Dream Blog

If Low Ambition Isn’t a Character Flaw, Could It Be a Protective Strategy?

Mon, 27 Apr 2026 21:22:53 GMT

If Low Ambition Isn’t a Character Flaw,
Could It Be a Protective Strategy?

Written by C. Diane Wallace Booker, Esq., U. S. Dream Academy Chief Executive Officer

Dreaming of a bold future is often considered an innate personality trait tied to creativity and ambition. When a young person fails to express ambitious goals, we too quickly look for explanations rooted in character: laziness, lack of motivation, absence of imagination. After nearly three decades of working alongside young people at the U.S. Dream Academy and listening to the dreams of our students, I have come to see this instinct as not just wrong but also harmful.

When I talk about dreaming, I’m not referring to sleep or fantasy. I’m talking about something much more deliberate: a conscious act, to form a highly aspirational vision for the future - visions that stretch far beyond one’s current circumstances. This kind of dreaming is not wishful thinking. It is the ability to imagine yourself safe, successful, purposeful, and in control of your life at some point in the future. And for many young people, particularly those who have experienced trauma or chronic adversity, this kind of dreaming does not come easily, if it comes at all.

What makes this even more important is what we now know about purpose. A growing body of research-including a review supported by the John Templeton Foundation that synthesizes more than six decades of studies-shows that having a clear sense of purpose is linked to measurable health benefits, from lower levels of inflammatory markers in the body to stronger cognitive functioning and a reduced risk of age-related cognitive impairment and dementia. Purpose gives people a reason to persist, a reason to care for themselves, and a framework for making meaning out of hardship . At its core, dreaming is about developing a future-oriented sense of meaning: a belief that one’s life is going somewhere and that the future holds something worth striving for.

When young people are unable to dream, they are not just missing goals; they are missing a protective force that research tells us is deeply connected to long-term health, resilience, and well-being. By teaching children to dream, we are actively strengthening their long-term health, not just their future goals.

What if we stopped asking children what they want to be when they grow up and started teaching them how to dream of a future worth desiring?

Next week we will explore the skill of dreaming. What does it mean to build this skill in young people.

FROM MENTORSHIP TO LEADERSHIP

Thu, 15 Jan 2026 16:54:56 GMT

How Mentoring Shapes the Leaders Our Communities Need Tomorrow

Written by Naaila Gray Brown, US Dream Academy National Mentor Program Director

Naaila Gray Brown, National Mentor Program Director at U.S. Dream Academy, co-presenting the

“Building Infrastructure and Tools for Virtual Mentoring” workshop at the 2024 National Mentoring Summit.

January is National Mentoring Month, a time to celebrate the relationships that help young people feel seen, supported, and capable of reaching their full potential. At the U.S. Dream Academy, mentoring is not just a program or a weekly activity; it is an investment in the future leaders of our communities.

I know this to be true because I am living proof.

The reason I can lead and shape U.S. Dream Academy’s National Mentoring Program today is because caring adults chose to show up for me in my youth. The mentorship I received didn’t just impact me in my youth; it has equipped me to create that same kind of village for our DreamKids across the country.

Mentored to Lead: How My Village Shaped My Path

I am a product of mentoring, and more importantly, a product of a village that worked collaboratively with my mother to ensure my success.

Growing up, pastors and community youth leaders stepped into my life as trusted adults who saw my potential and took the time to nurture it. They stepped up to reinforce the very hopes, values, and expectations that my mother had for me. Together, they offered accountability, encouragement, and access to experiences that expanded my understanding of what was possible for my future.

One mentor in particular, Jay Harrison, had a profound impact on how I came to see myself as a leader. He introduced me to John Maxwell’s 21 Laws of Leadership. Every Monday, 20 other high school students and I gathered at a local community center, where “Brother Jay,” as we lovingly called him, taught us leadership principles grounded in responsibility, character, and belief.

2025 US Dream Academy Mentor of the Year awardee, Nicolle Green, with DreamKids from San Bernardino Learning Center.

One principle that stayed with me was The Law of the Lid, the idea that leadership capacity sets the ceiling for growth. By challenging us to raise that ceiling, Brother Jay helped us understand that our potential wasn’t fixed. He empowered our youth group to stretch beyond what we thought we could do and to lead with confidence.

Brother Jay didn’t stop at teaching concepts; he also created opportunities for us to practice leadership. When I was in 10th grade, he empowered our youth group to plan and coordinate an out-of-state college tour to Atlanta. We coordinated hotel logistics, scheduled tours across multiple college campuses, and organized a donation drive to distribute food and blankets to individuals experiencing homelessness in the city.

During that service experience, we didn’t just hand out food and blankets; we connected with people. We listened as individuals shared their stories, sang inspirational songs together, and prayed with those who welcomed us into that moment. Standing in that park taught me the power of presence and compassion: the importance of meeting people where they are, seeing their humanity beyond circumstances, and resisting the urge to judge a book by its cover.

Looking back now, I see how Brother Jay was intentionally modeling a core element of the Developmental Relationships Framework: Share Power by trusting us with meaningful decisions, honoring our ideas, and allowing us to learn through ownership and real-world experience rather than passive observation.

What stands out most is not just what we accomplished, but how Brother Jay’s consistency, guidance, and belief made it possible. He first empowered us to believe in ourselves, to see ourselves as capable, responsible, and worthy of trust. With that belief, I was able to do things I had never done before. More importantly, those experiences shaped who I was becoming and how I understood my role in my community. That mentorship did not end in my youth; it continues to guide how I lead U.S. Dream Academy’s mentoring programs today, centering relationships and community as the foundation for developing the next generation of leaders.

The Ripple Effect of Mentoring

The often-unseen power of mentoring is its impact that lasts across time. The young person you mentor today becomes the leader our programs, organizations, and communities need tomorrow.

Mentoring is not just about meeting an immediate need. It is about planting seeds, seeds of confidence, leadership, responsibility, and purpose, that take root over time and continue to grow long after the original relationship begins.

That same philosophy guides U.S. Dream Academy’s work every day. We believe mentoring is an investment in the future. When young people are supported with intention, trust, and opportunity, they don’t simply succeed in the moment. They grow into leaders who give back, strengthen programs and institutions, and create pathways for the next generation to thrive. And that is how mentoring creates impact, not just for one moment, but for generations to come.

To Brother Jay, thank you for seeing my potential before I fully saw it myself. Thank you for sharing power, for trusting me with responsibility, and for believing that I was capable of more. Your consistency, guidance, and faith in me shaped my path, and they continue to ripple forward through the lives of the young people and families I now have the privilege to serve.

2023 MENTOR OF THE YEAR

Mon, 26 Feb 2024 17:39:16 GMT

A Mentor’s Journey

Written by Kaayla Butler, U.S. Dream Academy Intern

Each year the U.S. Dream Academy seeks to recognize our volunteer mentors who go above and beyond in support of our Dream Kids and our Learning Centers. The time and dedication of our volunteers, not only helps drive our programs, but makes a significant impact on the DreamKids they have the opportunity to mentor.

This year, we are proud to have our long-time corporate partner QTS as the sponsor for this prestigious award, The Mentor of the Year Award Sponsored by QTS. After a round of nominations from each of our Learning Centers, a rigorous review by a specially selected group of QTS employees, we are thrilled to announce our mentor of the year from Salt Lake City: Daniel Guerrero.

Born in Juarez, Mexico, Daniel moved to the states when he was just seven years old and has lived in Utah ever since. Some of his hobbies include rock climbing, basketball, playing video games, enjoying the outdoors, and spending time with his two dogs Sgt. Pepper and Penny Lane, a blue heeler and a red heeler. Not only is he a mentor at U.S. Dream Academy, but he is a mentor coach as well as an agent manager as a profession at PlusOne Company, a sales center that specializes in direct response. Although he has worked for the company for eight years, Daniel decided to go back to school to finish his associates degree. One of his courses required him to mentor in the community. He researched several other programs in the community and ultimately, he believed the U.S. Dream Academy mission and vision aligned most strongly with his own. Daniel admitted that, although he was nervous when he first went to visit the U.S. Dream Academy at the Endeavor Charter School, he recounts that as soon as he stepped inside, “within a minute or two of walking in that door, I immediately felt welcomed by kids and [amazing] staff,” Daniel says when talking about his first experience at the Dream Academy, “ I couldn’t see myself being anywhere else.”

Daniel has been in the mentorship program since March of 2022. While visiting twice a week, Daniel has expressed the recognition of purpose mentoring the DreamKids has brought into his life. “There is a different sense of fulfillment in being able to help kids who need it the most and have a lasting impact on their lives.”

