September 2010: ASIA BLACK

I'm Asia Black, a 2010 graduate from Young Women's Leadership Charter School and a freshman at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota.

I moved to Chicago after my freshmen year of high school in Minnesota. Mikva Challenge was the first out of school organization I became involved in. I was first introduced to Mikva by my high school, Young Women's Leadership Charter School. The internship coordinator said that she had a program she thought would fit me great. I remember reading over the application; it asked questions about issues that affect youth in my community. Violence was something that interested me the most. I was already curious about youth violence rates, and it intrigued me that I was given an opportunity to reduce them. Fortunately, I had been picked to participate on the Youth Violence Council. For the past three years that I've been involved in Mikva, I have focused on violence, researched why young people were more prone to become violent and ways to reduce violence.

In addition to the Youth Safety Council, I had the opportunity to travel to Boston and California to learn about better ways to research and organize as a group. I also went to fundraisers and represented Mikva and my council at meetings and panels. Outside of the city wide councils, I've interned in political offices. First, I was an intern with Alderman Walter Burnett Jr. and, just recently, at the office of Attorney General Lisa Madigan. Mikva gave me the opportunity to see how politics intertwine with communities. Seeing behind the scenes of how politics affect the community made me realize what I am capable of as a young person. It showed me that us as young people can make a difference. Not only can we make a difference, but we can sit at the table with city officials making decisions regarding our lives.

This is only a summary of what I've done with Mikva and what Mikva has done for me. Overall, today I am different due to the experiences I've had at Mikva. The things I've learned and the challenges I've faced all made me realize what I'm capable of - and to me that is pretty much anything.

As I start college, I set out to be a different person to make a big difference. From Mikva I know that a lot of people watch things happen, and only a few, like those who became involved, try to change things for the better. As youth we faced a lot of challenges, but Mikva truly cultivates young people today to be leaders not only for tomorrow, but forever. No matter where I go, I may not be involved in politics, but I will make a difference and change the world. Like a great advisor Jaime Arteaga always told me, "Be a part of the change you want to see."

At Mikva Challenge, our mission is to train life-long civic leaders, and our alumni, like Asia, and students affirm our success in getting young people to become today and tomorrow's leaders.