Listen: Sebastian will be a senior at Rufus King High School this fall, but he’s already trying to help other students get into college. He’s set up and completed an in-depth local college tour for inner city Hispanic middle school students to experience the different aspects of college life and he’s ready to take the program further, as in best colleges in the world further.
To fulfill a volunteering requirement for school, he signed up to become a mentor at Summit Educational Association. During his mentorship, a representative from Usher’s New Look encouraged him to apply for a grant they were offering. Usher’s New Look is a national non-profit chaired by the singer himself that is:
designed to reach talented youth from diverse socio-economic backgrounds and provide them with a chance to learn firsthand about the business side of the sports and entertainment industries.
He wrote the proposal and earned a $500 grant to do something positive for his students. His main goal is to help Milwaukee’s disadvantaged inner-city Hispanic youth overcome the barriers to success.
He felt that taking students to a college, talking with professors and showing them around would help them become comfortable with the whole idea and bettter prepare them more than just a basic tour. After his first successful trip and getting positive feedback from the everyone involved, Sebastian wants to take a group to the east coast to show kids some of the best colleges in the world. On his hopeful itinerary are Harvard, MIT, Tufts, Boston University and the Berklee College of Music.
He’s raising funds now in preparation for the East coast trip. Please contact Sebastian for information or to donate.
Sebastian Van Oudenallen
svanoudenallen@sbcglobal.net
414.731.2699
You can learn more about Summit Educational Association, and Usher’s New Look.
Produced by: Benjamin Wick