Program Participant,
True Star Program
With an ever-burgeoning set of opportunities, it’s no wonder most young adults and teenagers continue to face the inevitable question, “What do I want to be?”
The True Star Foundation makes the answer more accessible with its array of after-school programs and mentoring assistance. One of 26 teenagers from the Harlan Community Academy, Markia Wilkerson is a participant in True Star magazine’s event planning team. “[Not] everyone who wanted to join [was] selected,” says 15-year-old Markia of her participation in the program. “I signed up, interviewed and was chosen. I learned so much and we planned this event from beginning to end.”
The event Markia is speaking of is the program’s first career forum, which the students planned themselves. They had much to be proud of.
On an icy Saturday morning, the team successfully presented “Careers on Deck: Sessions for Your Professions” at Truman College. Some 300 students representing 20 Chicago Public Schools eagerly dispersed into breakout sessions to talk to various professionals in several fields, including finance, law enforcement, fashion, entrepreneurship and business.
While students are compensated monetarily for their involvement, Markia is adamant that the compensation isn’t the greatest reward. “The benefit is for some kids to avoid getting mixed up in a lot of bad stuff,” says the ninth grader. “This is positive and takes most of their time, so they don’t do anything bad. It helps them a lot.” –tbinns
