Success
stories
Meet GBS Alumni …
Alex
Alex was a senior at a Title I New York City public high school
when Youth Advocacy Center began offering the GBS Self-Advocacy
Seminar there. Through GBS, Alex says he learned to present his
strengths, which has helped him get every job interview he has gone
on since. Presentation skills and homework also furthered his ability
to do well in college. His seminar experience culminated in an informational
interview with Len Elmore, an ESPN analyst, former NBA player, former
assistant district attorney and Senior Counsel at a top NYC law
firm. Today Alex is attending John Jay College and working, but
those are just steps in Alex’s larger plan to follow in his
informational interviewer’s footsteps and one day become a
district attorney.
Jake
Jake, 19, had spent most of his life in foster care. This experience
made him angry, and he became violent, eventually becoming incarcerated.
Once released from prison, Jake joined the Getting Beyond the
System Self-Advocacy Seminar offered by one of Youth Advocacy
Center’s pilot replicator agencies in Philadelphia. Jake loved
the way he and his peers could relate so closely with the GBS case
studies. He began to identify his own personal goals, setting his
sites on eventually becoming either a lawyer or radiologist. He
is currently working on his application essay for Temple University.
Lilly
Lilly is a mother of two who found it difficult to attend the GBS
Seminar because she had to pick her children up from school. Despite
the struggle, she persevered, never missing a class and completing
all her homework. She graduated Valedictorian of her GBS class and
is prepared for her future with a game plan for one day becoming
a psychiatrist.
Jose
Jose was in his senior year of high school when he joined a Getting
Beyond the System Self-Advocacy Seminar. He attended every
class, practiced his self-advocacy skills and improved 65 points
between his pre-Seminar and post-Seminar evaluations. Jose was also
intently working towards his long-term goal of becoming a lawyer
and applied to John Jay College of Criminal Justice, where he was
accepted. Jose finished his Seminar experience by attending an informational
interview at a prestigious law firm, where his interviewer offered
him an internship on the spot.
Benny
From a 15-year-old boy removed from home and placed in foster care,
Benny has grown into a successful man who dedicates his life to
helping others at Comunilife, Inc.. As a GBS Self-Advocacy Seminar
graduate, he recognizes GBS as a strong foundation for teens, where
they can learn the principles of self-advocacy and later master
the dynamics of reaching their personal, educational, and career
goals. The key GBS elements that continue to influence Benny’s
life are discipline, hard work, study, and unwavering advocacy for
his aspirations. The Seminar helped give him the confidence to be
successful in college. Today, the principles of GBS continue to
guide Benny as he studies for his New York State Social Work License
exam and looks forward to PhD course work.