Youth Ambassadors Raise Funds for Peers
21st Century Leaders is a non-profit organization that connects, transforms, and inspires high school students across Georgia to leverage-diversity, explore career opportunities, and become leaders in their schools, communities, and ultimately the workforce.
For Georgia Gives Day 2019, the 21CL Youth Ambassadors – 27 students selected to represent the state-wide student body of 21st Century Leaders – are leading the campaign! They have set their fundraising goal, learned about fundraising from a development specialist, and will be the ones inviting donors to give to the cause of 21CL!
Their specific goal is to raise $5,000 to cover the registration fee of attending our week-long, residential Summer Youth Leadership Institute (SYLI) for their peers. Although students accepted to SYLI are asked to pay a fee, no student is turned away due to financial concerns, and last summer 21CL provided over $5,000 in financial assistance.
Michael Garcia, Youth Ambassador Chair (class of 2020, Cherokee HS), says:
“Leading a campaign to raise money to cover the registration fee for SYLI has become my primary goal this year because of the amount of admiration I have for 21st Century Leaders. I’ve been able to be a part of this honorable organization for about two years and not only have I witnessed personal growth, but I see myself being a more confident leader. I’ve been able to learn vital skills, meet students from across the state of Georgia, and continue to be inspired daily by these students. None of this — my confidence when networking, my public speaking skills, my ability to think critically, would be as polished as it is now without 21st Century Leaders being there, supporting me by exposing me to resources at their summer leadership institutes and school-year programs.
"I understand that not every student is able to have that necessary support system at school or at home; that is why every student qualified to attend the SYLI summer institute has the opportunity to go, despite the financial distress it may cause."