ONE HOUR. ONCE A WEEK. ONE YEAR. TWO CHANGED LIVES.
Apply to be a mentor on our website at www.projectleadership.org/apply.
Project Leadership is ecstatic about our new office space in Delaware County.
Now we have added a new PL sign to make it that much easier for the community to find us!
As a reminder: We have new contact information that goes with our new office.
Address: 316 West Howard Street (at the corner of Howard and Liberty Streets. Behind the Horizon Convention Center.)
Telephone number: 765-896-8616
E-mail:
Sue Godfrey — Director of Advancement- sgodfrey@projectleadership.org
Julie McGee — Director of Mentoring – jmcgee@projectleadership.org
Kaye Harrell — Community Recruiter – kharrell@projectleadership.org
Dick Daniel — Community Recruiter – ddaniel@projectleadership.org
The Project Leadership staff would like to thank our board for faciliting this wonderful move. We would also like to thank our community partner and landlord, Ivy Tech Community College, for installing our sign during the busiest time of year: the first week of classes.
It’s an exciting time to be a part of the Project Leadership family!
ICE LEAGUE EXPANDING TO INCLUDE GIRLS NEXT SEASON
An innovative sports league that leverages students’ love of sports while promoting stellar academics, is expanding in its second season to include middle school girls.
The Inner City Educational (ICE) League is operated by Project Leadership with the Ball Brothers Foundation as the League’s founding partner. The League completed its first basketball
season in March 2015 and is designed to motivate participants to be strong student athletes as they move toward high school and post-secondary educations. The League is composed of 7th- and 8th graders who are drafted to one of four core ICE League
member organizations: the Boys & Girls Club of Muncie, Buley Center, Ross Center, and the YMCA.
In the inaugural season, the League had 69 7th– and 8th-grade boys participate, as well as 11 coaches. For the next season, which begins in February 2016 and runs through Tournament Day in early April 2016, a combined 7th– and 8th-grade girls team will be added at each of the four community centers.
“Since day one, we have hoped to expand the ICE League. We are excited to provide the same opportunity to
participate in the ICE basketball league for 7th and 8th grade girls in Muncie Community Schools,” said Kaye Harrell, Project Leadership Community Recruiter.
A school-wide initiative will promote the ICE League standards of a minimum GPA of “2.5 to drive 4.0 to thrive” at Muncie Central, Southside Middle School, and Northside Middle School. The initiative emphasizing GPAs strives to enhance the culture of high expectations by providing resources to every adult in Muncie Community Schools’
secondary school and identifying and celebrating an ICE Student of the Week.
The ICE League sets the grade point average bar at 2.5 and higher for students who wish to fully participate in the League. A partnership with the Muncie school system and permission by students’ parents allowed the League to monitor student GPA eligibility before the February draft and progress during the playing season. In 2016, the League will be expanded from 6 to 9 weeks.
The impact of the ICE League extends beyond the first season. In the first year of the ICE League, 50% of players increased their quarter play eligibility because of improved GPAs. ICE League Commissioner Tom Lyon said a
returning ICE League 8th grade student told him recently, “Coach, last year I could only play two quarters, but want to play all four quarters this year! I am keeping my grades up now!”
Project Leadership is seeking new partners to support the expansion of the ICE League. A Golf Outing is planned on Sunday, September 27, 2015 at the Crestview Golf Course to raise money to expand the ICE League in 2016.
For more information about the ICE League or the upcoming golf outing, contact Kaye Harrell at (765) 896-8616 or
kharrell@projectleadership.org.
Project Leadership is holding the first-ever ICE League Golf Outing in September. We are excited for fellow ICE supporters to come out and enjoy an afternoon of golf to raise money for a great cause.
“Funds generated at the ICE League Golf Outing will allow us to provide the same opportunity to participate in the ICE basketball league for 7th and 8th grade girls in Muncie Community Schools, that was started with boys last year. The funds will also pay for a school-wide initiative at Muncie Central, Southside Middle School, and Northside Middle School to promote the ICE League standards of a minimum GPA of 2.5 to drive and a 4.0 to thrive. Both the ICE basketball League and school initiatives main purpose is to encourage students to achieve at least a 2.5 GPA level to have a variety of opportunities available to them after high school,” says Project Leadership’s ICE Liaison Kaye Harrell.
When: September 27th, registration: 12-12:45 pm, shotgun start: 1:00 pm
Where: Crestview Golf Course, 3325 South Walnut St., Muncie.
