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This program is turning struggling students into leaders by having them teach.

Reading out loud is terrifying for many students.

I’ll never forget the heart palpitations I had in grade school while counting the students and realizing I'd have to read in front of them soon.

Reading to myself was great. But transferring school districts early in my education left me with little understanding of how phonics worked. The fear of struggling to sound out (and even spell) words aloud became the source of my academic nightmares.

Even as an adult, phonics still terrifies me.

And my harrowing experience with reading is all too common. The most recent data on American students reveal that 65% of fourth graders and 64% of eighth-grade students are less than proficient readers, so likely they're dealing with the same struggles I did.

It's a big part of why Reach — a nonprofit in Washington D.C. — is helping high school students become better readers by teaching elementary school students how to read.

Through it’s after-school tutoring program, older D.C. students are given the chance to engage with younger students by helping them with reading and other classwork assignments.

Amazingly, many of the tutors read at a fourth to six-grade level when they enter the program — but by the end, a lot end up like De’Asia who's now an AP student, a published author, tutor, and an aspiring journalist.

Reach’s founder Mark Hecker, a former social worker, began the organization in 2009. He believes that the program it unique because it gives youth, especially youth of color, the chance to be seen as valuable community assets.

"We trust teens to be responsible for things that they care about. And often, that makes education real in a way that the classroom doesn't always," Hecker told NPR.

Allowing these students to serve in such an important role provides an opportunity to rise to the challenge. It’s a sharp contrast to the traditional “dumb it down” curriculum resources that are given to struggling students.

Many participants, like graduating senior Mikala Tardy, stay in the program throughout high school because it had such a positive effect on them.

In general, American students are severely behind when it comes to reading proficiency. Programs like Reach’s that allow them to grow while teaching are invaluable.

With two-thirds of D.C. students below the reading level they should be at when they start high school, they test even lower than the national public-school average.

Reach believes that the responsibility associated with being a role model is a motivator to improve literacy. And, of course, allowing tutors to serve in a mentor-like capacity leads to positive outcomes for the students they tutor, as well. The program highlights the importance of a strength-based approach to solving problems. The staff also fervently believes that every student is capable of growth, and that level of support is a vital part of their success.

Currently, the program has 200 students who have helped 200 other students across 17 sites. During their sessions, both student teacher and student mutually benefit from what Reach considers the five core literacy principles: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and text comprehension.

The results speak for themselves — recently, Reach received the 2015 Innovations in Reading Prize from the National Book Foundation.

But Reach does much more than helps students boost their reading scores — it fosters relationships that change their lives forever.

In addition to the tutoring, Reach offers summer leadership academy, college prep resources, and even gives teens the chance to be published authors through a partnership with Shout Mouse Press.

As our Department of Education threatens to cut billions of dollars in funding from public schools, programs like Reach remind us that at-risk youth, particularly students of color, need these resources to overcome the structures that have put them at a disadvantage.

But more importantly, Reach highlights the strength and potential in each student. It not only shows the public that struggling students can succeed given the right tools, it's also letting those same students know they have what it takes to achieve anything they put their minds to.

You can read more about Reach’s educational efforts on their website

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This pro choreographer is most proud of his work with one surprisingly amateur crew.

Dance provides an outlet that can help kids cope with emotional, social, and behavioral problems.

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Old Navy Back to School

Cedric Gardner has been on TV, in movies, and on stage with some of the most famous names in music.

But that’s not what he’s most proud of.

Nor is it the 33-year-old dancer's stint on "So You Think You Can Dance," his tour with Miranda Cosgrove, or his choreographed commercial that aired during the Super Bowl that he feels most excited about.

His crowning achievement is a music video he created with his students about how music has the power to lift us up and take us to places that once felt impossible.

All images via Old Navy.

In Milwaukee, Gardner uses his artistic talent to help at-risk kids learn to connect with and express their emotions in a productive and empowering way.

Through dance, they communicate a powerful message about learning and leadership.

Gardner joins other educators from across the country who partnered with Old Navy's cause platform ONward!to create an album of songs that encourage kids to let their unique selves shine through.

Gardner and his students had the opportunity to make a music video about the power that education holds to help young people advance in life, knock down obstacles, and change the status quo by being a leader who changes the world. Watch:

He's empowering students through music and dance with his new song #ONward. It's hard to stop watching this one!

