Khadeen Ellis & Krystal Lee Speak On Faith, Family & Life At Champagne Conversations Presented By St. Jude Source: LaSondra Spears / LaSondra Spears Lifestyle Influencer Khadeen Ellis and Radio One personality of the Willie Moore, Jr. Show, Krystal Lee teamed up with St. Jude to host Champagne Conversations during the Summit 21 weekend. The intimate mixer featured candid and transparent conversations around faith, family and wellness. Krystal Lee Source: LaSondra Spears / LaSondra Spears Visual Artist and Fashion Designer, Kris Keys showcased original art and design pieces from her newly launched ‘Hematology Collection’. Inspired by her relentless fight with Sickle Cell, Keys’ who is also a former St. Jude patient, shared her survivor story and how she transformed her experience living with a blood disorder into a literal work of art. Source: LaSondra Spears / LaSondra Spears Attendees enjoyed an evening of mingling, small bites, complimentary cocktails and an electric ambiance of black girl magic throughout the night. See more pics by hitting the flip!
Atlanta based non-profit, Future Foundation, held their 3rd Annual “Keep It 100%” Luncheon on Wednesday, March 21, 2018 at The Gathering Spot in Atlanta. The luncheon brought out a cross sector of supporters from the corporate, non-profit, community/civic leaders, and athletes. Attendees included former NBA player Theo Ratliff, Atlanta City Councilman Andre Dickens, hip-hop artist and Magic 107.5 radio personality Chubb Rock, former Georgia State Senator Jason Carter (grandson to US President Jimmy Carter), Dr. Duke Bradley III (principal, Banneker High School) and more. The “Keep It 100%” Luncheon” is the Future Foundation’s signature annual fundraising event supporting its year-round programming serving Atlanta Metro youth and their families. “Keep It 100%” celebrates Atlanta’s philanthropic investors in education who are nurturing students academically, economically, and socially molding them into “Future Heroes.” This year, the Jean Childs Young Individual Leadership in Education Award was presented to Rodney Bullard, Chick-fil-A Inc’s Vice President of Community Affairs, & Executive Director of Chick-fil-A Foundation. SunTrust Bank was honored with the Ann Cramer Corporate Leadership in Education Award. The event was hosted by Silas “SiMan Baby” Alexander, afternoon co-host of MAJIC 107.5/97.5FM’s “The RIDE with Chubb Rock and SiMan Baby” and opened with an invocation by Dr. Gregory Ellison II, Associate Professor of Pastoral Care and Counseling at Candler School of Theology at Emory University. The luncheon showcased talented youth performers such as the inspirational R&B quintet, Route 5 and spoken word artist, Alyssa Gant. Speakers included Shareef Abdur-Rahim, founder of Future Foundation, who shared his personal reasons for launching the non-profit and CEO, Qaadirah Abdur-Rahim (his sister) who took his vision and made it a reality. “The Future Foundation started as a glimmer of an idea that, maybe, we could give something back to the communities that needed it most,” shares Shareef Abdur-Rahim. “Soon this idea became a commitment and we started to see our vision as a real possibility. I’m proud to share that since 2007, Future Foundation of Atlanta has been graduating 100% of our students in the East Point and College Park areas of Atlanta, where low graduation rates are standard.” For more info, visit Future-foundation.com and hit the flip for more photos! Continue reading →
In 2015, Roses in Concrete Community School opened in East Oakland, California. With a name inspired by a book of poetry written by Tupac Shakur , the school aims to create a model for urban education that prioritizes the needs of youth and families in the community it serves. It’s founder, Dr. Jeff Duncan-Andrade , believes education is the way to help young people understand that they can transform not only their community, but the world. By creating the conditions for our youngest change-makers to flourish, this education model can be a pathway to building healthy and sustainable communities across the U.S. In the school’s first year, Google.org provided $750,000 to help launch its unique vision. And last Friday at Google’s San Francisco community space , teachers, students, artists, education advocates, Googlers and Oakland-native actress Zendaya celebrated the announcement of our additional $650,000 grant to help the school build a first-of-its-kind computer science (CS) curriculum , which will serve as a model for other schools across the U.S. The curriculum will be culturally and community relevant, building on Duncan-Andrade’s philosophy that education shouldn’t push students out of communities, but should instead help students transform them. Research shows that Black and Latino students are interested in learning CS , but are underrepresented in the field due to limited access to learning opportunities, coupled with the lack of relatable role models. Through this new program, Roses in Concrete helps students see the connection between CS and their communities, and hopes to equip them with the skills they need to solve real problems, starting in their own neighborhood. “The purpose of education is not to escape poverty, but to end it.” – Dr. Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Founder of Roses in Concrete Community School During the evening’s events, Roses students shared dance, art, and poetry performances for the crowd, which included Zendaya, an avid supporter of the school. Growing up in Oakland as the daughter of two teachers, she has fond memories of spending time in the same classrooms that now make up the Roses in Concrete campus , and credits pretending to grade papers as some of her earliest acting experience. During a student-led interview, Zendaya shared her appreciation for organizations like this progressive community school that are thoughtfully closing equity divides in her hometown. She encouraged the students to “Always lead with your heart and chase the happiness that fuels you,” and reminded them that technology is one possible medium for them to express themselves and make a positive difference. As a lab school, Roses in Concrete will share this new curriculum with national school leaders, policy makers and researchers. And alongside Roses, we can identify more ways to provide meaningful CS experiences to students of color, and by doing so, provide pathways for them to grow, thrive, and create change—in their own communities, and around the world. Hit the flip for more photos!
In 2015, Roses in Concrete Community School opened in East Oakland, California. With a name inspired by a book of poetry written by Tupac Shakur , the school aims to create a model for urban education that prioritizes the needs of youth and families in the community it serves. It’s founder, Dr. Jeff Duncan-Andrade , believes education is the way to help young people understand that they can transform not only their community, but the world. By creating the conditions for our youngest change-makers to flourish, this education model can be a pathway to building healthy and sustainable communities across the U.S. In the school’s first year, Google.org provided $750,000 to help launch its unique vision. And last Friday at Google’s San Francisco community space , teachers, students, artists, education advocates, Googlers and Oakland-native actress Zendaya celebrated the announcement of our additional $650,000 grant to help the school build a first-of-its-kind computer science (CS) curriculum , which will serve as a model for other schools across the U.S. The curriculum will be culturally and community relevant, building on Duncan-Andrade’s philosophy that education shouldn’t push students out of communities, but should instead help students transform them. Research shows that Black and Latino students are interested in learning CS , but are underrepresented in the field due to limited access to learning opportunities, coupled with the lack of relatable role models. Through this new program, Roses in Concrete helps students see the connection between CS and their communities, and hopes to equip them with the skills they need to solve real problems, starting in their own neighborhood. “The purpose of education is not to escape poverty, but to end it.” – Dr. Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Founder of Roses in Concrete Community School During the evening’s events, Roses students shared dance, art, and poetry performances for the crowd, which included Zendaya, an avid supporter of the school. Growing up in Oakland as the daughter of two teachers, she has fond memories of spending time in the same classrooms that now make up the Roses in Concrete campus , and credits pretending to grade papers as some of her earliest acting experience. During a student-led interview, Zendaya shared her appreciation for organizations like this progressive community school that are thoughtfully closing equity divides in her hometown. She encouraged the students to “Always lead with your heart and chase the happiness that fuels you,” and reminded them that technology is one possible medium for them to express themselves and make a positive difference. As a lab school, Roses in Concrete will share this new curriculum with national school leaders, policy makers and researchers. And alongside Roses, we can identify more ways to provide meaningful CS experiences to students of color, and by doing so, provide pathways for them to grow, thrive, and create change—in their own communities, and around the world. Hit the flip for more photos!
