Extended Family’s program for high school students, Extended Leadership Academy, has the motto “Lead Yourself.” This motto was chosen by students in ELA and perfectly encapsulates the overall goal we have to empower students in the areas of health, job readiness and interviewing skills, and communication. By developing skills in these three key areas, students gain the confidence they need to set and achieve goals for their futures and to be successful in various personal relationships and in their communities.
Our most popular element of ELA is surveying the student participants about the qualities of their dream jobs, and then bringing in people from their community who have achieved success in their field of interest. Our volunteer speakers share the challenges they faced in achieving their goals and teach Our Kids some of the life lessons they learned along the way. Equally importantly, students make valuable contacts in their chosen field with community leaders who could one day serve as a reference or could even hire them. We have had students receive job offers from the contacts they make through ELA guest presenters, and one young aspiring writer has even been published in a local newspaper as a regular columnist through her contact with an ELA speaker.
Another way ELA supports students beyond high school is with our annual shopping trip. Senior students are invited to accompany Extended Family staff and volunteers to a department store to purchase business attire suitable for an interview. Funds are provided for the students to purchase outfits, shoes, and accessories like ties and belts. Having the right clothes helps to boost the confidence levels of Our Kids as they pursue their dream jobs.
ELA lessons also teach students to fill out applications for jobs, colleges, and scholarships. We lead them through the process of filling out different types of applications, helping them collect the information to complete each one, including how to get letters of recommendation and remembering to send a thank you note. We use our own Extended Family Scholarship application as a teaching tool, and seniors who complete it are automatically considered for our scholarship which can be used for a college, junior college, or technical program of their choice.
For more information about Extended Leadership Academy or other Extended Family programs, please visit our website, www.extendedfamilyhelp.org. ELA is one way we are working to fulfill our mission, “To offer help and inspire hope,” one child at a time.