There’s a new renaissance happening in Harlem and the youth are leading it! All of the graduating seniors from Harlem’s Promise Academy received college acceptance letters, and on Wednesday, they had the perfect send off for their next phase.
Producer and entrepreneur extraordinaire Pharrell served as their graduation speaker and provided more than an inspirational message. He surprised them with the gift of a lifetime.
“So let me be clear, every member of the 2019 graduating class, is guaranteed an internship waiting for them, you, next summer,” Pharrell said in a video posted by Harlem’s Children’s Zone.
That’s 114 internships. 114 opportunities. 114 lives changed.
“It’s one thing to be ‘woke,’ another to be awake, leaned in and engaged,” said Pharrell during his keynote address.
The Promise Academy is a Harlem Children’s Zone high school led by Geoffrey Canada and Anne Williams-Isom. According to a statement on the school’s website, making sure each student gets into college and finishes is a part of their mission:
When students enter our Promise Academy® K-12 Charter Schools, we make a promise to help each and every one get to and through college. Everything we give our students—from world-class instruction and exceptional extracurricular activities to social emotional support and healthy meals—is aimed at fulfilling that promise.
Now Pharrell has made his very own promise that will give them valuable experience immediately following their freshman year in college. It’s a promise we know he’ll keep!
Congratulations to the graduating class and thank you to Pharrell and to the champions at the Promise Academy!
Photo credit: K. Kess