MAYOR’S YOUTH PROGRAM MARKS A MILESTONE WITH THE GRADUATION OF ITS INAUGURAL CLASS

Alumnus Desmond Delk and Mayor Shirley Franklin at reception

ATLANTA, August 31, 2009 - As Mayor Shirley Franklin prepares to leave office this year, she’ll leave a legacy as the first female mayor of Atlanta, who created and empowered local residents and students in education through the establishment of her Mayor’s Youth Program (MYP). The Mayor’s Youth Program marked a milestone on Thursday August 27, 2009 as Mayor Franklin and her staff honored the 2005 inaugural class on their recent college graduations, and celebrated the successes of the four year program.

Since its inception in 2005, the MYP has provided financial assistance to over 2,500 Atlanta Public School seniors pursuing their dreams of postsecondary education. To culminate this success a networking event was held at Hyatt Regency Hotel in Atlanta, GA; saluting students and sponsors who’ve fulfilled their commitment to education in order to make Atlanta a more competitive, viable city.

Shatoya Hinkle a 2005 graduate of Southside High School (recently renamed Maynard Jackson High School) attended the event. Hinkle was the first in her family out of ten siblings to graduate from high school. “My youngest sister is the last one left in high school, the others have either dropped out when they were old enough, or could not pass a part of the exit exam. It seemed that education was never a priority for my siblings, but I was determined to further my studies.”

As she was exiting Southside High School (Maynard Jackson High School), Mayor Franklin was also mobilizing a team that would develop an individualized plan for Atlanta Public School seniors to enroll in post-secondary colleges, universities, technical schools, the military, or gain employment. While in the program students are connected to opportunities designed to enhance their ability to set goals for post-secondary success through workforce readiness training, summer internships, mentoring, and financial assistance. Hinkle would be a beneficiary of this program and attain a bachelor’s degree in Biology from Talladega College. Hinkle has decided to compliment this degree by pursing an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) certification in hopes of becoming a paramedic.

Kwanza Fisher, on right, proposed, planned, and implemented the idea of an alumni networking event and created the MYP Facebook group page

The networking event that was held on Thursday was proposed by Kwanza Fisher, a 2005 APS graduate and an alumna of the MYP. As a member and strong proponent of MYP, Fisher presented the idea of an MYP alumni network initiative to both Mayor Franklin and the Atlanta Workforce Development Agency board. When given the go-ahead, she volunteered a great deal of her time this summer to lead the fundraising effort and assume the managerial tasks of planning the event. Moreover, the event-planning experience has allowed her to learn a great deal; She says, “I have picked up several skills from this and have a renewed appreciation for the time and effort Mayor Franklin and the City of Atlanta dedicate to fundraise and support such a strong initiative.”

Fisher also set up a Facebook group page called the “Mayor’s Youth Program of Atlanta” that has over 200 members. Fisher, Hinkle, and other alumni of the MYP had an opportunity to personally thank the mayor and various sponsors who have invested their time and financial support for them to achieve their dreams. Fisher, a graduate of Wellesley College, received her Bachelor’s of Arts in East Asian Studies with a concentration in China and is now preparing to embark on a language-fellowship at Beijing Language and Culture University. She has plans to pursue a career in international law and entrepreneurship.

The program has transformed her life and she hopes the next mayor-elect continues the MYP legacy that Mayor Franklin launched, as she stated; “The Mayor's Youth Program is a program that has really done a lot on paper as well as in the personal lives of students. The financial demands of college can be great; assistance from the program alleviates some of the anxiety and allows students to focus more on working hard in the academic and professional programs of their choice. I hope this program continues with the next Mayor, and I hope this event will convey just how helpful the MYP has been.”