My last week of Freedom School has allowed me to review my overall my experience. As I reflect on my time here, there has been a lot of personal growth.

This summer I have learned how to:

  • Interview people and gather their stories
  • Create weekly newsletters for stakeholders
  • Capture moments of Freedom School
  • Brand an organization on social media
  • Work with people from all departments
  • Use the Freedom School language on external platforms
  • How to adapt to different work situations
  • And so much more!

I have always been interested in this line of work. You see, I want to start my own non-profit in the future. Like Freedom School Partners, my non-profit will serve students of color and broaden their view of what they can do in the world. So, understanding the behind the scenes work of a non-profit was something important for me coming into this position. Working at Freedom School this summer helped me appreciate all the working pieces and what it really takes to make a non-profit run. Everyone here has such a different and important role to make Freedom School happen.

Seeing all the moving pieces allows me to take a mental as start my career path. I am in awe of the courage and planning it took for Freedom School to become what it is now. Sometimes the question, “Jada, can you even accomplish something like this one day?” creeps into my head. I won’t be able to do it alone, but I will be able to do it! Finding the right people with the same vision for this non-profit will be a critical step in building the foundation of it. It was nice getting to share my vision with some of the Freedom School staff. They mentored me and gave me steps to take to get to where I want to be. The relationships I have made in this organization are invaluable. I look forward to fostering them after I leave this position.

All in all, my experience at Freedom School has given me much more than I expected. I am so grateful for having the opportunity to work in this capacity over the past two months. The skills I have obtained here I will carry with me forever.

Thank you, Freedom School.