Washington Post Columnist Eugene Robinson Motivates Students To Take Stock in Their Future

KEY WEST, Fla. – Take Stock in Children, Monroe County, held its Take Stock in Children rally yesterday (March 6) at 11:00 a.m. in front of 275 students at Key West High School. Washington Post columnist, Eugene Robinson spoke to scholars from the Lower Keys participating in the TSIC program today at the high school about how he achieved certain goals by way of higher education.

The event allowed for Take Stock in Children students from grades 7 to 12 to come together to be inspired to keep their eyes on post-secondary opportunities. Since the organization’s founding in the early 1990s, the mission has been to invest in students faced with socio-economic challenges and other extenuating circumstances that could potentially hinder their success. Monroe County School District TSIC Coordinator, Chuck Licis said the celebration is well deserved for the students and the district. “This is a time to celebrate the achievements of our scholars and to reinforce the fact that our scholars are part of a larger Take Stock family of mentors, alumni scholars, and college success coaches.”

TCIS, Monroe County, offers mentoring opportunities, scholarships, and continued support for students participating in the program. Superintendent Mark Porter spoke to the scholars and let them know just how hard the TSIC administrators and district has been working towards ensuring their success. “This is a truly outstanding program and I think sometimes we overlook the fact that it is one of the finest Take Stock programs, if not the finest Take Stock programs in the state of Florida. I think it takes a lot of people to come together, to make this happen, to make these opportunities happen for you the students who are here,” Mr. Porter said.

TCIS Scholar and 11th grader Ange Nafrere said the program has offered her so many invaluable experiences, including this one. “In 7th and 8th grade you do this one week summer and one week winter camp, you get to meet amazing people like [Mr. Robinson], you get advice from people that are older, like your mentor. I have a really amazing mentor, that I really love.”

Not only do the students have the opportunity to participate in enriched programming, they have access to a scholarship fund worth at least $12million.

This morning, the students had the rare opportunity to listen to Pulitzer Prize winner and the next Chair of the Pulitzer Prize Board, as well as a highly respected and recognized journalist from the Washington Post, share his story, his journey from a childhood in the segregated South to Washington D.C., columnist, Eugene Robinson. Robinson spoke to the students for about a half an hour and answered questions. He left them with this final word of advice, “When people tell you ‘no’, you should use that as a motivation to say, ‘yes I can’.”

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