Student transformations and building confidence

Chuck Shaw, Agency Business Development, Google

Chuck taught several Citizen Schools apprenticeships including Generation Citizen, Talk Like a Pro, Shark Tank and creative writing. He comes back year after year because he’s always “blown away” during the WOW!, where students showcase their projects to volunteers, teachers, family and fellow students. Oftentimes, he finds “those that you least expect, shine the most.”

Chuck’s fondest memories are of the biggest transformations in Talk Like a Pro, recalling how Stephanie, one of his more reserved students ended up being the star of the show. By the end of the project, she was projecting so much confidence when she spoke that observers had “tears in our eyes...we were so impressed,” he said.

Another Talk Like Pro student, 7th grader Olivia, submitted her work from the project for an opportunity to speak at the New York Bar Association. Olivia was selected, bookended by high school juniors and seniors from another school on her left and right. After her presentation in front of a panel of judges, one judge came up to her and told her, “I just had to let you know, you were amazing!”

Stephanie and Olivia demonstrate the transformative power of these apprenticeships and Chucks shows us how mentorship from Citizen Teachers fuels that transformation.