What a Difference a Year Makes...

"Access in Action" attendees On Saturday, April 28, 2012 we held our Spring Scholar/Sponsor In-service Training at the University of the District of Columbia Community College.  It was an awesome morning of learning for the group.  The topics included academic planning and crisis management.  You can check out the photos here.

One year age to the day Generation Hope held its kick-off event "Access in Action" in that very location.  This year though, we were followed around by NBC Nightly News cameras for our feature on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams.

I can't tell you how it felt to know that just 12 months before we were in that room talking about our plans for impacting the community by helping more teen parents earn their college degrees.  We hadn't even recruited our first Scholar yet and hadn't received our first grant.  We had no idea that in one year, we would not only be training our Scholars, but we'd also be featured on national television for our innovative program.

Scholars and their children eating breakfast before the training Yep, we get chills when we think about it. 

Thanks for believing in us and for all of your support.

- Nicole

We HEART Our Volunteers!

Child Care Volunteer Jonquilyn reads to Scholars' children during the November Scholar/Sponsor In-service TrainingGiving of your time and talents is no easy task – no matter how worthy the cause.  When I step back and look at the many individuals who volunteer with Generation Hope, I realize that we rely so heavily on their diverse contributions in order to carry out our mission each day.  Whether you are one of our dedicated board members, who have been with us from the very start (when we were just a business plan on paper!), or a Snack Crew volunteer who drops off a box of delicious snacks for our Scholars’ children to enjoy during a training.  Maybe you’re one of the seven Sponsors who mentors our Scholars and keeps them on track to a college degree.   We also have our committee members who meet on a regular basis to ensure that we are financially sound, executing an awesome gala, and spreading the word about our work in the community.  No matter how you volunteer with us, each of you makes this machine work.  We would not be able to help young parents achieve their goal of a college degree if it weren’t for our volunteers.

In honor of Volunteer Appreciation Week, we’ve been posting photos of our volunteers in action on our Facebook page.   We want to send a huge message of appreciation to each and every one of you.   You are special members of the Generation Hope family!

Tonight we’ll host our Volunteer Appreciation Happy Hour at Busboys and Poets.  Photos coming soon!

- Nicole

Meet Our New Intern, Adja!

Program Intern, Adja KremeWe'd like to welcome our spring 2012 Program Intern, Adja Kreme.  Adja will be helping with Scholar recruitment, the Hope Conference, and other Scholar Program needs.  We're very excited to have her on our team, and we love her accent (she speaks French!). 

My name is Adja Kreme.   I am from the Ivory Coast, west part of Africa. French is my first language. After I graduated from high school I came to the U.S. to complete my bachelor’s degree. At first, I did not know what I should major in and after I talked to the dean of Industrial technology, I decided to pursue a bachelor degree in Telecommunication Management.  I attended the University of Nebraska at Kearney, which is a really small and quiet town. I stayed there for 4 and 1/2 years while I was attending college.  In the meantime, I had the opportunity to visit D.C. during the summer and other breaks.  My Brother has been living in Maryland for at least 6 years and once I graduated my mom suggested that I move here with him.  After my graduation, I started applying for different internship and positions, and I came across this program internship with Generation Hope.  I figured why not try something new and see how I like it?  Also, my last semester in college, I took a social work class, and I found it pretty interesting.  Now, I’m planning on doing two masters, one in social work and probably one in Management Information Systems (but I am still not sure).

I like to spend time my brother (actually he is my only close family here since my little sister lives in France, and my mom, dad, and older sister live back in Ivory coast).  I also spend time with my friends just hanging out or going to the movie or travelling.  I also like reading, but it has been a while so I am still working on that.

Did You Hear? We Moved!

Kendria, our Director of Operations & Programming, working away in our new space!We sent out an email (are you on our email list?  If not, click here so you can join!), mailed a flier (again, join our list!), sent some tweets (follow us!  www.twitter.com/supportgenhope), and posted it on Facebook (you get the picture - www.facebook.com/supportgenerationhope).  We thought one more announcement via our blog should do the trick!

We have a new office!  Our new address is:

1201 15th St. NW
Suite 420
Washington, D.C.  20005

Please update your records!

- The GH Family

Wrapping Up Women's History Month: What it Means to be a Woman Making History

March was Women’s History Month, and as we’ve celebrated the lives of phenomenal women such as Ida B. Wells, Eleanor Roosevelt and, Michelle Obama; we’re reflecting on what it means to be a woman making history.

In 2012, looking back on all of the things that women have accomplished is awesome.  Historically, women have often been treated and seen as second-class citizens in the political, professional, and educational world. The expectation of a woman, to some, was -- and still is in some places -- to simply take care of the family and tend to household duties.  Fortunately, phenomenal women decided that they could do all of this and more.

To be a woman who impacts the lives of her family and the lives of those who will come after her is noGuest blogger Jasmine Fields -- a trailblazer at Howard University easy task.  It requires many sleepless nights, a few tears, and a ton of patience.  However, the motivational saying that “anything worth having is worth fighting for” holds true. Imagine the feeling of accomplishment for Amelia Earhart, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean; the feeling of joy for Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female Supreme Court Justice; and the feeling of excitement for Elizabeth Blackwell, the first female physician. 

Generation Hope strives to impact the lives of young women who hold the potential to make history of their own. The month of March is not just another reminder of the heights that women have reached; it is a projection for the numerous triumphs women can look forward to.

Happy Women’s History Month From our Generation Hope family to yours.

-- Jasmine