DC Summer Kicks Off!

By Shobana Modur, DC Middle and High School Program Coordinator
Photos Courtesy of Shobana Modur

FINALLY! DC Summer program is here! This week kicks off the DC Middle and High School Summer program with AALEAD. This summer, 20 AALEADers will set sail into our program where they will embark on career exploration & mentor middle and elementary school AALEADers in finding their way in the transitions from elementary, middle, and high school. The AALEADers have a lot of knowledge and wisdom they are ready to share with the younger youth.

On Monday, the high schoolers have already spent a full day in Maryland with their extended AALEAD family, getting to know each other through icebreakers and team-building exercises! In addition to that, the planning of the 4th Annual APA Youth Summit started with all the AALEADers contributing to the process. Guest speakers came to Maryland to help the high schoolers start to think about college preparation and what to expect during the process of looking for higher education.

Tuesday, the DC middle and high school AALEADers spent the day learning about different careers, career pathways for different jobs, explored and discussed different options to achieving those career goals, and created their team’s personal brand! Later this week, we are taking a field trip to the Torpedo Factory in Alexandria, VA to visit different art galleries, interview artists, and embark on an interactive scavenger hunt!

This has been a great start to our first week of summer programming, and I’m excited to see what’s in store for the rest of the summer!