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JUNE 2014
NEWSLETTER
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THE JOURNEY CONTINUES
 | UF's Frank Van Bree and Michelle Stiens with
Busch Middle School Literacy Award Winners |
The 2013-2014 school year is officially over, and Summer is here at last! As usual, UrbanFUTURE students are not lying idle, but are keeping busy with educational camps, summer jobs, enriching events and even a trip to Washington DC. We are excited to have over 100 UF students attending Ranken Technical College's Summer Adventure Academy alone! Although our students are dispersed in a host of different activities around the city and the country, UrbanFUTURE staff are hunkered down in our main office strategizing for the 2014-15 school year. With plans to expand our network of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) community connections, we certainly have our hands full!
On May 20th at Fanning Middle School and May 21st at Busch Middle School, we held our Annual Awards Banquets to celebrate all of our students' incredible accomplishments throughout the year. Awards were given for academic achievement, involvement, character development, and success in literacy to students, mentors, volunteers, parents, and our real-world business partners. View all the photos from the banquets here, and witness the true joy and excitement shared by all in the UrbanFUTURE family on those special nights. An additional thank you to our Partners of the Year, Maritz and Weekends Only for your continued contributions to UrbanFUTURE!
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Frank Van Bree with UrbanFUTURE's
Duana Regans, Rotary Scholarship Winner
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I also had the honor of being the commencement speaker at Fanning Middle School's graduation ceremony on May 28th. UrbanFUTURE students rose to the top of their class and were honored as the Class President and the recipient of the Rotary Club of St. Louis Scholarship and Leadership Award. We are so proud of our kids hard work! Watch the video of the ceremony here, highlights are UF's D'Aundre Fitzpatrick's speech at the 3 minute 45 second mark, and UF's Duana Regans winning a $20,000 scholarship to Webster University the 11 minute mark! How amazing is that? Many thanks to the Rotary Club of St. Louis for their generosity and participation with our students.
Lastly, on Monday of this week, a group of 35 UrbanFUTURE students and staff set off on an educational adventure to Washington, DC! The team has a very full itinerary, including visits to museums, memorials, colleges and a meet and greet at the Capitol with Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill! Make sure to like us on Facebook, and receive updates from the road! Deepest thanks to all those who contributed to our DC trip fundraiser.
With your help, we will continue on our mission to empower, educate and enliven our urban youth, and lead them on a path to a career in tomorrow's workforce.
Sincerely,
Frank Van Bree
President/CEO
UrbanFUTURE
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 | Fanning's UF Student of the Year
D'Aundre Fitzpatrick |
FANNING MIDDLE SCHOOL NEWS
Before wrapping up programming for the school year, we managed to squeeze in a few more Explore! Career opportunities for UrbanFUTURE students. We visited a fashion design studio as well as Washington University, where students sat in on a cardiac lab with HPREP, and learned about the heart and circulatory system. We also welcomed guest speaker Angelique Perkins, a correctional officer. Students were fascinated and asked serious, high-level questions during her presentation. Very neat experiences all around!
UrbanFUTURE students also worked hard in May to polish their resumes, and get them ready for summer opportunities. They have learned the importance of a professional resume writing, and putting your best foot forward while applying for jobs!
The last day of UrbanFUTURE programing was May 16th, followed by our Awards Banquet on May 20th. Our students couldn't have been more excited to celebrate each other and perform for their parents, mentors, teachers and other supporters. View the photos here!Highlights of the evening were the performances by the UrbanFUTURE Step Team and Drum Line, click on each link to view videos of the performances. Many students, volunteers, supporters, parents and teachers were honored throughout the evening. Congratulations to Fanning Student of the Year and Class President D'Aundre Fitzpatrick! Watch D'Aundre address his classmates at the Fanning Eighth Grade Graduation at the 3 minute 45 second mark of this video. What a star you are, Dre!
**FANNING SUCCESS STORY**
 | | UF Photography Gurus David Capes and Mark Rosen |
David Capes and Mark Rosen have been teaching our photography class since January. They have generously donated cameras and a printer to our program, and have taught our students the skills they need to be avid photographers. Check out images from their class on our Facebook page here, we are so impressed by the students' creative and expressive abilities!
Mr. Capes and Mr. Rosen also arranged their UF class to attend a workshop with a local photographer at the Sheldon.
Thank you Mr. Capes and Mr. Rosen for sharing your time and talents with UrbanFUTURE!
If you would like more information about teaching an enrichment class or volunteering as a career speaker, contact Jennifer Davies at jennifer@urbanfuturestl.org.
