Do you know anyone who would thrive with Eastpointe High School’s RISE UP program?
Do you know any student who is underserved or at risk, who would benefit from our RISE UP program? Please reach out to our staff here at Eastpoint High School to learn more. Please call 602-562-0335 or contact on of our locations!
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Welcome to our August Newsletter!
July was a very busy and eventful month for RISE UP. Our students participated in our “Learning To Live” summer program which saw several guest speakers visit our campus and two field trips! Our students gained extremely valuable knowledge on several different career paths and strategies to build generational wealth.
We would like to give a special thanks to our guest speakers:
- Jon Dekkers – American Discount Foods; Featured in Forbes Magazine
- Kortney Greene – College Counselor
- Mike Lenderink – Vice President Morgan Stanley
- Andre LeFleur – Morgan Stanley Investment Advisor
- Oliver Miller – Former Phoenix Suns Player
- Coach Carl Hargrave – Former Arizona Cardinals and Minnesota Vikings Coach
- Herbert Washington – Phoenix Boys Choir Director, Music Producer
- Jedidiah Grissum – Desert Financial
- Deb Cross – Future Business Leaders of America
- Aaron Grissum, Peter Griffen, Jerome Daniels, Classic Air Aviation staff
- Branton Grissum – CRIT Public Defender’s Office
RISE UP Phoenix Updates!
South Phoenix would like to welcome our new enrollments for July: Samieal N., Ashlii B., Chez’Jaya S., Azariah B., Robert M., Joel T., Kimony W.!
RISE UP Mesa Updates!
July was busy and exciting for our team. We were privileged to receive training from Year Up and Young Writer’s Foundation on ways to better connect with youth, and Dr. Nicholas DelSordi from Phoenix College on AZ Career Readiness Certification.
We toured the new and phenomenal Solid Rock Youth Center right here in the neighborhood on Country Club Drive and are thrilled to get our kids involved with their free art, dance, and music classes!
Our 2-week summer program was lots of fun. A huge “thank you” to our friendly neighbors at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church who partnered with us to provide breakfast and lunch items for the attendees! Thanks to the entire RISE UP team and guest presenters who facilitated games, workshops, field trips and career exploration activities. The kids completed job interest inventories, personality and self-assessments, goals worksheets, and placement tests for AZ Career Readiness Certification. They also completed an exciting mini Graphic Design course where they created websites, resumes, and logos for their entrepreneurial business ventures. Thank you Mr. Strickland!
We wouldn’t be able to have special programs for our students like our summer program without the coordinator of the summer program Danyele Grissum. thank you Ms. G for all you do!
RISE UP Downtown Tucson Updates!
July has been a very productive month for our program. We have developed a partnership with DreamBuilders of Arizona Behavioral Health Center. We have had the opportunity to engage 3 of their young people in our program and they are thriving.
I would like to say a big thank you to Stephanie J and Kisha Spellman. These ladies are amazing and care deeply for the students in their program.
We also had the opportunity to partner with Arizona Youth Partnership (AZYP). I met with Lina who oversees the teen pregnancy program called “Starting out Right”. Lina was very excited about the opportunity to present Rise up to her clients. They have been looking for a program like this. We also had the opportunity to meet with Alexandra.
Phoenix:
Congratulations to our students at south Phoenix that completed our two week learning to live summer program!
Congratulations to Jade G., Aiden G., Taniya G., Ariana R., A’naiyah D., Jacorey J., and Deon M. for completing classes this month!
Mesa:
Congratulations to the following students for completing a class in July!
- Jamie M.
- Griselda S.
- Davonte L.
- A’naiyah D.
- Ramiro P.
We would also like to congratulate all of our Outstanding Students of the Week!
- Week 1 – Jamie M.
- Week 2 – Lucille G.
- Week 3 – Jamie M.
- Week 4 – Davontae L.
Downtown Tucson:
Congratulations to all of our students who completed courses in the month of July!
- Noah B.
- Irie F.
- Hazel A.
- Sergio L.
- Francisco B.
Student of the Month!
Phoenix:
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RISE UP Phoenix is recognizing TWO outstanding students for this month! South Phoenix would like to recognize Aiden G., and Andrea P. as the student of the month!
Mesa:
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RISE UP Mesa would like to recognize Jamie M. as our July student of the month! Jamie is a self-motivated student who has worked hard during the month of July. We know it’s difficult to stay on track during the summer but Jamie has completed a classes and completed 290 activities! Congratulations Jamie M.!
Downtown Tucson:
- Gustavo L. has only been enrolled since Jul 15, 2021 but he has completed 1 of 4 classes and is close to completing 2 more of his 4 classes. His progress is far ahead of schedule! Great job Gustavo.
Congratulations to our students of the month!
Looking Forward…
Phoenix:
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We are looking forward in the future to touring a fire station and learning more about career paths with the fire department. More information on the date and time coming soon!
Mesa:
- RISE UP is excited to have partnered with Opportunities for Youth, a cross-sector collaboration of over 90 agencies in the Phoenix valley to provide additional resources and opportunities to our youth.
- We are excitedly planning toward a Youth Town Hall event this Fall where we will engage the youth in productive conversations in order to find out the topics and issues that are of most concern to them and the change they consider most necessary in their communities. We are working in partnership with Arizona Town Hall to provide training for the youth in September so they will be ready to impact real change. Please stay tuned!
Downtown Tucson:
- We are working toward developing a basketball team and joining a league at the YMCA beginning in October.
- Also beginning in October, we will begin healthy relationships classes once per week for 10 weeks. The classes will be administered by Alexandra H. with AZYP.
Until Next Time!….
