
Janifer, 15 students were selected to participate in IN REACH’s Quantum Project afterschool program.
As a college awareness and STEM focused program, it was determined that math needed to be the
main focus so with the use of PracTutor, an online tutoring practice program, and Junior Achievement’s Economics for Success, these students started on and completed a path of improved math skills.
With the exceptional leadership of school counselors Mrs. Janifer, Mr. Shaw, and our afterschool program facilitators, Ms. Coward and Ms. Davis, each student was part of an experience that not only allowed for her/him to strengthen their relationships with their peers but also allowed them to build upon their math skills, prepare for the
transition to high school, become financially literate, and gain a much better understanding of what it really takes to be college ready.
Although the program had a mid year start, IN REACH’S continued commitment to serving Kenmoor students never wavered and we
were very happy to be able to begin the new year with a wonderful group of students and end the school year with the same enthusiasm
that we started with. Just know that our work is never done. Many of the students will continue on to schools that we are not YET partnered with but we will continue to reach out to both students and parents alike to keep them informed of any new and upcoming opportunities with IN REACH.
IN REACH extends a heartfelt appreciation to each parent, each student, Mrs. Janifer, Mr. Shaw and
Principal Ms. Fadli for such a wonderful opportunity. We look forward to working with you all again
next year.
“Working with the students of the Quantum Project has been my pleasure. Over the 4 months we spent
together, I saw them develop academically and socially through the use of PracTutor, group activities, and
one-on one conversations. Their participation in the project has helped me to become a better educator and
mentor.” ~ Ms. Randi Coward
It’s All College Access
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What an amazing event!!! After three years, the Youth Empowerment Summit still manages to meet and go above and beyond its one major goal, to provide middle and high school students of Prince George’s County an opportunity to learn
hands-on, easy to implement strategies and techniques that will help them make sound decisions and foster positive change in their lives and the lives of others.
This year’s summit not only provided the aforementioned key pieces but also powerful and
impactful words of encouragement and support from keynote speaker Mr. Antonio Neves.
Using his personal background as the platform of his speech, Mr. Neves’ speech on “Creating
Your Own Luck” really encouraged our students and all of the YES attendees to take a look at
what they have here, now, and to go out and create their own luck.
The keynote speaker was not the only highlight of the event. With workshops focusing on
photography, public speaking, social media, the Game of Life, culinary arts, and college access
and preparedness, students were able to gain important tools to help make the right choices
for a positive future.
And let’s not forget the amazing and unforgettable performance by Maryland’s own 4EY-The
Future. After a long and eventful day of hands-on workshops, everyone seemed pleased to
end the event with an amazing and unforgettable performance.
“I would like to thank you for allowing her to be a part of the
Youth Empowerment Summit that took place this past Saturday.
It was such a positive platform for so many youths in our county.
Hopefully, they will take away some life lessons that will lunge
them into the next journey or journeys of their lives. Enough times
there is criticism that not enough is done. Please never get discouraged, and know that programs like Girls of Worth and the Youth
Empowerment Summit do change lives. I thank you again and
look forward to next year's program.”
~(GOW Walker Mill Parent)
It’s All College Access
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