He mentors three boys, Trenton, Bryan, and Rulan. Trenton and Bryan are going into sixth grade, while Rulan is going into third. Although different ages, the boys' personalities got along well and they were able to push each other in different ways. Daniel made it a point to emphasize the gravity of positive self-talk and self-care. He also modeled the importance of teamwork through examples on how to work together and spread kindness as the group worked through our DreamJourney mentoring curriculum. Daniel was able to quickly build a strong relationship with all three boys, and he is now someone they look up to and admire.

The U.S. Dream Academy is a program that gives kids the opportunity to embark on a path that guides them in the direction of their dreams. Daniel understood the gravity of this initiative not only through getting to know the kids, but through personal experience as well. Growing up, Daniel lived in a single parent household with three other siblings. Looking back at his time in Mexico, Daniel says he “wasn't on the right path” even at a young age. He believes without a doubt, had he been there longer, the trajectory of his life would have been much different. Looking at the parallels of his life in comparison, Daniel understands the importance of having a program to impact kids in a positive way. “Once I got a group,” Daniel says, “I wanted to create a space for them to be heard without judgment; to help them confidently be who they want to be.”

One of the things he loves most about the program is seeing what he calls the “paradigm shifts” within the DreamKids - that AHA moment or a particular breakthrough. Daniel loves seeing his mentees go through these shifts, as he watches them grow in confidence. One of his mentees in particular struggled with his self image. Daniel took extra time outside of group mentoring sessions to work with his mentee on his emotions and overall confidence. He went above and beyond to find ways to connect with him and activities he would respond to. This mentee's caregiver expressed so much gratitude for Daniel as she shared with us that she has seen a “shift in his overall confidence and the language he uses to describe himself.”

Whether it’s playing football with the kids or helping them with their school work, Daniel enjoys being around everyone in the program. “The staff appreciate him just as much as the kids do, he has such an organic relationship with all the kids,” says Amber Heselph , Center Director, “ He really made a concerted effort to get to know the entire program, all of the kiddos, and make each kid feel special.”

“He knows the names of each and every one of the DreamKids as well as small things about them,” Amber remarked. One particular moment stands out for Amber and the staff, as Daniel shared his passion for journaling with the DreamKids. He gifted each student a journal with a personal ceramic art he crafted by hand. Daniel showed them how to use it to track their thoughts, feelings, successes, to use them as a tool for reflection, and to develop better self care practices.

With the impact Daniel has made, it is clear why he was nominated as Mentor of the Year. “This type of connection our mentors make with our DreamKids is the magic of our work; and we are incredibly grateful to Daniel and the many mentors across the country who give of their time to help build those stepping stones for our DreamKids to be successful,” said Diane Wallace Booker , Chief Strategy Officer for U.S. Dream Academy.

Volunteering is an important value of QTS. They are a company committed to “improving communities and changing lives”. QTS has supported over 220 charitable organizations and are dedicated to giving their time, talent, and treasure to impact the community. QTS not only recognizes the Mentor of the Year, they also send special acknowledgements to all nominees for this award, “Each of these individuals have contributed in important ways to the lives of young people and the success of the U.S. Dream Academy programs,” said Dave Murray , QTS’s Senior Vice President of Community Impact.

“We are grateful for companies such as QTS who demonstrate the values of integrity, character, and trust in their corporate culture and community outreach,” shared Wintley Phipps , Founder and CEO of U.S. Dream Academy. He reminds us all that “we each may dream alone but we never achieve alone.” The support of QTS and our volunteer mentors allows U.S. Dream Academy to help thousands of young people across this nation to reach for their dreams.

We invite you to join us! Make an impact and become a volunteer mentor in the U.S. Dream Academy!

You will not only make an impact in the lives of young people but on your own life as well.

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CELEBRATING FREEDOM

Fri, 16 Jun 2023 14:49:48 GMT

By C. Diane Wallace Booker, Esq., Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Vice President
June 16, 2023

My great great grandmother, Maria Simms Wallace, born enslaved, would have been around 20 years old on June 19, 1865 when General Granger and Union Troops rode into Galveston, Texas to officially declare the state of Texas under Union rule and consequently all enslaved Black people would be immediately free (it took two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Lincoln for Union Troops to occupy Texas, a confederate state, to officially free an estimated 250,000 enslaved people in Texas ).

With freedom in 1865, shortly thereafter came citizenship. The 14th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified in 1868. The 14th granted citizenship to Black Americans and also equal protection under the law. This included the right to vote... at least for Black men (although this right would be violently suppressed during the Jim Crow era).

I wonder whether my family celebrated or were they cynical of failed government promises and cautiously approached this idea of freedom and citizenship. Although history and the evidence demonstrates that many Black men at that time registered to vote and actively engaged in the political process - voting, running for office, passing legislation and helping to rebuild the United States after a civil war. Scholars have identified at least 2,000 African Americans who held public office from the local level all the way up to the U.S Senate during Reconstruction.

She was buried in Cross Creek Cemetery , a historically segregated cemetery where many former enslaved people were buried. Efforts have been made to preserve this cemetery and research done to identify the names of all the unmarked graves which is how we discovered where Maria was buried.

While I proudly celebrate Juneteenth, I cannot help but think of my great great grandparents struggles, trauma, abuse and perhaps also the ways they sought joy in the midst of turmoil and change. As the great great granddaughter of a woman who would have felt a mix of emotions this day, I write today to honor her life - once nameless, Maria Simms Wallace legacy lives on in me, my father, my sister and brother and a host of cousins, aunts, and uncles who today are grateful for those who came before us.

Ways to celebrate Juneteenth

1. Many cities now host Juneteenth celebrations - grab your family and friends to join one of these celebrations and connect with your community.

2. Take a virtual visit The Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture to learn more about Juneteenth' s history, celebrations, foods and resilience - start the virtual tour here .

3. Listen to the " Sounds Good " podcast feature of Professor Annette Gordon-Reed, an American historian and Harvard professor, where she shared why she wrote the book "On Juneteenth".

4. Learn about Emancipation Park in Houston, Texas where the community of formerly enslaved men and woman began celebrating Juneteenth in 1872. It is a fascinating and rich history of a community determined to celebrate and commemorate their freedom.

5. Watch a movie or series that showcases Black joy and culture in a positive light.

Recommendation: High on the Hog: How American Cuisine Transformed America . A Netflix docuseries where Chef and writer Stephen Satterfiled traces the delicious, moving throughlines from Africa to Texas.

6. Volunteer for a local organization that supports Black communities. Use this day to give back. We invite you to learn more about becoming a volunteer mentor for the U.S. Dream Academy.

Juneteenth is the perfect opportunity to make a meaningful difference and help a child reach their full potential.

RETHINKING RESILIENCE

Tue, 23 May 2023 16:31:49 GMT

Every once in a while a project comes along that causes me to rethink what I think I know.

Recently that project came in the form of a visual podcast Larron Tate and I produced in collaboration with six young people who experienced a range of childhood challenges from having a parent incarcerated to living in a homeless shelter to spending time at Rikers Island as a teenager.

With funding from the Gates Foundation , Derrell Frazier , our young adult project manager identified five other young people from NYC, Baltimore and D.C., to join this nascent project. Over the course of about eight months during the pandemic, we worked together to co-design a narrative shifting visual podcast to reach other young people facing the hard stuff in life. Our initial big goal of the podcast was to de-stigmatize the experience of having a parent incarcerated so that young people will seek help and understand they are not alone. We then expanded our reach to include the experience of being without stable housing and also youth incarceration.

Through these visual podcasts each young person is a storyteller and then a host. They sit on both sides of the story as an interviewer with lived-experience asking insightful questions; and as an interviewee in a vulnerable place of sharing - even as they are still working through issues of forgiveness, reconciliation with family, community expectations, and self-worth.

If Only You Knew Co-Hosts Elias Hernandez and Zenaya Roaché with Episode 4 guest Amari McDuffie

Watching these young people formulate their stories while forging a path was painful for me as I longed for these young people to have had a childhood that was filled with safety, security and no adult worries.

I thought, in particular, about the disproportionate number of Black children whose childhoods have been forfeited to meet the challenges present in their under-invested communities such as poverty, lack of safety, discrimination and lack of access to adequate resources. Communities that were never designed nor cultivated to actually support positive youth development or even families. Under-invested communities often experience persistent crime, few viable employment options and poorly designed education systems that operate in tandem to produce frustrated teens, growing up in unsafe neighborhoods, who sometimes lose the desire to dream their own big dream.

