Young Peace Ambassadors Academy was invited to Student Opportunities Fair
(October 8, 2015) The Journalists and Writers’s Young Peace Ambassadors Academy was invited to the annual Student Opportunities Fair hosted by Urban Assembly School for Emergency Management (UASEM) and Urban Assembly Maker Academy (UAMA) in Manhattan, NY. Nushrat and Nasreen were two high school students from UASEM and UAMA, who had a terrific experience at the Young Peace
Ambassadors Academy (YPAA), welcomed The Journalists and Writers to the school fair. Elizabeth Oliver, the Partnership Coordiator at UASEM said that they would like to encourage more students to apply to YPA Academy for the upcoming year. As our Peace Ambassadors, Nusrat and Nasreen briefed their friends about their experience and future prospects in learning about the United Nations and global affairs.
Nushrat and Nasreen established a Model UN club after participating at the YPA Academy last year. They are planning to organize events at the school to create awareness on global issues. One of the first activities will be a UN guided tour in the following month.The Journalists and Writers will provide resources to the students to reach out to more students who are interested in global affairs.
Cemre Ulker, US. Director of the Journalist and Writers Foundation described the program goals and informed the students about the benefits of the program to their academic performance as a college prepatory project. Ms. Ulker said that YPAA is a peace education program designed for high school students in New York City. This pilot project educates high school students on global concerns such as human rights, women empowerment and girl’s education, poverty and hunger, environmental sustainability, and more. This is a step forward to the college for students who are interested in studying political science, international relations and global studies. Students get a chance to visit the United Nations, meet with UN Ambassadors and learn from diplomats accredited to the United Nations. “
Mehmet Kilic, President of theJournalist and Writers Foundation said: “YPA Academy aspires to bring up global citizens who are concerned about people who are in need of help across the globe. We are planning to implement this pilot project in Africa, the Balkan region and South Asia in the following years. Currently, we are designing our course book that has the curriculum, lesson plans, activities, and guidelines for educators who want to apply this program in their home country.”
About 500 students from two high schools – UASEM, UAMA – with outstanding rates of student participation visited tables of YPA Academy and various community organizations and learned about possible programs and signed up for activities that will enrich their school year.
According to Elizabeth Oliver, past fairs have been hugely successful in connecting students and organizations with matching interests, as well as building student awareness of all the amazing opportunities New York City has to offer. Connections made at this event, and the relationships formed and the experiences has as a result, have made a critical difference in the students’ lives.