Read ’26, looks to improve the lives of underserved youth by volunteering at an academic and athletic non profit mentoring program.
This summer, I am a volunteer intern at SquashSmarts, a non-profit academic and athletic mentoring program for underserved youth in Philadelphia. Through this academic and athletic instruction, SquashSmarts goal is to improve the lives of underserved youth. The program’s specific goals are to ensure its students graduate high school and attend college—25% of Philadelphia public school students do not graduate high school—and to battle the obesity epidemic through teaching squash and the importance of physical health.
I will volunteer at SquashSmarts twice a week. As a volunteer, I am a squash coach and an academic tutor for kids in grades 5-12. However, in my eyes, the most important part of the job is being a mentor and friend for the students. I believe I can make an impact by connecting with them and being a mentor and role model. I have worked at SquashSmarts for only 3 days, as the program just started on Monday July 8th, and already I have become friends with a number of students. This has made the experience far more fun and gratifying.
Another aspect of the grant is buying needed supplies. Senior Program Director, Quinneta Bowden, asked me to purchase Scribble Bots, allowing SquashSmarts students to explore STEM, which may not be taught enough in their schools. This program has only started quite recently, so I do not have any photos. I look forward to connecting with the students more and the potential impact I may have. I am very grateful to the CSGC for allowing me to pursue this project.