Posted by Upworthy on Monday, July 31, 2017

Since Gardner began mentoring kids in dance in 2013, colleagues have noticed that his students have better focus, more self-control, and increased self-confidence .

These are attributes that empower them to engage with the educational opportunities that they need in order to succeed as adults.

Gardner's students are all part of Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee, where Gardner is just one of many mentors who provide positive role models and productive activities for kids in order to help them thrive.

Research shows that dance can actually be a form of therapy, one that has a deeply profound impact on a child's developing mind.

For Gardner's students, dance provides an outlet for self-expression and improves self-image, which helps them better prepare to cope with emotional, social, and behavioral problems.

Even for kids with relatively unproblematic backgrounds, the art of movement set to music can be a useful tool to build skills like discipline, healthy self-expression, and confidence.

Gardner's work is a great reminder of how important the arts are in helping kids achieve academic success.

Teachers who are also mentors help give kids a better shot at a better life.

Learners, like Gardner says, become leaders — and leaders change the world.

Corrections 8/11/2017: Gardner toured with Miranda Cosgrove, not Avril Lavigne. His age has also been corrected.

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We all need more principals like Maurice Thomas.

'Do you wanna change the world? Do you wanna go to college? Well that starts today.'

The hottest hip-hop show in Milwaukee is not in an arena or underground club. It's held weekly in the hallway of a former elementary school.

But tickets are hard, err, impossible to come by unless you're a student at Milwaukee Excellence, a new charter school on the city's north side.

The headliner? Founder and principal Maurice Thomas.

GIF via Milwaukee Excellence/YouTube.

It's not easy to be a black kid in Wisconsin. That's why Maurice Thomas launched Milwaukee Excellence to serve kids in the city's urban core.

The graduation rate for black kids in Milwaukee Public Schools is just over 58%, a wide margin away from the overall graduation rate for the state, which sits at 88% — one of the highest in the nation.

The 2013 National Assessment of Education Progress showed eighth-grade reading scores for black kids in Wisconsin were the worst in any state and any ethnic group. That's tough data to overcome, but impossible is nothing.

Photo courtesy of Milwaukee Excellence Charter School.

Thomas, a Milwaukee native and former Teach for America Teacher of the Year, knows exactly what students of color in Milwaukee are up against. Now, his team of founding educators are in place to help the next generation of leaders step up to the challenge.

"​Do you wanna change the world? Do you wanna go to college?," he asked the students on the first day of school. "Well, that starts today."

Greater Milwaukee  is one of the most segregated regions in the country.

The difference in resources and outcomes for students just a few miles apart is stark.

Image by iStock.

Take for instance the 53217 zip code, home to Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, with an average household income of $95,965. Whitefish Bay High boasts an average ACT score of 25.75, one of the highest in the state. While just nine minutes away, at 24th and Hampton in the Milwaukee zip of 53209, the average household income is $33,119 and the average ACT at King International High School is 19.8.

Thomas wants to bring the resources, robust curriculum, and achievement to his home turf.

"That school is only nine minutes away from where we are. It's only nine minutes. We can close a nine-minute gap," Thomas said. "For us, it's about what does it take? How do we create the conditions to have the very best school in the state be in our neighborhood?"

That's why Milwaukee Excellence is not your average school.

The school day is longer. Students have double the reading and math time, including a daily block to work on computer science. They're served breakfast, lunch, and two healthy snacks.  They have recess and a physical activity period each day. There's daily time devoted to art, music, or chess. In their ninth grade year, Thomas hopes to take the entire class to South Africa. And since Milwaukee Excellence is a charter school, there's no tuition for parents and families to worry about.

This is not business as usual, and it can't be. The need is too great. The stakes are too high.

"We can have all those things here, in this place, and why not?" he said. "And it can be run by a black school leader, with black kids, and be the very best."

Photo courtesy of Milwaukee Excellence Charter School.

He knows the key to getting the job done is engagement. And that's where the rap comes in.

Every morning, after breakfast and 30 minutes of silent reading, the students and teachers gather in the hallway, grouped into their five advisories (sort of like homerooms) named after elite universities. There, Thomas delivers lessons on the school's core values (focus, integrity, respect, self-determination, and team), updates, and general announcements.

Photo courtesy of Milwaukee Excellence Charter School.

He started delivering the lessons and updates as a "traditional" principal would, but the messages weren't sticking for his 92 sixth-graders.

