Level All’s Post

Yesterday, Grand Valley State University TRIO Upward Bound Detroit hosted our 2nd Annual Academic Year Celebration at Junior Achievement of Southeastern Michigan in downtown Detroit for all of our TRIO Upward Bound Detroit Scholars. During this celebration, our Scholars were acknowledged for all of their outstanding work academically, socially and culturally, and for their participation in leadership experiences throughout the academic school year. The celebration also congratulated our Class of 2024 Scholars, and we were able to present our seniors with National TRIO Alumni Association (Official) stoles for their upcoming high school graduation. We were honored to have Mary Sheffield, President of Detroit City Council serve as our keynote speaker. Her words of inspiration and encouragement to our Scholars to push toward their purpose truly resonated with everyone in the room. Another honor included Deborah Marshall, who shared her musical gift in song with our families for the celebration. We also made sure to recognize many of our community partners who joined us for the celebration, so we could thank them publicly for their partnership throughout the year. Huge shout out to the following organizations for their partnerships and sponsorships during the academic year: Junior Achievement of Southeastern Michigan, The Skillman Foundation, The Konnection, @Ally Financial, Detroit College Access Network, University Prep Schools (Detroit), The Detroit Promise, Detroit Pistons, Michigan Department of Education, YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit, The Lawn Academy, Youth Development Resource Center - Detroit, Grand Valley State University, Level All, The Parade Company, Know Your Rights Camp, and Buddy's Pizza in Detroit. I also want to shout out our Program Coordinator, Mikal O'Neal, MPH for assisting me with the planning of making our celebratory day a huge success. Other special individuals to mention for recognition include: my fiance' Sharnese Marshall, MSA, Katie Zvonek, Xavier Jackson, Anton Horton, M.Ed, Derrick Kellam, John Johnson, Dr. Nykia Gaines, Dr. B. Donta Truss, Janelle Warner, Bailey Altman, Eric McCloud, Ed.D., Cyekeia Lee, MA, Ashley Terry, Ed.D., Christine Rogers, Kay Jones, MA, LLPC, CBC, Marcell Copeland, Brittany DeSouza-Williams, Aisha Cunningham, and Hannah Francisco, M.A., SCL, LLPC. Look out for a forthcoming video recap, and we are once again honored to have the engagement of our students, support from parents, and partnerships from several local businesses and organizations right here in Detroit. #GVSU #TRIO #UpwardBound #TRIOWorks #Detroit #2024 #COE #EOA #ClassOf2024