DaiJahnique Jackson- Urban League of the Upstate

On the weekends when I go home, I volunteered my time at the Urban League of the Upstate. The Urban League is a non-profit organization committed to the principle of equal opportunity for all citizens in housing, education, employment, and economic development, without regard to race or socioeconomic status. I use to volunteer here during my high school summers, so they were more than happy to have me back in the office. I would basically assist everyone in the office with any tasks that they needed to be completed, but while doing that, I was able to experience how impactful this organization was in my local community. People would come in looking for jobs, housing, and assistance, and it was really inspiring to be in an office full of people who were so eager to help out people in the community in any way that they could.

The Urban League reflects the concepts learned in the HDFS curriculum because the organization provides large number of resources and services for families and that is very important because different families have different needs.

I was supervised by Diedra McEntyre, which was a great networking opportunity. She introduced me to so many people, whenever they would take kids on field trips to different places she would invite me at her expense, and she even paid for me to participate in SAT and ACT workshops. I am so thankful to have her in my life because she did a lot for me just because I spent my summer helping her out. Once I came to college, any letter of recommendations I needed, she made sure I had them from her with no hesitation.

The Urban League of the upstate has a MAJOR impact on the community. Their areas of service is education, jobs, and housing, Their education and youth development programs provide the youth with the critical skills that they need to excel academically, avoid at-risk behavior, and become engaged members in their communities. Tutoring, college preparation, and leadership development are some of the many educational advancement tools offered. Through training, career building, and job placement services, they help equip individuals with tools needed to enter or re-enter the workforce. Their center for working families offers a full range of essential economic resources for low-income residence to help them succeed in the workforce, stabilize their finances, and build assets.  Their housing programs offer families long-term, sustainable solutions that focus on building assets through savings and ownership. Their wealth accumulation services include financial literacy education, budgeting, credit counseling, home ownership, foreclosure prevention and loan modification.

Volunteering at the Urban League was one of the impacts of me choosing the career choice of a school counselor. If I don't go into school counseling then I still plan on doing a career that allows me to help people in the community such as organizations like the Urban League.