Good Intentions, Inc. Partners WIth Empress Theatre and House of Acts For 2012 Teen Summit & Odyssey Program
-- Free Event, Free Gear, Free Movie Screening, & Access To Mentors For Vallejo's Youth During Winter Break --
Taira G. Scott, President of Good Intentions, Inc., 2L student at Barry University School of Law, and Vallejo High alumnus
Vallejo, CA (December 19, 2012) -- Good Intentions, Inc. has partnered with Vallejo's Empress Theatre and the House of Acts on an educational leadership and mentor connection event, called Teen Summit & Odyssey Program. The event is exclusive to students who are currently enrolled in a middle or high school (13-18 years old) within the Vallejo City Unified School District (VCUSD). On Saturday, December 22, 2012, the summit is expected to attract +300 teens at the Empress Theatre in Vallejo, California, starting at 12PM. The summit is free for students to attend (student I.D. is required). Walk-ups are welcome, but parents and/or students can learn how to RSVP online at http://goodintentionsinc.wix.com/giinc#!teensummit/c786.
Teen Summit is an event produced by Good Intentions, Inc. during the school district's Winter Break; with the support of community leaders, VCUSD educators, and other endemic organizations to make this event compelling and effective. The purpose of Teen Summit is to engage with VCUSD students, reinforce Vallejo's commitment to youth enrichment, and provide resources that are youth-friendly and readily accessible.
"We are greatly concerned with the reports of alarming dropout and expulsion rates and the apathy of our educators in Vallejo. Our Board was approached in October by several educators, who expressed a need for urgent innovative action", say's Taira G. Scott, President of Good Intentions, Inc., 2L student at Barry University School of Law, and Vallejo High alumnus.
The summit exposes middle and high school students to a speakers' panel of VCUSD alumni and Bay Area professionals who have gained success and demonstrate outstanding leadership, as well as offers a social, innovative, and relevant platform to effectively engage with under-resourced students. This year's host and presenting sponsor for Teen Summit is the Empress Theatre and the official sponsor for the Odyssey Program is the House of Acts.
"I'm elated to have Empress Theater, the quintessential landmark in Downtown Vallejo, as our presenting sponsor and I'm impressed by the enthusiasm of this year's partners and volunteers who are vigorously carrying-out this needed movement for Vallejo," say's Scott in response to the sentiments by Timothy S. MacDonald, Board of Trustees President who stated, "It's wonderful to meet a team like Good Intentions, Inc. with so much to offer to our community. The Board of Trustees is very excited to sponsor this youth enrichment event and we look forward to growing our community together."
The speakers' panel includes: John M. Hubbell, Emmy Award-Winner, Writer, Producer and Vallejo High alumnus; Shamann Walton, Executive Director at Young Community Developers, Inc., 2012 candidate for San Francisco Board of Education and Vallejo High alumnus; Dr. Dewone Bennett Jr., Psychologist and Vallejo High alumnus; Dannell (D-Shot) Stevens, Rapper, Filmmaker, Entrepreneur and Vallejo native; Dierdre Wallace, Founder and Footwear Designer of deeFind Shoes; Kerri Gawryn, Award-Winning Writer and Film Producer; and Shaun Tai, Executive Director and Founder of Oakland Digital Arts & Literacy Center, Shaun Tai Films, and Shaun Tai Media.
Teen Summit has an unprecedented opportunity to redesign the city's approach to youth outreach and mentorship by having onsite mentors such as the WIT Academy and the Willie B. Adkins Project. Some of the perks for the students include receiving extra credit from participating teachers for their attendance, scholarship announcement by the House of Acts, prom dress contest by ahr.es.ihm(TM) Apparel Group LLC and Evolving Images, Inc., contest to win a pair of designer shoes by deeFind, a private screening of the prolific Kerri Gawryn Film 'A Lovely Day' (at 7PM; admittance only with proof of summit attendance), free gear for the first 30 students in line, and gift card prizes for positive tweets during the summit about @Good4Vallejo #TNSMT.
About Good Intentions, Inc.
Good Intentions, Inc. was founded with the purpose to engage a critical mass of underserved students within the county of Solano and to augment partnerships with schools, teacher associations, and community agencies. Through social innovation, Good Intentions, Inc. connects students with professionals and nurturing individuals who recognize the power of mentorship as an effective way to increase high school graduation, college eligibility and enrollment, and college graduation rates among low-income, under-resourced high school students. Visit http://goodintentionsinc.wix.com/giinc and www.facebook.com/goodintentionsinc.
About Empress Theatre
The Empress Theatre is a historical landmark located in downtown Vallejo, California, built as a movie palace in 1911 and offers an intimate ambiance and considered "...one of the prettiest small theatres on the coast". It was re-opened in 2008 after nearly 20 years of disuse following the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake with period-appropriate décor, two-tiered with gold-leafed clouds on the ceiling, and red velvet seats. Operated as a non-profit, it regularly hosts live performances of R&B, jazz, blues, pop, rock, gospel, classical music, as well as ballets, plays, stand-up comedy, lecture series, special events, and showings of classical movies from Hollywood's Golden Age. Visit www.empresstheatre.org and www.fb.com/pages/Empress-Theatre/229564840316.
About the House of Acts
The House of Acts is a non-profit 501(c)3, community- and faith-based, residential social model program, established in 1989 and located in Vallejo, California (Solano County) of the San Francisco Bay Area. We serve adults and transitional youth within a long-term substance abuse treatment program and sober-living environment. We assist them with their goals to overcome drug addiction, alcoholism, addictive behaviors, poverty, and homelessness. Our staff of intelligent, passionate, and certified clinical counselors have over 50 years of combined experience in counseling, mental health, and drug/alcohol prevention and rehabilitation. By integrating medical approaches to therapy, 12-steps, a highly empathic practice, and providing an atmosphere of healing to lives that have been impaired by alcohol and/or drugs, we are able to help empower our clients to fight the disease of addiction and help them create a foundation for family reunification, workforce readiness, and community involvement. Visit www.houseofacts.org and www.fb.com/thehouseofacts.
PRESS CONTACT:
Taira G. Scott/ Kamicha Boughton
Good Intentions, Inc.
627 Grant Street
Vallejo, California 94590
goodintentionsincorporated@gmail.com
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