Hometown Hall
Inspired by LeBron's commitment to always pushing to be better, the Foundation proudly hosts monthly Hometown Hall meetings throughout the Akron Public Schools district to ensure its Wheels for Education and Akron I PROMISE Network programs are working for our students and their families. These rotating meetings are about bringing the experts, the students, and the families together to find solutions, implement improvements, and have a little fun over a delicious family meal.
This month's meeting focused on the Firestone Cluster and featured a special announcement about the Foundation's upcoming Urban Youth Mentorship pilot program, which will service many of the students that were in attendance. On hand to help with this exciting news were our University of Akron student mentors and UA professors Dr. Brad Maguth and Dr. Kristin Koskey. Other special guests at the meeting included Akron Public School staff and our partners from the Dap Championship. As always, the delicious meal was provided by our friends at Ohio's own Old Carolina Barbecue Company.
As is the case with every Hometown Hall meeting, the majority of the evening was spent having an open and honest dialogue with our students and their families through a moderated Q&A period. With our panel of experts on hand - which included a UA professor, WFE parent, LAB member and APS principal, 330 Ambassador, LJFF's executive director, and the special assistant to UA's President - this is the time to bring about questions, concerns, and comments to help LJFF better serve its students.
The crowd was filled with familiar faces which made the Q&A feel more like a family dinner conversation than a formal program. Questions from our parents and children focused largely on the new mentorship program and the prospect of student tutoring. As with every Hometown Hall Meeting and parent interaction, the Foundation team will continue to discuss and implement feedback.
We strive to provide our students with every opportunity to make their higher education more than just a hope or a dream. It will be their futures.