Don’t get me wrong--this is not sympathy or feeling sorry for this group of amazing young people. They faced their challenges head on and I wouldn’t dare express the sentiment of pity toward these or any other young people whose childhoods have been interrupted by violence, financial instability or the sudden absence of a parent.

They are resilient, tough and tender all at once...but this narrative of resilience that I have repeated hundreds of times over the years as an executive director, tends to overlook the reason the resilience and toughness is required in the first place. And further, places the responsibility of navigating inequities in under-invested communities at the doorstep of their childhoods. Then the ones who manage to “make it out,” get a scholarship, and stay out of trouble are heralded as “resilient.” But I can’t help but wonder when we as a country will stop expecting our young people to be resilient against broken education systems, to be resilient against inequities, to even be resilient in an adult prison…and instead working toward creating effective systems that support positive youth development in all communities not just some communities located in prized zip codes.

Communities can and should be designed to support families and promote positive youth development where children can learn to be resilient without their lives on the line, where children can safely explore challenges and have plenty of opportunity to be curious, to laugh, play, learn, make mistakes and grow.

At what point will we as adults be more resilient about facing and fixing our own brokenness that often causes those in power to prize money over safety, power over equal access and comfort over humanity.

The inaugural podcast of If Only You Knew with guest Kenny Clark, NFL player with the Green Bay Packers.

We ask a lot of our children and young adults to fumble around and figure out adult problems on their own; and when they can’t we label them as “drop-outs,” “thugs,” "hopeless," "addicts" and some adults even end up fearing these same children who have so much to be afraid of themselves.

Yes, I want you to watch the podcast and celebrate these young people--their resilience, their ability to forgive, their desire to dream, and willingness to share. And, as you watch, also consider what systems we need to fix or even completely redesign to ensure children can grow up in safe and equitable communities with stable housing, quality education options, healthcare, healthy food access and opportunities for safe gatherings and celebrations as a community.

Young peoples’ resilience should be recognized and celebrated but we cannot stop there--we cannot continue to hold the unre alistic expectation that children must be the ones to figure it out because many of them do not and quite frankly should not have to--when we as adults can.

Meet our host and storytellers:

JUNETEENTH: A CELEBRATION OF FREEDOM

Fri, 19 Jun 2020 14:58:43 GMT

While Juneteenth is the day signifying “freedom” for African Americans due to the legal abolition of slavery, true freedom for African Americans has never been fully realized in this country. If the last three weeks has shown us anything, it is that freedom is indeed worth fighting for. Similar to 155 years ago when our country was in great turmoil and divided over the fate of the Union and ending slavery, our county is currently in great turmoil and is divided about the state of our Union and achieving equality for African Americans. We are in a struggle for how all Americans, regardless of race, can truly live free in these United States – free from discrimination, violence, trauma, and economic deprivation.

Celebrating & Sharing Juneteenth History

As for today, African Americans once again celebrate the victories, the progress, the resistance, the beauty, the joys, the music, the resilience, the culture, and our history in America!

In celebrating, I think it is always important for us to continue to share this history with people who are new to learning about Juneteenth and those who have always celebrated it. Each time we revisit the facts and the stories of our history, laid up against the context of our current crisis, I think we learn and relearn in new ways.

For this article, I asked my sister Barbara Wallace, Ph.D. (African American History) to provide a capsule history of Juneteenth, which I’m hopeful you will share with your family and friends. I encourage you to strike up a conversation with someone you know who has never heard of or celebrated Juneteenth. This is certainly a day that all Americans should understand and be proud to celebrate as a step in the expansion of liberty.

Celebrating & Sharing Juneteenth History

1865: Enforcement of Freedom for Slaves in Texas
When the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect on January 1, 1863, it promised freedom to the over 3.5 million African Americans enslaved in Confederate states. The Proclamation, however, was not enforceable until those Confederate states came under Union control. As the Union Army marched across the South, many slave owners fled with their slaves to Texas to maintain their slaveholding status. By 1865, the enslaved population in Texas had increased by nearly 100,000, bringing their total to 250,000; purported to be one of the largest at that time since many of the other slave-holding states had already been emancipated.

Many enslaved African Americans in 1865 had heard rumors of the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation, but without Union enforcement, the Proclamation was merely a promise on a piece of parchment paper. That promise and enforcement became real when General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston with nearly 2,000 Union troops on June 18, 1865. On the following day, June 19, from the balcony of the Ashton Villa, Granger read “General Order #3” that “officially” ended slavery in the area. It would be another six months before the Thirteenth Amendment, which ended slavery throughout the entire country, would be ratified on December 6, 1865.

1866: The First Celebration of Jubilee Day (Juneteenth)
On the anniversary of Granger’s announcement, formerly enslaved African Americans in Texas celebrated “Jubilee Day” on June 19, 1866, to mark their free status. The day was also called “Freedom Day” and “Liberation Day” at times before “Juneteenth” (the combination of June and 19th) took root. The celebrations typically included food, music, games, lectures and information about their new rights. Celebrants took pride in this day and made a point of dressing up in their best clothes to mark the importance of the occasion.

Juneteenth Emancipation Day Celebration in Texas, June 19, 1900 MRS. CHARLES STEPHENSON (GRACE MURRAY)

In areas where African Americans were later banned from public places due to the imposition of Jim Crow segregation, they gathered near churches, lakes or rivers. In some cities, they even bought land of their own on which to celebrate – Houston’s 10-acre Emancipation Park started this way in 1872, led by Reverend Jack Yates.

The Expansion of Juneteeth
In 1870, the ratification of the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution granted voting rights to Black men. With these new rights, many Juneteenth celebrations then began to include political rallies that encouraged voter registration and participation in local political life. As states began to impose voter restriction laws and outright violence that suppressed African American votes, the celebrations were maintained with some difficulty but remained focused on honoring past achievements while working towards regaining freedoms lost. As many African Americans fled the South during the Great Migration, they spread Juneteenth celebrations to cities across the nation. Texas recognized Juneteenth as an official state holiday in 1980, and today 47 states offer varying commemoration of this significant day in history. In 2000, an official flag was even designed to commemorate the day.

JUNETEENTH 2020: CELEBRATION & ACTIVISM

In the past few weeks, widespread activism focused on equality has put Juneteenth into the spotlight. Virginia and New York announced that Juneteenth will be a paid holiday for state employees, and several companies adopted the same policy. Core supporters have long advocated for Juneteenth to be a national holiday, and this discussion has emerged now at a national level.

In the spirit of Juneteenth to celebrate freedom and civic engagement, take some time today to learn more about who will be on your full voting ballot during this election season. Your local elections include voting for judges, sheriff, district attorney or state’s attorney, mayor or county executive, school board members. All of these people, in elected positions, are making critical decisions about law enforcement in your community — how prosecutions are handled, how long someone will stay in prison, the criteria to be released on probation, along with decisions about educational resources for students to have access to technology during critical times like the current pandemic.

JUNETEENTH 2020: Demonstrators joined community activists and elected officials at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn on Friday. (Credit:Theodore Parisiennes)

Get to know and understand what values the candidates stand for – beyond just their party affiliation. You may be surprised to learn that some in your same political party may not share all of the same values. It’s also very important to make sure you understand how voting will occur in your jurisdiction this year (mail-in, in-person, or possibly both options) as our nation continues to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

JUNETEENTH 2020: 5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

Let’s make Juneteenth a day of celebration of freedom and of active participation to ensure we, as Americans, preserve our hard-fought-for freedoms.

Learn and share Juneteenth history and African American history in general with your family and friends
Complete your 2020 Census Form and ask 3 people in your network if they have completed the Census. The Census determines how much federal funding will be allocated to your state and local jurisdiction. It’s not too late ! – The form can be mailed (no postage needed) or you can simply complete the Census online
Review your local candidates running for office and research their values and track record on racial injustice and other issues that are important to you
Make a phone call and send an email to let the candidate know your expectation of them should you vote for them.
Volunteer to become a mentor with the US Dream Academy and help a young person achieve his or her dreams

C. Diane Wallace Booker, Esq., is the Chief Strategy Officer, Executive Vice President and Founding Executive Director for the U.S. Dream Academy, a justice reform champion, attorney and seasoned non-profit executive. She led the national expansion and has refined a youth development model of skill building, character building and dream building that has successfully helped thousands of young people living in high risk neighborhoods to build positive dreams.

RACIAL INJUSTICE: WHAT ABOUT THE KIDS?