Cost: $240 per team
The day will include 18 holes of golf with a cart, lunch at the turn, awards for top teams, a silent auction, and a chance to win a new car from Stoops of Muncie with a hole-in-one!
$100 hole and $50 cart sign sponsorships are available for businesses. Along with bronze, silver, and gold level sponsorships for business banners.
Registration is now open, so put together a team and come join us!
To learn more about the ICE League, check out our website and watch the ICE Documentary at www.iceleague.org.
A great mentor match is like any great friendship – based upon mutual interests and commitment to the relationship. But good mentoring matches don’t happen by accident!
The past six weeks have been filled with interviews of prospective new Mentors and Mentees. As our Mentoring Program team, Julie McGee and Monica Rickner, conduct interviews, the goal is to make the best mentoring match possible. They are constantly making notes and sharing observations to make strong matches. Strong matches provide a strong foundation for students and mentors to have an enjoyable and productive mentoring experience, like the one featured in the above photo of Jay McGee with his mentee.
We encourage you to apply to apply to be matched for Project Leadership’s mentoring program. The committment is truly small in comparison to the impact you have. The sooner you apply, the better our Mentoring Program team will be to match you! Apply today!
Be a PL Mentee:
As a 21st Century Scholar, you’ve made a pledge: get good grades, stay out of trouble, and commit to a college education. A mentor is someone who can help provide support and guidance as you work toward your college goals. Project Leadership is currently accepting applications to participate in our mentoring program for 21st Century Scholars in high school. Students in the program agree to meet with their mentor once a week for one year. For more information or to submit a mentoring program application, call 765-651-0650 in Grant County or 765-896-8616 in Delaware County.
Be a PL Mentor and change two lives:
Community volunteers like you are needed to mentor local high school students as they prepare for college. Mentors use their experience and problem-solving skills to support and guide students as they work to reach their personal and academic goals. Training and resources are provided by the program. Mentors make a one-year commitment to meet with one student once a week for one hour at their high school.
One Hour
Once a Week
One Year
Two Lives Changed
For more information on Project Leadership’s mentoring program call 651-0650 or 896-8616.
For our Grant County audience, we have exciting news about a new initiative that targets 21st Century Scholars in order to provide them with a certification in a rapidly growing career in the community.
The new project, Sanborn Scholars, targets 21st Century Scholars that have graduated high school in the past 5 years. Participants will earn a certificate in less than a year by enrolling in Ivy Tech’s Supply Chain Management and Logistics program. The program will prepare students to enter the workforce with skills that have been identified by local employers as “in demand.” Students will earn 30 credit hours learning about the movement and storage of raw materials, work-in-process inventory, analysis and finished goods. Students are able to study and get familiar with the high technologies and information systems used to track goods and increase efficiencies. Students earn a certificate that is designed for workforce preparation. And if students choose to continue their educations beyond the 30-hour certificate, courses in the program also apply toward other certificates and degree programs.
Throughout the process, Project Leadership will help support students through the program by partnering with Ivy Tech Community College and the Community Foundation of Grant County.
Classes for the 30-hour certification will begin Oct. 19th. All classes for this cohort of students will meet on Fridays in a 4-to 5-hour time frame. Students will take classes this fall, in Spring 2016, and then complete the program in Summer 2016.
An informational meeting about the Sanborn Scholars program will be held at Ivy Tech’s Marion campus, 261 S. Commerce Dr., at 6 p.m. Monday, August 31st, in rooms 164/165.
For more information, call Project Leadership at 651-0650.
The Grant County Economic Growth Council reports that 60% of jobs in Grant County, Indiana require some kind of training after high school. Sixty percent! More than half!
The chart from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows us just how going to college impacts how much money you earn. What we learn from this chart is: If the jobs require more education, then they likely also pay better, too! So the jobs in Grant County that require training – 60% of the jobs open – require training and pay higher than jobs that don’t require training!
Employers are reporting that they need more workers, but those who are applying don’t have the correct skills. That’s why we believe it’s so important for everyone who is eligible for the Twenty-first Century Scholarship to apply for the program. The Twenty-first Century Scholarship provides the training you need for free. And training can help our young people become the workforce our community needs.
By applying for the Twenty-first Century Scholars program, 7th and 8th graders are setting themselves up for a future where their hard work will earn more. Remember: Lower wage workers don’t work less. They simply earn less from their hard work. Training makes your work pay off more!
