Jasmine’s story before coming to Mercy Home is one that is all too common among the young people in our care.
The 16-year-old was incredibly bright, but lacked focus and had never been encouraged to succeed in the classroom. Thus, she failed the majority of her freshman year classes, as well as all of her sophomore classes, and arrived here a year behind in school.
“At a young age I had to take on some adult responsibilities, and education wasn’t my main priority,” she said. “I did whatever I wanted, and went by my own rules.”
With our help, Jasmine began to improve in school. Mercy Home placed her in a private high school on Chicago’s south side where she found the structure, resources and encouragement that she needed to thrive.
“Mercy Home opened up doors for me, with regard to education,” Jasmine said. “They enrolled me in a good school, helped me keep my priorities straight, and encouraged me to do my best.”
Making education a priority and teaching young people like Jasmine to focus on their studies is a critical part of our mission. Many of our kids come to us severely underperforming in school and underprepared academically—in fact, about half of all young people admitted to Mercy Home over the past year were a year behind in reading and/or math.
With the help of our comprehensive after-school programs, however, we know that our kids can bridge the academic gap that exists between them and their peers. Through daily tutoring, individualized school placement, supplementary academic courses, access to innovating math and reading software and much more, each of our kids is given the helping hand they need to ultimately excel.
Jasmine is the perfect example. Not only did she improve her grades, but she made the honor roll for the first time.
“We all knew Jasmine could do it, but she needed to believe that herself,” said Monti Clayton, a program manager at Mercy Home. “When Jasmine made the honor roll, she unlocked her inhibitions and recognized success was within her reach.”
Jasmine is now looking forward to going to college and becoming a social worker.
“I want to help kids with a similar background to mine,” she said. “I want to help them get the chance that I was given.”
