Story and Photos by Shawniece Mitchell Data News Weekly Contributor
Local high school students attending InspireNOLA Charter Schools participated in the NOLALove Charter Schools and Rock of Ages Baptist Church’s Celebration of Inspiration, Love, and Advocacy on Sept. 6th. Bishop T.D. Jakes, the Motivational Speaker and Christian Pastor, told students to commit to a life-long journey of making a difference, in a conversation with Jonathan Everett, the Pastor of Rock of Ages Baptist Church.
“You’re going to spend the rest of your life defining your identity,” Jakes said. “You won’t be finished at 18. You won’t be finished at 21. You won’t be finished at 41. Because life keeps changing, and it keeps evolving. You will be excavating things out of yourself that you didn’t know you had.”
Student choirs from Edna Karr High School, Eleanor McMain Secondary School and L.B. Landry High Schools performed at Xavier University of Louisiana’s Convocation Center, while New Orleans Rapper and Songwriter Mia Young, known as Mia X, offered students advise on navigating the teen years.
“If you’re not going to remember something in five years, especially when it comes to matters of the heart, don’t waste five minutes beefing on it,” Young said. “Because what’s for you is yours and nobody else’s and what’s for them is theirs and nobody else’s.”
Young also used anecdotes from her past to encourage the high school students to continue rising above life challenges.
“I know some of you have survived some things that might kill other people,” she said. “You have continued to be strong, and I am begging you to focus and trust your dope-ness.”
As the 2024 presidential election season continues, with many high school students eligible to vote for the first time,
Dr. Tammi Major, the Chief Executive Officer of Algiers Charter School Association, said she wanted to take this empowerment a step further – to the voting booths.
“Voting isn’t just a privilege,” Major said. “It’s a powerful way to let your voice be heard, to stand up for what you believe in, and to shape the direction of your community, your state, and even your country. If we don’t participate in this process, we give up our power to influence decisions,” she added.
Several elected officials including State Representatives Delisha Boyd, Candace N. Newel, and Matthew Willard and New Orleans Council Members Oliver Thomas, Jean Paul “JP” Morrell, and Freddie King, spoke to the students about the importance of using their right to vote.
“My call to action is please get involved, please register to vote, please show up to the polls and vote because that’s the only way that you will be able to shape the future that you want to see,” said Matthew Willard, La. State Representative for District 97.
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