PLTI: Testimonials, Part I
Photo courtesy of LaVon Curtis
LaVon Curtis — PLTI graduate, founder of BRYCE Project, a mentorship nonprofit for girls.
What I learned from PLTI definitely was an eye opener as far as the different aspects of the community, all the different functions of how a government works, how the school system works. As a citizen of the city, who grew up in this city, I felt like it was important to give back to the city from which I came.
PLTI opened doors. It gave me my stepping stone. It gave me the courage, the confidence I needed to proceed with something I had considered. It was such a scary thing, but once I joined PLTI I had a better understanding of not only the nonprofit aspect, but how to use certain words, and how to network with people.
The BRYCE Project was something I thought I needed when I was growing up, and something I wanted to provided to other young girls. It started out as a project, it was not a non-profit. It grew into its own little world. People started clinging on. PLTI definitely changed my life. They gave me the opportunity to open up the doors for myself.
Photo courtesy of Mario Ashby (the one in the hat)
Mario Ashby — PLTI graduate, founder of Men Making Men, a community project to encourage more men to become involved in public schools.
[After Parent Leadership Training Institute], I felt better informed. I felt empowered. I felt like there were answers I could get for questions I have.
What you find out is that when people have problems, the main thing that holds people back is ignorance. They don’t know they have certain rights. When we talked about being different, it opened up our eyes to different perceptions, and it showed me that my view wasn’t the only one.
When I would go into my kid’s schools, I noticed how good my son felt when I was with him. I thought nothing of it. Then this little voice behind me said “can you be my dad, too?” It was funny, but it was sad. That’s what inspired me to encourage fathers, grandfathers, uncles, cousins, to come out and participate with them at events. I believe (father figures) should be a part of a child’s school life.