Volunteers deliver CHOICES workshops to 8th graders parish-wide
Every school day 7,000 students become dropouts nationwide. The Hammond Chamber of Commerce, along with 13 other local businesses and organizations, wants to help with this crisis within its own community. With the help of eager volunteers, the chamber and its sponsors deliver CHOICES, an interactive decision-making workshop that empowers teens to achieve academic success in pursuit of their career and life aspirations, to local 8th graders through volunteer presenters from the business community.
WHAT: In two hour-long sessions, business and community volunteers take students through real-world exercises on academic self-discipline, time and money management and goal setting.
WHERE: Every junior high school in Tangipahoa Parish
WHO: The Hammond Chamber of Commerce, Hammond Rotary, Ponchatoula Rotary, Emery & James, JC Penney, Leaders Impacting Tomorrow’s Tangipahoa, North Oaks OB-GYN, Moody & Moody, Stirling Properties, Cassie Ragan, Amite Chamber of Commerce, Crime Stoppers of Tangipahoa, UPS, Life Care Medical and Sandler Training.
WHEN: The month of September and October, every junior high in Tangipahoa Parish
Specific Goals:
· Prevent at-risk teens from dropping out of school.
· Increase engagement of teens in their education and future.
· Empower teens with skills in time-management, money-management and goal setting.
· Build sustainable local business, education and community partnerships with CHOICES.
“We are thrilled that the cities within Tangipahoa Parish are able to deliver CHOICES to the junior high students in their communities,” said Leo Muller, Executive Director of the national not-for-profit. “CHOICES helps kids at a crucial point in their lives, when they are old enough to think realistically about their future but are young enough to still do something about it.”
Through their social enterprise business model, the CHOICES Education Group licenses CHOICES to businesses, chambers of commerce and service clubs for an annual program fee based on the number of students served, and then provides the training, materials and support needed to implement and manage the program in local communities. CHOICES is a powerful tool for building and sustaining effective business-education partnerships in local communities. Volunteers from the business community facilitate the program, bringing their real-life experiences right into the classroom and serving as positive adult role models for the students. Other partners include major corporations such as Bank of America, Kinder Morgan, Motiva Enterprises, Russell Investment Group and UPS, as well as hundreds of chambers of commerce, service clubs and other community organizations.
The Hammond Chamber collected $5,400 in local donations and received a $2,900 grant from UPS to help get this program to our youth. The program is also supported by the Tangipahoa School Superintendent Mark Kolwe and the Tangipahoa Parish School Board.
"On behalf of the Hammond Chamber, I would like to thank all the sponsors that made this program possible,” said Charlotte Banks, Executive Director of the Hammond Chamber of Commerce. “ The Hammond Rotary, Ponchatoula Rotary, Emery & James, JC Penney, Leaders Impacting Tomorrow’s Tangipahoa, North Oaks OB-GYN, Moody & Moody, Stirling Properties, Cassie Ragan, Amite Chamber, Crime Stoppers of Tangipahoa, UPS, Life Care Medical and Sandler Training have all demonstrated their dedication to the future of our communities by supporting this initiative. This workshop changes the way students think about their education and for some it makes the difference between dropping out and staying in school." said Hammond Chamber's Executive Director Charlotte Banks. ”
After going through the classes this month, many students recognized that they have a choice and making the choice to drop out of school is detrimental to their future. CHOICES makes an impact on a student’s future. For more information on how to become involved with CHOICES in Tangipahoa Parish, call the Hammond Chamber of Commerce at 985-345-4457. The Hammond Chamber of Commerce does make a difference in Tangipahoa Parish through business, community and education.
About The CHOICES Education Group
The CHOICES Education Group is an independent 501c (3) nonprofit social enterprise started in 1985 with initial funding from Pacific Northwest Bell (now Qwest Communications). CHOICES has been delivered to more than 6 million students since 1985.The CHOICES workshop is currently being delivered to 200,000 students per year in 47 states in the U.S., three provinces in Canada and two sites in Australia. More information about CHOICES is available at www.choices.org or by calling 1-888-CHOICES (1-888-246-4237).
Mission: To empower students with vital tools that will increase their career and life opportunities.