What’d you do this summer?  Relax?  Root against Lebron in the finals?  Catch up on old episodes of Dexter?  Not Sharmeka Williams.  For the fourth year in a row, she was part of a wilderness challenge featured to the left.  This summer, Sharmeka served as a Camp Leader.  And judging by the pictures, they did not sit around a campfire and tell ghost stories.  The picture featured in this post is part of a three-mile, uphill hike in complete gear.

This type of physical and mental challenge has always motivated Sharmeka.  She has instructed students in a leadership challenge program at Mary Baldwin, she’s a peer advisor, and she’s working toward a dual degree, prepared to earn a Bachelor’s degree in English and a Master’s in Teaching.

We are thrilled to have a leader of her capacity join our program and mark the halfway point of our pursuit of Twenty Fellows by 2012.  As the tenth Fellow we’re currently supporting, Sharmeka also represents a long-term investment.  She has two years left in her studies at Mary Baldwin.  We’ll be sure to check in on her and keep you posted on her progress.  All indications are they she will be a phemenal addition to our local schools in the fall of 2013.  Learn more about her here.

If you have not already been blown away by Wes Bellamy and Whitney Bullock, allow us to introduce Nicole Carter! Nicole has just ended her time as an undergraduate at James Madison University with a Bachelor’s degree in English, and is set to finish her final year at JMU (as part of a five year Master’s program) and will receive her Master’s in Education next spring. Not bad, eh?

Nicole knew at a young age that she wanted to teach and motivate young men and women in the same way many of her teachers motivated her to gain a great education for herself. In her own words, “I knew for myself that I wanted to go to college and knew right away I wanted to be in the education field because of my love for children and the desire to inspire them to learn and become successful individuals.”

With a significant degree of leadership experience and a distinct passion for community service, Ms. Carter’s contribution to the Charlottesville-Albemarle community will go beyond the classroom. She has served as the Special Visitation Co-Chair for Students for Minority Outreach for four years (at JMU) and continues to serve as the treasurer for Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Also very impressive is the fact that this aspiring educator has been helping young students as a substitute teacher in the Caroline County public school system for the past three years (and counting!).  In addition, Nicole has had an impact on her peers through her work as a tutor for JMU’s Mercy House After School Program (the Mercy House serves as a transitional home for displaced families) as well as the university’s athletics department. Furthermore (if you can believe this young woman has managed to do even more!) she has given back to the residents of Harrisonburg through volunteer work with the Table of Brotherhood Soup Kitchen, Generations Crossing (a daycare facility for elderly citizens), and Our Community Place, a community home for those in need.

Nicole will become a formal educator in August /2012, ideally teaching English to high school students. We cannot wait to see what she will accomplish and the legacy she will create for herself as a leader in education and in her community.

Last week we introduced you to avid community leader Wes Bellamy. This week, we are pleased to present Whitney Bullock! Whitney is an honors student set to graduate from the Curry School of Education at Charlottesville’s very own University of Virginia next spring.

Even as she has yet to earn her degree, Whitney has proven to be a strong leader in education who is not afraid to take initiative. She serves as the President and Public Relations Chair of the Student Virginia Education Association and Educational Developmental Chair of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. (at the University of Virginia), where she has taken organizational control of Delta Sigma Theta’s weekly community service endeavor, P.E.A.R.L.S.: Peers Encouraging Academics, Responsibility, and Success. She also serves as a board member of the Curry Foundation. In addition, Whitney has volunteered her time as a Camper Care Co-Coordinator and Counselor at Camp Kesem, a nonprofit organization that provides a fun and relaxing summer camp experience for children with cancer-stricken parents. Another important contribution this aspiring teacher has made to her community is dedicating her time as a Big Sibling to UVA’s community service center, Madison House, as “one of the few African American volunteers helping to mentor at-risk children in the Charlottesville community.”

Whitney has expressed a desire to teach elementary school level students, but has stated that all grades and subjects have positive and appealing aspects. Therefore, she is open to teaching a variety of themes to different age groups. AATF is sure Whitney will have a highly positive impact as a teacher, regardless of the grade and subject matter.

Click here to view Whitney’s profile!

Hello AATF Followers! As promised in the previous post, we are now introducing AATF’s five talented new fellows!

First up is Wes Bellamy, a Class of 2009 graduate from South Carolina State University with a degree in Business Management. In his brief two years as a post-graduate, Wes has done remarkable work for the Charlottesville-Albemarle community and has gained extensive experience working with young people.

Wes originally came to Charlottesville to pursue a career in politics with dreams of becoming a state senator. After interacting with people in the area, it became clear to Wes that he could have a highly positive impact on his community through dedicating himself to teaching. He rejected admission to four different law schools to devote himself to making a difference in Charlottesville-Albemarle public schools. Last spring he served as a  substitute teacher for Monticello High School and as a Teen Center Coordinator for the Boys and Girls Club of America. Wes’s ultimate goal is to become a high school principal.

In addition to teaching, Wes has played a significant role in coordinating several community projects to lend support to socioeconomically disadvantaged areas. Along with many other projects, Wes has organized three “Spring Fling” block parties in low-income neighborhoods which provide free food, free haircuts, nutrition and health knowledge, and job training information. For Wes, what’s most important in coordinating these block parties is that “the patrons and children of these communities are shown that  someone cares about them.”

Albemarle High School is excited to welcome Wes on board as a full-time teacher in the fall! Click here to view Wes’s profile.

Today, we are happy to announce that the 20 Fellows by 2012 webpage has been updated! You can now view individual pages for each of our six current fellows: Brittany Sanders, Shanice Gray, Brandon Isaiah, Andre Moody,
Krystolyn Henderson and Debbie Menard. Some have completed their collegiate careers this year and are excited to begin teaching in August. Others are entering their final years at their respective colleges, and one of our fellows has obtained a position at Walker Upper Elementary and will be teaching there next fall. Their dream teaching positions range from elementary special education to teaching high school biology in a low-income area.  Check out the site and learn more about these remarkable young men and women!

2011 has been a year of triumphs for AATF! We have recruited five new fellows to become leaders in education in the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County. We are now that much closer to our goal of 20 by 2012 with eleven active fellows dedicated to making a difference through their passion for teaching and commitment to helping students in the area achieve great things. Over the next five weeks, we will be introducing the five new fellows individually so that everyone will gain a little insight into the thoughts and backgrounds of these up-and-coming educators.

Update to Current Fellows

Hooray!  We just completed our spring recruitment and interviewing season and are so excited about the newest Fellows to join us!  We’re also excited about our current Fellows and feeling like everybody deserves a formal, electronic introduction.

So, as we prepare for the formal launch of this campaign and put the finishing touches on the website, we will also begin introducing the world to our Fellows.  Stay tuned for updates.  And for those of you who helped us recruit, interview, and make the difficult decision about who to bring on as a Fellow – thank you!

Fellows – you are our inspiration.  Your dedication to the children in Albemarle and Charlottesville is making the world a better place.