There is nothing like opening your mail and getting an invitation to a law school graduation from one of your alums. Wow! Above left is the cover picture of Jamal Abdulrasheed’s invitation. He is a 2012 graduate from one of GEO’s first schools. We’ve known eachother for years. In fact, check out the picture down below of Jamal in DC when we sponsored a trip for our students. That’s him in the back looking a little younger.
I’m extremely proud of this young man as we are proud of all our alums. However, Jamal is really special in that he graduated in 2012 and seven years later he has his law degree. And he will be working at one of Indianapolis’s most prestigious law firms this June.
It is a rare treat to be able to sit back and see the fruit of your labor. We started in 2002 with a powerpoint presentation full of hopes and dreams and ideas of what we wanted to accomplish and here we are in 2019 watching one of our first students earn his law degree. This is real! Pretty neat.
And the journey continues, too.
In Baton Rouge, we are launching our new high school next month with 100 freshmen wanting to earn college credits and degrees while in high school just like Jamal. Above right, is a picture of some of the first students to enroll in GEO’s Next Generation High School with Principal Aleisha Taylor. They may look young now, but they grow up fast.
Our college immersion program in our high schools is working, too. There was a report out today showing that community college students who transfer to a four-year university are more likely to complete their degree than students who go straight from high school to a four-year university. An important difference for our students is that they gain community college experience while in our high school, they don’t have to wait until they graduate from high school to get real college experience. Our 2019 Class earned an average of 19 college credits each while in our high school with 27% having earned either a one-year career certification or a two-year Associate degree.
I’m extremely excited for the future for each of our students and our alums.
Yes, it’s fun changing the world together!
Sincerely,
Kevin Teasley
President
GEO Foundation
317-694-9985
Twitter: @teasleygeo
