Please join us in this local day of giving. We’re still serving our students, who struggle in the best of times, and have even celebrated a few graduations! But these students need us now more than ever. We are staying true to our mission and are supporting our students and their families, connecting them with resources they need most.
In order to do our part to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and protect our staff and students, as of the end of Friday, March 13, the D2 Center has closed our physical office and moved to a remote work model.
Our new YAN Spotlight series is an extension of our “Meet the Staff” series of posts where we follow up with our Youth Academic Navigators since the last time they were featured on the blog.
Every D2 Center student is different, but one common thread we see is their need for individualized help navigating barriers blocking their engagement in school. Sometimes, these barriers seem to multiply as time goes on. Here on the blog, we’ll be sharing student stories to give our readers an idea of how these factors can complicate students’ efforts to reengage in school and earn their high school diploma. This is Shayla’s story, which illustrates the at-times endless challenges as well as the help a D2 Center YAN can provide.
Thanks to the United Way of the Midlands, a new Sponsored Feature in the Omaha World-Herald shines a spotlight on the Opportunity Youth Alliance, a group of more than 5o local nonprofits working with youth ages 16-24. The D2 Center has been active with the OYA since its inception, and the World-Herald feature includes an interview with the D2 Center’s own Greg Emmel, along with Ronda Newman from Project Everlast Omaha and Chad Mares from Greater Omaha WorkLab.
Each D2 Center student brings a unique set of circumstances that have led to their disengagement from school. There are some commonalities across their situations, but on a one-on-one basis, it’s the D2 Center Youth Academic Navigator (YAN’s) job to help the student sort out their own individual barriers and assist with strategies to overcome those barriers. Who are our students and what obstacles have they overcome to succeed? Over the next few months on the blog, we’ll be sharing student stories; here is Juan’s story.