PAIR high school students join in exciting 
new summer opportunities 

This year, thanks to the creative work of PAIR's high school program managers, Shaina Holm and Mariel Sanchez, the efforts of several volunteers, and partnerships with other community organizations,  our high school students have had many exciting opportunities to learn, explore, and grow. Discover what they've been up to below.

YWLC participants at the Houston Food Bank
The Young Women's Leadership Challenge 
A global network of young leaders

PAIR students from both Wisdom and Westbury high schools were accepted and received scholarships to the Young Women's Leadership Challenge, run by the Pangea Network at Rice University. During the six-day conference students learned first-hand about what it means to be a leader, a social entrepreneur, a peace-builder - and a well-rounded, globally-minded individual. Students planned community projects that they'll complete during the school year. Projects include creating a place for refugee youth to find out about educational opportunities, creating a health and fitness club for girls at Wisdom, creating a career guest speaker series for Wisdom, and creating a volunteer club at Westbury. In addition to completing their projects, students will participate in fall and spring workshops and attend lectures during the coming year. Ultimately, they'll become part of a global network of young leaders. 
  line

Students prepare to dissect a pig's heart!
Camp Spark! 
Exploring STEM careers

Camp Spark! is a program created for PAIR high school students by three Rice University graduate students: Katelin Cherry, Alyssa Shapiro, and Melody Tan. The five-day program brought PAIR students to the Rice campus to learn from PhD students in different STEM (science, technology, engineering, and medicine) fields and to do hands-on experiments. High school students sampled exciting developments in computer science, ecology, food science, geology, global health, optics, polymers, and biology. Katelin, who had worked with refugees at  The Community Cloth and wanted refugee youth to know the many possibilities for STEM-related careers, developed the idea for the camp and supported it through Rice's GradStarter program. 
line

PAIR students with Mr. David, communications instructor
Project GRAD College & Career Institutes 
Preparing for the future 

PAIR students from Wisdom and Westbury high schools attended P roject GRAD Institutes at Houston Community College and Texas State Technical College. During the eight-day institutes, Workforce Solutions led lessons about careers in high demand, opportunities for post-secondary education, college requirements, and financial aid. Students also practiced professionalism and communication skills, including making presentations, filling out applications, and interviewing before an employer panel.

At the HCC Institute, students heard from career speakers in the fields of education, law, and accounting and visited the HCC Coleman campus to learn about health
Sanjay tries welding!
 sciences and medical professions. They also toured the University of Houston and visited the Houston branch of the Federal Reserve Bank. Throughout the program, students researched the careers that interested them and created videos to share what they learned. One PAIR student was selected to  present her 30-second "elevator speech" at the closing ceremony, and another student won the drawing for a $500 scholarship. 

The TSTC Institute focused on technical and vocational careers. Through various "career experiences," students participated in hands-on activities to learn about industrial maintenance, welding, cybersecurity, diesel equipment, and HVAC technology. Students were able to tour a local manufacturing business and go on a field trip to the University of Houston-Victoria. 
See more from PAIR by following us!