Thu, 18 Jun 2020 15:51:23 GMT

Things Youth Experience & Witness: Racial Injustice, Trauma & Violence

From the 2015 Baltimore City uprising connected to Freddie Gray’s death where the protesting and fires took place minutes from our Dream Learning Center to one of our former students being shot and killed in Washington, DC shortly after the pandemic started, incidents of trauma and violence have sparked difficult conversations with our young people who should never have to experience such challenges.

Our U.S. Dream Academy students are made up of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds with the majority being African American – 68% of our students identify as Black; 18% identify their ethnicity as Latino/Hispanic and race as White; 4% Asians, 1% Native American and about 9% that chose not to identify their race. However, 100% of our young people live in economically-disadvantaged neighborhoods with high rates of violence. Issues surrounding race and injustice often arise, and this is why we train our volunteer mentors to be sensitive to cultural bias and the impact of race and poverty in society.

Preparing Mentors for Racial Injustice Discussion with Youth

U.S. Dream Academy seeks to develop and provide more substantive training for our staff and mentors on racial injustice and how to have meaningful discussions around race and our different experiences in America.

With this newly developed training, we will teach our Dream Mentors a variety of youth-centered strategies to engage young people in dialogue related to the sensitive and complex issues of racial injustice. We seek to create safe spaces for these conversations to occur where mentors and mentees will learn from each other and honor each other’s life experiences through deep listening, non-judgement, and compassion.

Meaningful Response from Our Board

Our U.S. Dream Academy board of directors and staff are committed to more deeply understanding and incorporating the impact of racial injustice into our work; particularly at the intersections of mass incarceration, poverty, health, and education.

Recently our board of directors signed a statement in a stand against racial injustice, “ Racial Trau m a & Young People: Why We Can’t Stay Silent ”, along with America’s Promise Alliance Partners that represent millions of youth across the country. Please read our collective statement HERE .

Our founder, Wintley Phipps, penned his thoughts on racism in a recent article published in The Adventist Review – please take a moment to read his compelling and thought-provoking insights in “ This Intractable Lie ”

Steps You Can Take NOW To Eliminate Racial Injustice

Over the past two weeks, some of you may have participated in various marches, while others have chosen different forms of protest and engagement. No matter your form of activism, there is one thing we can all do to help eliminate racial injustice – to have important conversations in our own homes and within our network of family and friends about race, privilege, and equality.

Many of you reading this article have children, and we know many adults are wondering how to approach such topics in their own homes. White families may have a different discussion than families of color; however, all of us can strive to accomplish the same goal: equal and fair treatment, and understanding that no one group of people is superior to another.

14 Books on Race & Anti-Racism for Young Readers & Youth

One of the best ways to initiate discussion on these topics is through books. Storytelling is an excellent way to help young people understand complex issues. Additionally, when you read with your children, you create new and memorable bonds.

It’s never too early to create a safe space for your child to explore issues around differences, racism, fairness, and equality as this is not a one-time conversation. These are conversations that youth need to have throughout their lifetime of learning and growing. It is also never too late for adults to brave the earnest conversations that substantive societal change commands. Below are 14 books on race and anti-racism that can help you talk to children in your family and community.

Talking About Race

A new, national online resource portal named “ Talking About Race ” has recently been made available by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, According to the museum’s website, the purpose of the portal is to “help individuals, families, and communities talk about racism, racial identity and the way these forces shape every aspect of society, from the economy and politics to the broader American culture.”

Click HERE to explore this portal with your family and community.

Take A Stand Against Racism

We encourage you to affirm your personal commitment to help eradicate racism, advocate for racial justice, and help create a more just society in the United States of America for young people to grow up free from discrimination, violence, and trauma.

TOGETHER, WE MAKE THE DIFFERENCE.

C. Diane Wallace Booker, Esq., is the Chief Strategy Officer , Executive Vice President and Founding Executive Director for the U.S. Dream Academy, a justice reform champion, attorney and seasoned non-profit executive. She led the national expansion and has refined a youth development model of skill building, character building and dream building that has successfully helped thousands of young people living in high risk neighborhoods to build positive dreams.

WHEN “A YEAR OF FIRSTS” INCLUDES A PANDEMIC!

Wed, 22 Apr 2020 14:22:53 GMT

When my son was selected to be a part of Michelle Obama’s “A Year of Firsts”- an internet series to document the first year of college, who could have guessed that our entire world would be going through “a year of firsts”!

The concept behind her series was to document the first year of college for four freshmen in different parts of the country so that current high school seniors could get a glimpse of freshman year and perhaps lessen their anxiety about college by knowing what to expect.

To all of our surprise, these four freshman in Mrs. Obama’s series, along with most high school students and college students from all walks of life, had their lives turned upside down in early March when their high school and college experience as they knew it came to a crashing halt!

For many students, in particular seniors, this abrupt pivot has been a source of deep sadness, loss, regret and uncertainty.

For one of our U.S. Dream Academy mentors, Sheldon who is a senior at University of Houston, double majoring in Finance and Accounting, this will represent a “year of firsts” for his family. Sheldon will be the first in his family to graduate college!

Graduating from college is already a big accomplishment and becomes an even sweeter moment when your entire family witnesses a moment that changes the trajectory for future generations.

During a virtual mentoring session, hosted by our Houston Dream Academy staff, Sheldon was sharing with a group of Dream Academy students his reaction to hearing that his college graduation would be cancelled. Hear in Sheldon’s own words as he shares with our young people his own sense of disappointment around graduation.

Disappointment is a very real part of life, pandemic or not, and we must help our youth, teens, and young adults understand how disappointment can be used to build a stronger resolve in how we face challenges in life. Experiences of disappointment challenge us to grow in new ways.

Sheldon’s disappointment, in this case, was for his family who undoubtedly worked hard to ensure that Sheldon would make it to and through college. Parents dream about the day when their son or daughter will walk across the stage at graduation. This dream is particularly sweet for families who have sacrificed, possibly gone into debt, or worked an extra job to create a “first” – the first person to graduate in their family. They deserve this moment as they have fought for it for generations.

For Sheldon and all the seniors who may miss or at the least have their graduations postponed, it is important for you to know how proud your family and friends are of your accomplishment. No virus can take away your commitment, hard work and tenacity.

As positive youth development advocates and educators, this is not the time to relax our resolve to see our young people to and through high school and college. Our multifaceted strategies and collective community efforts still matter. First generation college students and first generation high school graduates across the country need our active and committed support, even more at a time such as this.

What can we do now for our young people? We can focus on building positive developmental relationships with the young people in our lives. These relationships will ultimately help our young people build perseverance, resilience, determination, encourage creativity and adaptability. Click here to read “ Building Developmental Relationships During COVID-19 Crisis ” developed by the Search Institute.

To Class of 2020 Seniors across America : We are proud of you and cheering for you in the home stretch of your virtual high school or college experience. We are proud of you and your accomplishments. Know that you are living through a unique and unprecedented time. Your resilience at this time is more important now than ever to prepare yourself to emerge from this pandemic – perhaps stronger, wiser and ready to take on the challenges to achieve your dreams!! They are still possible and we believe in you!

Once we are able to gather safely in groups again, let’s be intentional in our local communities about celebrating the graduates in our lives – with family or at a church, community or social club.

Recognizing and celebrating the graduating students in our lives is an opportunity to deepen our relationships and to create community pride. If colleges and universities don’t issue postponement dates and graduation cancellations become permanent decisions, then we should consider how to offer graduation ceremony alternatives in our local communities this year. For example, maybe churches could host “graduation” ceremonies and fraternity and sororities could organize celebrations for local students. I have a friend here in Maryland who is already planning a party for the young people in our church to celebrate them, and it will include a ceremonial walk across the stage.

These celebrations, while perhaps smaller, can still be mighty. They can still affirm students and give parents that special moment of pride they so deserve, while also creating memories and photos for a lifetime.

If we all as neighbors, friends and parents come together to cheer on and celebrate our seniors (both in high school and college), we will keep our young people encouraged and inspired as they move into the next phase of their lives.

Please leave a comment below of a suggestion of how graduates can be celebrated in your community.

STRENGTHENING SOCIAL CONNECTIONS THROUGH COVID-19 SOCIAL DISTANCING

Wed, 25 Mar 2020 15:23:12 GMT

During this unprecedented experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have had a new term added to our vocabulary – “Social Distancing”. Multiple times daily, TV news anchors, online articles, and posts in our social media feeds remind us to follow the CDC’s guidance for social distancing. But is this really the goal? “Social distancing” just seems like an inaccurate term to me. Social distancing sounds lonely and isolating, while those who are currently sick are truly isolated, most of us are earnestly attempting to put physical distance between each other – not to distance ourselves from each other socially.