So please, register your child today! The deadline is June 30 for 8th grade students to register for the Twenty-first Century Scholarship. Don’t delay!
Are you a community member interested in helping our young people achieve their educational and career goals? If so, consider being a mentor! Learn more at projectleadership.org/apply.
Project Leadership would like to again congratulate the recipients of the 2015 Mentor and Mentee of the Year awards from this year’s Red Rubber Ball Banquet by highlighting their accomplishments and contributions. The Red Rubber Ball event is held at the end of each academic year to celebrate the hard work, dedication, growth, and relationship building that occurred during the school year. This year’s banquet focused on the importance of persevering when trying to reach goals in order to ultimately attain dreams. We believe that this year’s award winners personified what it means to be a true “Dream Chaser” and “Dream Maker.”
Jennifer Hauge – Grant County 2015 Mentee of the Year
Jennifer has an impressive résumé that has landed her at IU Bloomington after graduating from Marion High School, but she also has perseverance and passion that you cannot capture solely on paper. Jennifer is a perfect example of how determination and grit can lead you through life’s toughest times. Here is what her mentor, Ellen Spitzer, had to say in her nomination:
“…She is the embodiment of what the portfolio stands for. Jennifer has a goal and a mission- her goal is to become a teacher and a counselor and her mission is to do all of the things necessary to attain that goal. She is a good student, has been on the honor roll every semester that she has been at the high school and will graduate with Core 40 with Honors. That in itself is outstanding but Jennifer is also involved in many other activities…Very few have been asked to do so much at such a young age. God bless you Jennifer- You are the greatest!”
Congratulations, Jennifer! Good luck this upcoming school year from all of us at Project Leadership!
Project Leadership would like to again congratulate the recipients of the 2015 Mentor and Mentee of the Year awards from this year’s Red Rubber Ball Banquet by highlighting their accomplishments and contributions. The Red Rubber Ball event is held at the end of each academic year to celebrate the hard work, dedication, growth, and relationship building that occurred during the school year. This year’s banquet focused on the importance of persevering when trying to reach goals in order to ultimately attain dreams. We believe that this year’s award winners personified what it means to be a true “Dream Chaser” and “Dream Maker.”
Taylor Springer: Delaware County 2015 Mentee of the Year
In 2011, when Taylor was interviewed before entering Project Leadership’s mentoring program, she stated that she wanted to be a mentee because one day she hoped to be a good mentor. Today, she is well on her way towards reaching her goals. Taylor was an outstanding student at Wapahani high school. She earned a straight ‘A’ grade point average, and is now gearing up to be a Purdue Boilermaker. From the beginning of Taylor’s time with Project Leadership, she knew she wanted to be a veterinarian. Taylor is now taking the steps to achieve her dream by studying animal science while in college. Here is what her mentor, Brittney Snyder, had to say in her Mentee of the Year nomination:
“There is no doubt in my mind that Taylor will accomplish all of her dreams. Throughout my time as her mentor, Taylor has persevered, regardless of obstacles. She never complains, and never makes excuses. Instead, she simply looks at her options, and takes action to succeed. She challenges herself to become better in everything she does, and encourages others to do the same. There is no one more deserving of this honor than Taylor.”
Once again, congratulations Taylor! Good luck with this upcoming school year – from all of us at Project Leadership!
It’s a Sunday evening and you have an Algebra assignment that you need to complete before school on Monday. The only problem is, you don’t remember exactly how your teacher explained two-step linear equations and you left your notes in your locker. Or maybe you are a mentor or parent and your student asks you for homework help but you can’t remember back to your high school chemistry class. What are the options for people stuck in these situations?
The Indiana Youth Institute KIDS COUNT Radio Show covered two different services that could be a major help in the case that a student needs homework help or tutoring. At Project Leadership, we have summarized the information on both the KhanAcademy and the Rose-Hulman Homework Hotline that mentors, mentees, and parents need to know about these great (and FREE) resources.
The Khan Academy is utilized by approximately 13 million users each month. The service is free for everyone with no subscriptions, no fees, and no advertisements.
The Rose-Hulman Homework Hotline is based in Indiana and is founded on Indiana Academic Standards to provide free homework help to thousands of children around the state.
Don’t be afraid to take advantage of these great resources. Spread the word so that students can get the help that they need!