Sixth Grader Honored by Obama and First Lady
By Erin Hodge-Williams
Executive Director, Higher Achievement
Baltimore Higher Achievement is a non-profit that helps middle school youth achieve academic success and attend top high schools.
 Ta’Shawn Miles is a 6th-grade student at Collington Square Elementary/Middle School. After school, Ta’Shawn attends Baltimore Higher Achievement, a four-year, year-round academic enrichment program for middle school students. Three nights a week, Ta’Shawn studies academic subjects with committed volunteer mentors. Ta’Shawn and his mentor, Amanda Pizzurro, were among several mentors and mentees across the country invited by President Obama and the first lady to celebrate National Mentoring Month at the White House last week.
Both the president and the first lady shared remarks during the mentoring celebration. The president wanted to recognize all of the mentors who were there—for their encouragement, their inspiration and the example they're providing to young people all across this country. The first lady stressed that “the biggest lesson [we] have learned ... is that each of us has the ability to move beyond the circumstances that we were born into. That's really the story of both me and the president: that through hard work and perseverance, you can actually choose the life that you want to live—it’s your choice.”
Amanda Pizzurro has been a Higher Achievement mentor since the organization’s After-School Academy launched in October 2009. An employee of United Way, Pizzurro’s service efforts are joined by United Way President and CEO Mark Furst. Pizzurro and Furst are just a few of approximately 90 dedicated mentors who spend their evenings mentoring students like Ta’Shawn Miles.
When asked about his presidential visit, Miles shared: “It was so exciting! I never thought a day in my life I'd meet the first black president of the United States. It was an honor for me to walk into the White House because so many people will never have that experience. I was happy to have that experience with my mentor.”
Erika Miles, Ta’Shawn’s mother, expressed a similar level of excitement about his academic growth. Higher Achievement has helped Ta’Shawn take his education seriously by showing him the different heights he can reach by receiving a proper education. Not only does he take his education seriously, but Higher Achievement has made him excited about learning and confident that he will achieve his goals. I see Ta’Shawn doing monumental things now, like attending the White House, and in his future, thanks to the experiences he has in Higher Achievement.
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