To me, a term like “physical distancing” sends a more clear message as to what we, as a country, are seeking to achieve while also not dismissing the very real need for us as humans to socialize and connect. It’s more important now than ever that we, as a society, are strengthening social connections through this time of COVID-19 social distancing.

As people’s daily lives have been impacted by COVID-19, we need to encourage, support, motivate, help and guide each other. From providing comfort and reassurance to a family member, friend, co-worker, or neighbor to smiling, laughing, crying, dancing, or learning together virtually, people are finding creative ways to do this. On Saturday night, famous rapper and DJ D-Nice hosted a global dance party with over 100,000 viewers on Instagram.

Being a part of this moment was epic as I watched thousands of people join the #ClubQuarantine “party”, celebrities, artists, and everyone in between felt welcome to join in as D-Nice gave shout outs, played music of all genres for 9 hours and reminded us to stay home to stop the spread. This moment underscored the power of music to bring people together in times of trouble and how we can creatively stay connected while we all do our part to help STOP the spread of this globally disruptive virus.

Personally, I have had more social contact this past week by phone, Zoom, Google Hangouts, text, email, and social media than ever as we moved our U.S. Dream Academy national office from a traditional working space to a virtual environment.

As each of the seven school districts, where our Dream Academy Learning Centers operate, began to shut down one after the other on Friday, March 13, within hours, millions of young people across the country lost a sense of stability in their lives and moved into a place of uncertainty about their future. Schools, for as much as young people may complain about school, offer a place of safety, food, consistency, computer access, counseling, support and other resources, as well as a place to socialize and connect.

Our U.S. Dream Academy staff sprung into action to ensure that our DreamKids knew that we were still here and would remain a consistent part of their lives. Our Dream Team has been making one-to-one calls to each of our parents, reaching out to students through text, Zoom and google hang-outs, and doing wellness checks with our volunteer Mentors (many of whom are college students and had their own sudden life-changes when many had to pack up their college dorms and head home).

Throughout this virtual communication process, we have been connecting, encouraging, identifying and meeting needs, sharing, laughing and empathizing with everyone in our U.S. Dream Academy network. Our social connections have been intentional, meaningful and have helped each of us gain a little more control back in our lives when we are helping others and working as a community to meet our collective needs.

As we move forward to adjusting to life amid COVID-19, our country must continue to be intentional about physical distancing and staying home as a collective effort to help end this public health crisis and “ flatten the curve ”. Additionally, let’s also be intentional about socially connecting with our families, friends, neighbors and those in need. We all need each other during this time to not only save the lives of others, but to save our own lives.

YOUTH DEVELOPMENT: CULTIVATING GROWTH MINDSETS IN TEENS

Thu, 19 Sep 2019 15:47:15 GMT

For years, many people have viewed intelligence as something that kids are born with instead of a mindset that can be developed through hard work. You probably know someone who talks about how intelligent parents have intelligent children. Is this because that child inherited brain power from his parents? Or is it more likely that the parents spent more time encouraging and helping their child problem solve? Taking the time to help young people to think and utilize their brain power to analyze things, determine possible choices, and identifying the best options for solutions are key elements to cultivating growth mindsets in teens and young children.

What is a Growth Mindset?

The pedagogy of a “growth mindset”, a concept developed by Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck, has been around for about twenty years. In an article that Dweck composed , she provided the following description of the difference between a growth mindset and a fixed mindset:

"More precisely, students who believed their intelligence could be developed (a growth mindset) outperformed those who believed their intelligence was fixed (a fixed mindset). And when students learned through a structured program that they could “grow their brains” and increase their intellectual abilities, they did better." – Carol Dweck

View Carol Dweck’s TedTalk on “The Power of Believing You Can Improve”

Many educators today are moving towards helping students understand that hard work equals success. As a mentor, you can also help to offer teenagers a different perspective on the ability to learn and succeed academically and in life. Everyone has experienced ups and downs in life and even our mistakes and failures in life provide lessons that can be built upon.

When mentors share stories of how they personally had to work hard to overcome a challenge in life as an adult or when they were younger, it helps the mentee understand not everyone is successful on the first try. Through effective mentoring focused on cultivating growth mindsets , teens recognize that people achieve their goals by working hard, using their brains to come up with possible strategies for solutions, and learning new things from the experience along the way.

Whether it is a challenging math problem or another situation in life, here’s an infographic with examples of how your verbal responses can help to cultivate a growth mindset in a child:

Mentors Can Help Teens Develop A Growth Mindset

Mentoring can help develop a commitment to learning in a child. Think back to your own teenage years and try to remember what it was like when you were in school. Did you struggle with certain subjects? Do you have siblings who were able to get all A’s without studying? Did you have parents or teachers tell you that you were not very smart? It’s important to teach teens that the brain is flexible and adaptable; thus, with effort and determination, anything is possible. Practice and hard work are the keys to mastery. With the right type of support from their parents and other adults, including a mentor, a young person can learn new ways of thinking, adapt their study skills, and successfully plan for the future goals and dreams they want to pursue.

Becoming a mentor to a young person gives you the opportunity to motivate your mentee to do well in school by setting realistic and attainable goals. With positive reinforcement from you to your mentee, you can point out how school participation is important and taking time to study and complete homework assignments will help them achieve future success. As a mentor, you can be a champion for the effort a student makes no matter the outcome, and brainstorm solutions together with them when things don’t go as planned. Here are four growth mindset oriented steps to have your mentee consider:

Cultivating Growth Mindsets in U.S. Dream Academy DreamKids

As a mentor at one of our U.S. Dream Academy learning centers , you’ll learn to model the skills needed to transform a child’s fixed mindset to a growth mindset. It’s important for mentors to take inventory of their own mindset, understand that all people (adults and children) are all a mixture of growth and fixed mindsets, and commit to cultivating growth mindsets in youth. Our Mentor Coordinators provide mentors with group training sessions to support mentors in building trusting relationships with their mentees and provide tips on how mentors can provide guidance and support to youth.

The U.S. Dream Academy youth mentoring program is uniquely different from other after-school and mentoring programs. Our foundational principle is: Beyond school, every young person we serve must spend 11 to 15 hours each week in a stimulating learning environment. In addition, weekly, 1-hour, one-on-one or group sessions with carefully matched mentors complement after-school activities that combine academic fundamentals with the three core pillars of our program: skill-building, character-building, and dream-building. At each of our learning centers across the country, our overall goal is to nurture the whole child while altering attitudes, enhancing self-esteem, supporting emotional and intellectual growth, and sparking dreams.

Help Transform a Child’s Mindset & Ignite Their Dreams – BECOME A MENTOR

There is a growing need for mentors to provide support and encouragement to teens and young children. There is a huge mentoring gap – – only 1 in 3 children in the U.S. have a mentor. Join the U.S. Dream Academy as a Dream Mentor to help us fill that gap. – SIGN UP TODAY!

We have a goal of getting an additional 300 men and women across the country to sign-up to become mentors at one of our Dream Academy Learning Centers located in Baltimore, Houston, Indianapolis, Orlando, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino and Washington, D.C.

From college students and young professionals to caring adults and senior citizens / retirees, we encourage you to sign-up to become a Dream Mentor. We’re looking for everyday, awesome people just like yourself – no superheroes are required!

CHANGE A CHILD’S LIFE: 7 REASONS TO BECOME A MENTOR

Thu, 12 Sep 2019 18:25:57 GMT

Every child needs reassurance and guidance at some point in their life. Life is a journey of transitions for everyone, and children, just like adults, experience feelings as they anticipate or react to transitions that they experience. For a child, things such as moving to a new neighborhood, starting school with a new teacher, losing a family member or friend due to illness or violence, absence of a parent due to incarceration, attempts to build new friendships or the birth of a new sibling are examples of transitions that may impact a child during their youth development years.

Depending on the child’s stage of development, the impact of transitions from their normal routine of life will be determined by the child’s previous experiences, temperament and resiliency. The children (in grades 2 – 12) that we serve at our U.S. Dream Academy Learning Centers across the country experience the normal transitions of a young person growing up, and some of them have unique life events that could impede them from achieving their goals and dreams if they didn’t have a mentor.

As cited by the U.S. Department Health & Human Services’ Administration for Children & Families , caring adults play an important role in supporting young children. Caring adults include people such as family members, teachers, caregivers, community leaders and mentors that can give positive support and guidance to youth. Studies on the outcome of mentoring show that a child who has grown up being mentored outside the home environment is more likely to finish high school and get into college compared to a child who didn’t have a mentor.

