Last Wednesday the West End House College Success Team hosted a celebratory send off for our 2021 high school graduates, who were our honored VIP guests. The event, conducted in true West End House fashion, celebrated the hard work and achievements of our young people as they venture off into their post high school plans.

Words of support, encouragement, and admiration for our soon-to-be college freshmen, who have persisted in their studies throughout the pandemic, were shared by our College and Career Success Team including Portsha Franklin, Director of College and Career Pathways, and College and Career Success Coaches Chris Fincher and Tammie Watson, as well as CEO Andrea Howard.

One of the major highlights of this event was that each of our 29 graduates who had confirmed college or career plans received a brand new laptop thanks to the very generous support of West End House Board of Advisor Tali Sason. Tali is a champion of the power of technology and encouraged all of our students to not only take advantage of the laptops for their college and career courses, but also to use it as an opportunity to connect socially, to watch videos and play games, and for other leisure activities.

High school graduates Cristian Martinez and Lucas Soares shared their gratitude on behalf of all the graduates and were excited to remain connected to West End House and share their wisdom as alumni with younger students.

Congrats to all our incoming college freshmen and career-track apprentices, cadets, and trainees. A special thank you again to our College and Career Success Team and to Tali for providing our youth with the tools and guidance to set them up for success in the pathways they choose. We can’t wait to see what’s in store for our graduates next!