"I said, you know, I'm gonna put myself out there. We always encourage our students to raise their hand and be a risk-taker and speak loud and proud, and I'm gonna model for them what that means while shouting them out."

So Thomas started delivering Tuesday's words of advice in the form of an original hip-hop song. He incorporates their names, their teachers, and other Easter eggs to keep the kids' attention. Without fail, students are singing along by the end of each one.

And each week he delivers the Excellence Cup, an award that goes to the advisory with the most merits for making the right decisions. The traveling trophy comes complete with a Steve Urkel doll stuck on top, which is supposed to resemble Mr. Thomas.

Rapping, dancing, making fun of himself ... Thomas will do anything to engage and invest in his students.

And so far, it's working. Recently, the Excellence Cup went to the Howard Bison, an advisory with a group of boys that had a hard time adjusting to the rules and culture of their new school. But with the help of their teachers and Thomas, they're learning the ropes and boosting their confidence.

Each year, Milwaukee Excellence will add a grade, growing with the students. Maurice Thomas will grow too.

He's a young school leader, but he's buoyed by passion, talent, great colleagues, and a sense of purpose. It's the hardest thing he's done, but judging from the faces of his students, it's already worth it.

Can't get enough of Milwaukee Excellence? Sing along to Maurice Thomas' latest jam on homework.

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The Circus Project teaches homeless kids to fly. It's awesome.

Being a homeless kid can feel like walking a tightrope — so this nonprofit is teaching them how to be acrobats.

There are an estimated 1.7 million homeless youth in America.

That's a huge number — and a huge problem. Homeless teens are more likely to develop depression and PTSD, and even if they do get off the streets, they may still experience emotional and behavioral problems.

That's why there are a lot of programs out there to help homeless, at-risk youth. Some programs focus on mentorship, some help kids develop leadership skills, and others give them something to do to keep them out of trouble.

... and then there's the Circus Project, which teaches homeless kids how to fly.

Seriously.

All photos in this story were provided by the Circus Project and used with permission.

The Portland-based program uses the circus arts to help homeless youth channel their energy into productive, empowering social activity.

The circus arts are more Cirque du Soleil than Barnum & Bailey. There are no animals involved in the Circus Project's performances — just humans using their bodies to make really awesome art.

The students in the High Flyers outreach program take classes for 8-10 weeks to learn how to suspend themselves from aerial silks...

And perform trapeze acts...

And become acrobats.

The program's founder, Jenn Cohen, said that High Flyers isn't just about learning how to balance, hanging from a trapeze, or becoming really flexible. It's actually mostly focused on developing healthy coping skills and self-confidence in a positive, productive environment.

"Part of the curriculum is teaching them the skills to be able to work with authority, to be able to work with our peers," Jenn Cohen told Upworthy.

"Our curriculum is actually very integrated with life skills training," Jenn added.

The program also continues to support the students in their social circus program after they graduate.

The Circus Project began with just the outreach program, but they have now grown to include an academy with paid classes for the public too, as well as a professional performance troupe.

So, after the students complete their classes in the program for at-risk youth, the Circus Project offers them scholarships to participate in the public academy and continue to develop their circus skills.

"The big goal is to find these kids in the outreach program who really respond well to it and communicate to them that there is a place for them at the Circus Project if they can make it here," Sean Andries, Circus Project program director, told Upworthy.

Having a place to belong is something that isn't always available for homeless youth, but it can be life-changing.

Jessica Coshatt, a former homeless young adult who became a High Flyer, can attest to that. After participating in the High Flyers program, she's became a wellness specialist at another nonprofit for homeless youth. She recently told The Lund Report that her time in the Circus Project helped her transition out of homelessness.

"I wanted to get back inside for trapeze and acrobatics training," she said.

"Circus is fun, it's exciting, it's tough, and the only way you're going to get better at it is if you actually invest in it and work hard at it," Andries says.

The founders hope that between the circus arts and the support of fellow artists, these at-risk teens and young adults can find stability.

“What we see with a lot of these outreach teams that really respond to it is that it gives them something they really care about, that they're passionate about," Sean said.

"They realize that if they want to get better at it and pursue it, they need to organize the rest of their life in order to support that," he said.

This is such an amazing, unique way to help provide support to some of the people who need it the most.

Want to learn more? Check out this video to see what an actual Circus Project performance looks like:

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