The benefits of mentoring are reciprocal to mentors as well. Mentoring provides a great opportunity for personal satisfaction as mentors give back to society by molding the future generation of leaders, and provides a chance to develop their personal skills in various areas. Discover 7 reasons to become a mentor below.

Benefits Of Mentoring To The Mentor

1. Giving Back Makes You Feel Good

Being a mentor allows you to make a difference in someone’s life. Children start dreaming of who they want to become at a very early age. There are children who dream of becoming a pilot or a doctor but ended up dropping that dream because no one was present in their life to guide them along the path of life. When young people are led and encouraged to pursue their dreams, there is a higher probability that they will achieve that dream.

Some of the most successful and famous people often attribute their success to the mentors that took them by the hand during their younger years. Most teachers act as modern-day mentors. To them, there is nothing better than meeting a student 10 or 20 years later and seeing the gratitude in their face because of the life-changing impact that they had on their lives. Many caring adults, from various backgrounds and industries, that mentor young people also experience of that same gratitude among the many other rewards.

2. Strengthen Your Beliefs & Values

Over time, every human being develops beliefs and values that aid in their success in life. As a mentor, you will play a significant role in helping a young person identify their own values and definition of success. Being able to witness the assistance needed by youth and the transformational change from your mentoring efforts will strengthen some of your personal beliefs and values. Commitment to giving back, personal reflections of how an action or encouraging word made a big impact in your life, and first-hand realization that positive reinforcement is essential for young people are examples of how your beliefs may be edified.

3. Increase Your Leadership Skills

Being a mentor is leadership in action. In a youth mentoring relationship, you are a guide to your mentee. You’ll learn how to help a young person navigate the journey of life to overcome obstacles, identify their strengths and accomplish their goals.

In addition, you’ll sharpen your own leadership skills in many ways. Improvement to communication skills, by actively listening and expressing empathy to your mentee, is one way that mentoring can benefit you in other areas of your life. Mentoring may also help you see things with “new eyes” from a broader perspective. Your leadership agility may increase as you enhance your problem-solving skills and consider multiple perspectives when providing guidance to your mentee.

4. Broaden Your Understanding

As a mentor, you won’t always be guiding young people who are like you or who want to be like you. You might be an accountant mentoring a child who wants to be a doctor or computer software engineer. Your job experience doesn’t dictate that you should only mentor a child who wants to grow up and pursue a job that you currently hold. You have so much more to offer to a young person than just your job skills, and a mentee will be excited to learn many different things from you .

Our U.S. Dream Academy after-school, mentoring program provides mentors with initial and supplemental training on how to engage and support young people that may have different backgrounds and experiences than themselves. Some of the most critical keys to being an effective mentor are being caring, consistent, and trustworthy. Your various life experiences will be beneficial to you as you provide support to your mentee .

Benefits To The Mentee

1. Youth Express Themselves Without Judgement

Some young people have a tendency to not always tell anyone what’s bothering or frustrating them. Have a caring mentor provides a pathway for a child to open up to someone without feeling like they’re being judged or like they’ll be punished. Children won’t always run to their parents for help, but they still need someone they can turn to for guidance and support.

Having a listening ear in addition to their parents can provide young people with a healthy and safe outlet to communicate their feelings, fears, hopes and challenges.

2. Opportunity To Gain New Perspectives

Youth mentoring programs can create opportunities for exposure in many ways. When mentors share their background and experiences or participate in an activity with their mentee, they can expose young people to a new world of possibilities for their future. Youth can gain new knowledge, improved communication and social skills, refined character and appreciation of other cultures, and much more through a positive mentoring bond.

3. Build Dreams In Youth

One of the most significant reasons to become a mentor is that you get to ignite the flame in a child’s heart for their dreams . At U.S. Dream Academy, we firmly believe that a child with a dream is a child with a future. Mentoring has a powerful effect on young people, and when mentors witness dormant ideas transform into dreams actively being pursued, it is mutually fulfilling for both the mentor and mentee.

DREAM MENTORS FOR YOUTH ARE NEEDED

There’s nothing more rewarding than knowing you have made a difference in someone else’s life. If you desire a rewarding opportunity to make a change in the life of today’s youth, then sign-up to learn more about our U.S. Dream Academy youth mentoring program.

We are currently looking for an additional 300 men and women to invest 1 hour per week with a child as a mentor at our 8 Dream Learning Centers in Baltimore, Houston, Indianapolis, Orlando, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino and Washington, D.C. — Learn More and Sign-Up to Become a Dream Mentor!

2019 MENTOR OF THE YEAR: LAUREN HARRIS

Fri, 19 Jul 2019 20:56:21 GMT

U.S. Dream Academy & Southwest Airlines Present Lauren Harris with the 2019 Mentor of the Year Award at the 18th Annual Power of A Dream Gala

Described as “energetic, bright, positive and intentional” by Houston Dream Academy Learning Center Director Dipen Bhakta and Mentor Coordinator Walter Hull, Lauren Harris is currently a graduate student at the University of Texas School of Public Health and works at Change Happens, a nonprofit that teaches life skills to youth. Despite school and work, mentoring is a priority for Lauren. She found out about the U.S. Dream Academy while an undergraduate member of University of Houston’s Collegiate 100 and became a mentor in 2015. She was paired with Jasmine, then in the 2nd grade, and they bonded from the start.

Jasmine entered Dream Academy well below her grade level academically. Jasmine had recently moved in with her grandmother and three younger brothers, was withdrawn, and didn’t yet realize she had dyslexia, which impaired her reading ability. With Lauren’s encouragement, Jasmine’s reading improved significantly, and she is now on the honor roll. Currently in 6th grade, Jasmine has gained confidence, improved her social skills and come out of her shell. She also excels at basketball.

Dream Academy mentor Lauren Harris has built a strong friendship with mentee Jasmine

Lauren works in partnership with Jasmine’s grandmother to spend additional time with her outside of scheduled mentor hours. Lauren has taken Jasmine clothes shopping, a Beyoncé concert, a rodeo, the UNCF Youth Gala, and the HBCU College Fair. They also spend time together on holidays and birthdays. Lauren regularly attends Jasmine’s basketball games and used her network to have Jasmine once practice with Texas Southern University’s women’s basketball team. Lauren also enrolled her in Top Teens in America, in which Jasmine volunteers to help others.

U.S. Dream Academy Mentor Lauren Harris & mentee Jasmine

Jasmine’s grandmother believes Lauren is a “blessing to the family,” and is happy that she exposes Jasmine to so many experiences that she does not have time to do with three younger grandsons to care for.

A Houston native, Lauren credits her parents for modeling loving support, and always wanted to “pay it forward.” She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha and the Houston Area Urban League Young Professionals, and volunteers at H.E.R Community, which supports domestic violence survivors.

Upon hearing of her award, Lauren was modest: “I don’t do this for any accolades. It is the honor of my life to serve as her mentor.” Lauren also noted that “I did not get this award by myself, so I will not accept it alone.” Determined that Jasmine would join her, Lauren set up a GoFundMe campaign, and with major support from her sorority sisters she raised funds for both Jasmine and her grandmother to attend the gala.

U.S. Dream Academy DreamKid Jasmine & her grandmother

As far as Lauren is concerned, Jasmine is part of her village. The Dream Academy is fortunate that Lauren is part of our village and helping our youth to dream forward.

Lauren Harris received her 2019 Mentor of the Year award at U.S. Dream Academy’s 18th Annual Power of A Dream Gala that was held on May 8, 2019 in Washington, D.C. We appreciate the support of all of our corporate sponsors for the gala and their commitment to our youth mentoring program. We extend a special thank you to Amway, our title sponsor for the gala, and Southwest Airlines for their corporate sponsorship of the Mentor of the Year Award again this year.

MAKE A POSITIVE IMPACT IN A CHILD’S LIFE – BECOME A MENTOR TODAY!

You too can make a difference in the life of a young person. We are currently in need of 300 more mentors to provide guidance, support and encouragement to the Dream Kids in our learning centers across the country. If you are looking for a rewarding volunteer opportunity that will fulfill you, then sign up to be a Dream Mentor today !

As a mentor, we ask that you invest 1 hour per week with a child at one of our Dream Academy Learning Centers in Baltimore, Houston, Indianapolis, Orlando, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino and Washington, D.C. – We serve children in grades 2 – 12.

LIFE LESSONS: RETIREES ARE VALUABLE MENTORS FOR YOUTH

Wed, 03 Jul 2019 21:12:09 GMT

So, you thought retirement would be a piece of cake and you would love spending time relaxing and pursuing hobbies. Then you woke up to the reality that you’re bored and searching for a new purpose in life. Volunteering with a mentoring program might be the solution.

