Achie Hare-McEachern and Shatavia Amey are innovators and have a heart for kids. The camp directors for Young Masterminds of Atlanta (YMA), an out-of-the-box summer enrichment program that stimulates the minds of youth, bringing forth their innate and imaginative capabilities, Hare-McEachern and Amey are examples of today’s education reformers.
Here, they share why the program was developed, express its level of impact and how it will shape your child’s future.
Why did you feel compelled to develop this program?
Amey: The need is so great. YMA explores innovative abilities, caters to the creativity of entrepreneurship and establishes a foundation for financial literacy. By instilling core principles of entrepreneurship at an early age, it shapes their minds and prepares them for independence.
Hare-McEachern: Each generation is expected to surpass the previous generation. The advancements in technology, social media and television effect work ethic, communication skills, and personal values. Many children feel they [need to emulate] personalities [in pop culture] in order to fit in. Sadly, they lose their true essence and don’t grasp their value to society. YMA provides a fun, creative, stimulating and structured environment that allows children to be challenged, display their true brilliance and imaginative capabilities. We’ve found that with [intuitive] activities, conflicts and disciplinary issues are significantly minimized.
What benefits do you hope kids reap at the end of the program?
Amey: A tangible dream [to be realized] with a defined strategy, confidence, boldness and self-worth.
Hare-McEachern: Realize that they were born on purpose for a purpose — so now is the time to begin to shape their futures. Respect for themselves and the people around them — adults and peers. Although money doesn’t grow on trees, it’s produced by them; with that in mind, everyone has the fair chance of becoming successful, no matter their background or family history. Learn the real meaning and purpose of working hard, earning, saving and spending honest money.
How does your curriculum address bullying?
Amey: Bullying has become a super sensitive topic within the school systems. During the first week of each program, masterminds are made aware of the signs and characteristics of bullying and the danger. There are several discussions, role-play scenarios and activities.
Hare-McEachern: We conduct evaluations, visit classrooms and observe the behavior and relationships between students. We also randomly select students to have one-on-one conversations to see how things are going and if they are noticing or experiencing any unusual or uncomfortable situations. The masterminds know that we are genuinely concerned and dedicated to a safe, carefree environment, so they are extremely open and forthcoming. If there’s a problem, we have personal as well as group discussions. We are careful not to expose specific situations but we keep an open forum. We found that this helps them identify, confront and correct root issues. And we always keep the parents informed.