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BUSCH MIDDLE SCHOOL NEWS  | UF students from Busch and Fanning
visit Washington University HPREP |
What a great feeling it is to wrap up our first year of UrbanFUTURE at Busch Middle School! As Busch principal Robert Lescher stated during his speech at our Awards Banquet, "There is a new energy in the building after 2pm...the kids are doing stuff they have never ever done before and it's an amazing opportunity ...UrbanFUTURE has been the best thing to come into our school." Thank you Mr. Lescher, your support is key and we are excited for the 2014-2015 school year back at Busch Middle!
In addition to attending the Washington University HPREP and fashion design studio field trips with our friends at Fanning Middle School, Busch students enjoyed lots of fun activities and challenging classes. From aeronautics, to chemistry, to animal biology to gardening - our kids kept their gears turning, up until the last day of programming on May 16th!
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Busch UF Student of the Year Derica Reese with UF's Michelle Stiens
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On Tuesday, May 21st we held our Annual Awards Banquet to celebrate our students academic and personal accomplishments this school year - and we sure had a lot to celebrate! View the photos here!
UrbanFUTURE students won awards for academic achievement in math and communication arts, literacy, character, and the prestigious UF Student of the Year Award, which was given to 6th grader Derica Reese. Only 12 years old, and Derica has a 3.91 GPA and aspires to be a doctor - Congrats to you, Derica!
Mentors, Volunteers, Tutors, Teachers and Parents were recognized as well, as we all come together to form the vital network of support our students need as they pursue careers in tomorrow's workforce.
**BUSCH SUCCESS STORY**
The Busch Middle School drumline has made great strides this semester, thanks to their volunteer instructor, Isaac Cherry. Mr. Cherry has taught both bucket drumming and more traditional drumline drumming , and the students have worked hard to hone their skills. Many of these students had never picked up a drumstick in their lives before January, and they are able to create more complex rhythms together each week. Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Cherry!
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 UrbanFUTURE STUDENT SPOTLIGHT Meet Angel Mabins Angel Mabins is an 8th grader at Fanning Middle School, and won the UrbanFUTURE Character Award at her school this year for maintaining a positive attitude with both students and staff, as well as for her leadership abilities.
She was an outgoing member of the track team at Fanning this past Spring, and also participated in many enrichment classes including crafts, graphic design and step this semester. Angel loved it when local architect Greg Hielsberg came into UrbanFUTURE to speak about his career, and had students design and draw blueprints. She was inspired by the presentation, and now aspires to be an architect!
Angel earned a spot on the Washington DC trip, by writing a research paper on the US Treasury and presenting her findings, in PowerPoint form, to a room full of supportive, engaged peers, teachers and mentors. Her father attended the presentation and is so proud of Angel's studious efforts - as are all of us at UrbanFUTURE. Congratulations Angel and enjoy the trip!
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UrbanFUTURE HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAM NEWS
Sign up for the SuperMileage Challenge
We are seeking bright and motivated UrbanFUTURE students to join our team for the Missouri SuperMileage Challenge! Our team, in partnership with Ranken Technical College, will compete in designing and building a safe vehicle that can achieve the highest fuel mileage possible. Our team will assemble this summer to begin work on a vehicle for the competition in Spring 2015. You must be a rising 11th or 12th grader (current 10th and 11th grader) to be on the team. Contact us at info@urbanfuturestl.org or 314-480-3727 to sign up.
Join the UrbanFUTURE Robotics Team
UrbanFUTURE High School Website
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Become a mentor and change a life!
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YOU CAN HELP! BECOME A...
1. Career Connector
Allow UrbanFUTURE students to come to your workplace for a field trip, job shadow or internship. Or, visit one of our middle schools and speak to the class about your personal career path.
Volunteer just one hour a week, and mentor a student one-on-one. Mentors provide a key link between the school and the home, as well as develop the child's self confidence and interpersonal skills. Watch our video and learn more about mentoring a student.
3. Tutor
Help UrbanFUTURE students excel in school by tutoring kids in either Communication Arts or Math. All students benefit from the personal attention and extra help.
4. Donor
Invest in our urban students and help level the playing field for underserved kids. It costs $3,186 per year for us to provide the full UrbanFUTURE experience to each student. Considering the cost to society per high school dropout is almost $5,000 per year, this small investment can have a lasting impact. With your financial support, we can increase the number of kids headed to tomorrow's workforce.
Call 314-776-3434 for more info or stop by our office at 2823 Olive Street with any donations. Your help is truly appreciated! As always, you can make a monetary tax deductible donation via our secure website at any time.
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THANK YOU from all of us at UrbanFUTURE for an AMAZING 2013-2014 school year! |
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UrbanFUTURE
2823 Olive Street
St. Louis, MO 63103
314.776.3434
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