Life experiences should be shared, and young people need positive role models in their lives. Retirees are valuable mentors for youth because they have lived through the ups and downs in the different phases of life and jobs, relationships, and finances. Volunteering at a youth mentoring program, like the U.S. Dream Academy , that encourages youth to be the best they can be is rewarding for both the retirees and the kids they are helping.

Why Should Retirees Mentor Youth?

Youth today are facing choices and making decisions in life that many retirees find daunting. Although you may not have been faced with the same types of situations, problem-solving is a skill that everyone needs.

Your life experiences are an asset that can have a significant positive impact on the child that you mentor. You can help youth understand and develop character, positive behavior and personality traits . Society sometimes models violence as the only way to react to conflict. Senior citizens and retirees have faced conflict in a variety of situations during their years and can give kids real-life examples of situations where they were able to resolve problems peacefully. Whether you faced conflict in the workplace or at home, your insight can be critical to helping youth understand alternatives to violence.

Youth mentoring is also a wonderful opportunity to help kids develop skills to resist peer pressure and develop friendships, empathy, and sensitivity. As a mentor, you can be a positive role model in a young person’s life and mutually share stories, ideas, engaging activities and struggles without judgment. Mentoring also gives you the opportunity to learn from your mentee. For example, mentees may teach and help their retiree mentors use social media to connect with family and friends. Although there may be a difference in age, intergenerational mentoring has many benefits for both the mentor and mentee. Choosing to be a mentor can make retirement years fulfilling.

What Skills Do Retirees Bring To Mentoring Groups?

You haven’t come this far in life without adapting to change and looking forward to the future. Whether you were a highly respected CEO of a company, worked in the trades, or coordinated your business from home while managing the family – you have skills kids need to learn.

Wisdom – Retirees can offer advice and options to youth in difficult situations.
Experience – Retirees can provide support, connections, and resources to youth looking for jobs or furthering their education.
Social Interaction – Retirees can listen and talk with youth who need a sounding board for ideas, choices, and decision-making.
Encouragement – Retirees can extend sincerity and caring to youth who need to see themselves as worthy of respect and love.

Retirees as youth mentors provide an alternative to talking with parents and family members in a non-threatening, trusting environment. As you probably remember, working full-time and taking care of a family is exhausting. Some parents who live in high-risk communities might not have as much time as they would like to spend with their children due to having multiple jobs to support the family or having their own personal challenges to navigate. As a mentor, you can help the next generation of children grow up to become well adjusted and functioning adults in society.

Commitment To Learning

Children who live in communities impacted by various societal challenges (including but not limited to violence, low-income, high crime rates, and substance abuse) sometimes see school as a waste of time and not worth putting forth the effort to succeed. Although education has changed since you were in school, you can still help young people understand the importance of knowledge and school. You can share about the educational opportunities available to you growing up compared to the opportunities available to the current generation. Retirees and senior citizens who volunteer as youth mentors can support children in the following ways that contribute to a young person’s education:

Motivation – Mentors can help young people stay motivated to do well in school.
Homework – Retiree mentors can not only help students with homework, but also provide accountability.
Reading – Mentors can share the importance of reading for pleasure.
School Engagement and Bonding – Retirees can spend time with youth at school attending functions and being actively involved.

You may not have been as involved in your kids’ school and activities as they were growing up, but now that you’re retired, you can make a difference in the lives of young people. While they may not always say it or show it, having a caring adult that consistently takes time out to mentor them is very valuable to a child. At our U.S. Dream Academy Learning Centers , we ask mentors to commit to spending 1 hour per week during the school year with a child.

When retiree mentors show up to mentor their mentee, that’s a big deal for a child. As you are spending time with your mentee in a 1-to-1 mentoring relationship or with a few children in a group mentoring relationship, you’ll get to know them personally and become a part of their lives. From the nurturing bond that you develop with your mentee, you’ll find that he / she will seek to get your advice on many things in life because they trust and know that you sincerely care about them and their well-being.

INVEST YOUR TIME TODAY IN A CHILD’S FUTURE- BECOME A MENTOR TODAY!

The life experiences a retiree can share with our youth is crucial to developing citizens who thrive and will make a difference in society. If you are a senior citizen or retiree that’s looking for a rewarding opportunity that fulfills you, then sign up to be a Dream Mentor today !

We’re not looking for superheroes — just everyday, awesome people like YOU, from the community, who want to help empower children to reach their full potential.

As a mentor, we ask that you invest 1 hour per week with a child at one of our Dream Learning Centers in Baltimore, Houston, Indianapolis, Orlando, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino and Washington, D.C. – We serve children in grades 2 – 12.

5 WAYS MENTORING HELPS CHILDREN OF INCARCERATED PARENTS

Sun, 23 Jun 2019 14:12:04 GMT

Parental incarceration has numerous negative effects on children. According to the National Institute of Justice , the incarceration of parents is one of the risk factors that increase the possibility of a child having following emotional and behavioral challenges, such as:

Psychological strain (i.e. emotional trauma, separation anxiety, worry about parent)
Anti-social behavior (i.e. feelings of being alone, abandonment, frustration)
Poor performance in school (i.e. under-achieving; not applying themselves fully, being distracted)
Economic hardship (i.e. possible reduction in available resources to support the child)

Our U.S. Dream Academy after-school mentoring program is committed to helping children of incarcerated parents, along with children living in high-risk communities, to overcome these challenges and propel them to reach their full potential.

Research has shown that youth mentoring programs are highly effective in helping children to cope with trauma and difficult life circumstances, such as parental incarceration.

Benefits of Mentoring for Children of Incarcerated Parents

Below are five ways a mentoring program helps children of incarcerated parents to persevere and grow positively in their development.

1. Mentoring helps a child develop a positive identity

The emotional distress of being separated from a parent due to arrest and incarceration can be traumatizing for any child, and has a greater impact on a child who witnesses his/her parent’s arrest. In many cases, the incarcerated parent was the primary provider, at the time of arrest, and is forced to leave his/her children with a family member or sometimes foster care. As a result of the transition of moving or living in a home without their parents, some children experience uncertainty, anxiety, may develop low self-esteem and negative feelings about themselves, as they transition from one home to another.

Mentoring is a vital key to a child’s future as the mentor serves as an additional support for the child, a consistent relationship and can contribute positively to their development. Through mentor-mentee relationships for youth, a child can rebuild his or her self-esteem and develop a positive mindset.

Mentors help children become aware that other people care about them. Mentors leverage their own life experiences and encourage youth to overcome life circumstances in order to achieve their dreams and become productive members of society.

2. Mentoring Helps To Improve Commitment To Learning

Among the most important ways mentoring helps children is to improve their commitment towards school. The lack of direct parental assistance and minimal educational support are some factors that can often result in reduced academic enthusiasm or emotional distractions among students. Studies show that youth mentoring plays a pivotal role in helping children, with currently or previously incarcerated parents, to focus on school.

It goes without saying that school work is important in preparing children for the future, and our U.S. Dream Academy staff and mentors are committed to helping to prepare students to excel academically. Our U.S. Dream Academy mentors help children develop positive attitudes towards school attendance and reinforce the importance of good academic performance while providing educational assistance as part of our 1-to-1 and group mentoring enrichment activities.

3. Mentoring Helps Promote Positive Values

Children, whose lives have been impacted by parental incarceration, with little opportunity to develop a relationship with their parent, can experience negative emotions. Often, it’s hard for young people to express in words, what they are feeling on the inside; therefore, the expression of their negative feelings may be displayed in ways such as frustration, lack of interest, anger, or even unwillingness to talk to others. By becoming a mentor, you can take part in active guidance of affected children and contribute to their holistic development through a mentor-mentee relationship built on consistency and mutual respect.

The absence of a parent due to incarceration can be very confusing for children, especially for children who have few other stable adults. Children will feel a sense of loss similar to the death of a parent and yet children who have a parent incarcerated, don’t often receive sympathy or concern, rather they often feel a sense of shame and stigma. Having a mentor who understands this and does not judge the child for his/her parents action, creates a safe place where a trusting relationship can develop. Research shows that having at least one caring and supportive adult relationship outside of your family can help improve social and emotional development of a child.

With a committed mentor that makes a personal investment into a child’s life, the youth mentoring relationship helps in the development of positive values such as integrity, respect, honesty, and responsibility for the child. Mentors also help children to consider the outcomes of positive and negative behavior; thus, helping the child to make better decisions that align with their goals.

4. Mentoring improves a child’s social competencies

Children who have experienced early trauma, and have not had the opportunity to heal, from events such as witnessing violence in their community, loss of a parent to incarceration, or the sudden relocation from one home to another may have difficulty with trusting others. They may exhibit social behaviors associated with depression, voluntary isolation, and resistance to conflict resolution because of how they are feeling inside about traumatic or life-shifting events in their lives.

As cited by the National Mentoring Resource Center, positive mentoring relationships that are emotionally engaging through trust, empathy, and mutual sharing of thoughts and feelings produce social and emotional growth in youth. Research shows that some of the outcomes of an engaging mentor-mentee relationship are an improvement in the child’s relationship with their peers, parents, and other adults; improvement in their overall well-being and future success in life.

5. Mentoring provides guidance

It’s a fact of life that every child requires guidance, and making mistakes is part of every child’s development. A very important factor to redirecting at-risk behaviors of a child includes positive behavior encouragement and support from caring adults during the stages of child development. In addition to the child’s parents, other supportive adults 6(i.e. teacher, sports coach, family relative, faith-based leader, or mentor), can have a great influence on a child.

Many children of incarcerated parents feel abandoned; therefore, mentoring helps provide children with a caring adult (who is viewed as a friend) that they can trust and rely on. By doing activities with your mentee, you’ll have many opportunities to have fun, build a friendship bond, and encourage your mentee to feel good about themselves.

Youth benefit from mentoring because mentors can provide concrete assistance and support in:

Helping out with homework and academic projects
Talking through difficult topics or challenges without judgment
Building the child’s self-confidence and self-esteem, and
Exposing the child to new positive experiences.

The end result is that youth who are mentored set new goals and dreams for their lives, feel confident, and set their mind and actions to achieving their goals.

CHANGE A CHILD’S LIFE – BECOME A MENTOR TODAY!

For over 20 years, U.S. Dream Academy has served over 10,000 children living in neighborhoods harmed by high rates of incarceration. While we’ve impacted many lives over the years, there is a still a huge mentoring gap in the U.S. — 1 in 3 children between ages 8 – 18 do not have a mentor.

We are currently looking for 300 men and women to invest 1 hour per week with a child as a mentor at our 8 Dream Learning Centers in Baltimore, Houston, Indianapolis, Orlando, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino and Washington, D.C. – Learn more and sign up to Become a Dream Mentor!

Dream Blog

If Low Ambition Isn’t a Character Flaw, Could It Be a Protective Strategy?

If Low Ambition Isn’t a Character Flaw, Could It Be a Protective Strategy?

What if we stopped asking children what they want to be when they grow up and started teaching them how to dream of a future worth desiring?

FROM MENTORSHIP TO LEADERSHIP

How Mentoring Shapes the Leaders Our Communities Need Tomorrow

Mentored to Lead: How My Village Shaped My Path

The Ripple Effect of Mentoring

2023 MENTOR OF THE YEAR

A Mentor’s Journey

We invite you to join us! Make an impact and become a volunteer mentor in the U.S. Dream Academy!

You will not only make an impact in the lives of young people but on your own life as well.

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CELEBRATING FREEDOM

By C. Diane Wallace Booker, Esq., Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Vice President June 16, 2023

She was buried in Cross Creek Cemetery , a historically segregated cemetery where many former enslaved people were buried. Efforts have been made to preserve this cemetery and research done to identify the names of all the unmarked graves which is how we discovered where Maria was buried.

Ways to celebrate Juneteenth

1. Many cities now host Juneteenth celebrations - grab your family and friends to join one of these celebrations and connect with your community.

2. Take a virtual visit The Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture to learn more about Juneteenth' s history, celebrations, foods and resilience - start the virtual tour here .

3. Listen to the " Sounds Good " podcast feature of Professor Annette Gordon-Reed, an American historian and Harvard professor, where she shared why she wrote the book "On Juneteenth".

4. Learn about Emancipation Park in Houston, Texas where the community of formerly enslaved men and woman began celebrating Juneteenth in 1872. It is a fascinating and rich history of a community determined to celebrate and commemorate their freedom.

5. Watch a movie or series that showcases Black joy and culture in a positive light.

Recommendation: High on the Hog: How American Cuisine Transformed America . A Netflix docuseries where Chef and writer Stephen Satterfiled traces the delicious, moving throughlines from Africa to Texas.

6. Volunteer for a local organization that supports Black communities. Use this day to give back. We invite you to learn more about becoming a volunteer mentor for the U.S. Dream Academy.

Juneteenth is the perfect opportunity to make a meaningful difference and help a child reach their full potential.

RETHINKING RESILIENCE

Every once in a while a project comes along that causes me to rethink what I think I know.

Recently that project came in the form of a visual podcast Larron Tate and I produced in collaboration with six young people who experienced a range of childhood challenges from having a parent incarcerated to living in a homeless shelter to spending time at Rikers Island as a teenager.

If Only You Knew Co-Hosts Elias Hernandez and Zenaya Roaché with Episode 4 guest Amari McDuffie

Watching these young people formulate their stories while forging a path was painful for me as I longed for these young people to have had a childhood that was filled with safety, security and no adult worries.

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At what point will we as adults be more resilient about facing and fixing our own brokenness that often causes those in power to prize money over safety, power over equal access and comfort over humanity.

The inaugural podcast of If Only You Knew with guest Kenny Clark, NFL player with the Green Bay Packers.

We ask a lot of our children and young adults to fumble around and figure out adult problems on their own; and when they can’t we label them as “drop-outs,” “thugs,” "hopeless," "addicts" and some adults even end up fearing these same children who have so much to be afraid of themselves.

Young peoples’ resilience should be recognized and celebrated but we cannot stop there--we cannot continue to hold the unre alistic expectation that children must be the ones to figure it out because many of them do not and quite frankly should not have to--when we as adults can.

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Meet our host and storytellers:

JUNETEENTH: A CELEBRATION OF FREEDOM

Celebrating & Sharing Juneteenth History

Celebrating & Sharing Juneteenth History

JUNETEENTH 2020: CELEBRATION & ACTIVISM

JUNETEENTH 2020: 5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

RACIAL INJUSTICE: WHAT ABOUT THE KIDS?

Things Youth Experience & Witness: Racial Injustice, Trauma & Violence

Preparing Mentors for Racial Injustice Discussion with Youth

Meaningful Response from Our Board

Steps You Can Take NOW To Eliminate Racial Injustice

14 Books on Race & Anti-Racism for Young Readers & Youth

Talking About Race

Take A Stand Against Racism

WHEN “A YEAR OF FIRSTS” INCLUDES A PANDEMIC!

Please leave a comment below of a suggestion of how graduates can be celebrated in your community.

STRENGTHENING SOCIAL CONNECTIONS THROUGH COVID-19 SOCIAL DISTANCING

YOUTH DEVELOPMENT: CULTIVATING GROWTH MINDSETS IN TEENS

What is a Growth Mindset?

Mentors Can Help Teens Develop A Growth Mindset

Cultivating Growth Mindsets in U.S. Dream Academy DreamKids

Help Transform a Child’s Mindset & Ignite Their Dreams – BECOME A MENTOR

CHANGE A CHILD’S LIFE: 7 REASONS TO BECOME A MENTOR

Benefits Of Mentoring To The Mentor

1. Giving Back Makes You Feel Good

2. Strengthen Your Beliefs & Values

3. Increase Your Leadership Skills

4. Broaden Your Understanding

Benefits To The Mentee

1. Youth Express Themselves Without Judgement

2. Opportunity To Gain New Perspectives

3. Build Dreams In Youth

DREAM MENTORS FOR YOUTH ARE NEEDED

2019 MENTOR OF THE YEAR: LAUREN HARRIS

U.S. Dream Academy & Southwest Airlines Present Lauren Harris with the 2019 Mentor of the Year Award at the 18th Annual Power of A Dream Gala

MAKE A POSITIVE IMPACT IN A CHILD’S LIFE – BECOME A MENTOR TODAY!

LIFE LESSONS: RETIREES ARE VALUABLE MENTORS FOR YOUTH

Why Should Retirees Mentor Youth?

What Skills Do Retirees Bring To Mentoring Groups?

Commitment To Learning

INVEST YOUR TIME TODAY IN A CHILD’S FUTURE- BECOME A MENTOR TODAY!

5 WAYS MENTORING HELPS CHILDREN OF INCARCERATED PARENTS

Benefits of Mentoring for Children of Incarcerated Parents

1. Mentoring helps a child develop a positive identity

If Low Ambition Isn’t a Character Flaw,
Could It Be a Protective Strategy?

By C. Diane Wallace Booker, Esq., Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Vice President
June 16, 2023