Building Warriors in Dallas’ Schools

June 16, 2011 - PRLog -- This summer, more than 250 youth from disadvantaged areas in Dallas will get hands-on enrichment training to help them stay on par with their peers in school, thanks to the fourth annual Young Warriors Learning Institute. A program of the Heart of a Warrior Charitable Foundation, the Learning Institute started in 2008 to provide a summer enrichment program designed to reduce the learning gap often seen in lower-income students when they return to school in the fall.

The eight-week summer academic enrichment program is designed to tutor children in math, science, nutrition and fundamentals of Spanish, as well as life skills including the value of service through volunteerism and leadership. This program adds value to underserved communities by providing a safe environment and ensuring the children of these areas do not fall behind in their studies due to the lack of high-quality activities and educational studies during the summertime.

This year’s Young Warriors Learning Institute began on June 6 and will continue through July 29, 2011.  Youth ages six to 15 will meet for three hours, five days a week at three Dallas locations: the Willie B. Johnson Recreation Center, supporting Hamilton Park community youth in Northeast Dallas; the Baylor Diabetes Health and Wellness Institute at Juanita J. Craft Recreation Center, serving youth in and around the Frazier Courts community in East Dallas; and the Saint Philips School and Community Center which assists South Dallas area youth.

“Our goal is to provide a curriculum designed to keep students engaged, on par with their peers and academically inspired during the summer months,” says Gail Warrior, chief executive officer of Warrior Group and the Foundation’s chairwoman and founder. “We want to illuminate the horizons of young people so they can see a future and their success in it, and we want to ensure not only the academic success of these children, but the self-awareness and pride that comes from true accomplishment.”

According to recent academic studies, programs like the Young Warriors Learning Institute fulfill a critical need. In one study, an education researcher affiliated with Duke University concluded that the average student loses about a month of progress in math skills each summer, while low-income students may slip three months or more in reading comprehension or similar skills. Another study, conducted by Johns Hopkins University, concluded that by the completion of grammar school, low-income students fell nearly three grade levels behind middle- and upper-income kids, and that summer was the biggest culprit. By ninth grade, the studies concluded that summer learning loss could be blamed for roughly two-thirds of the achievement gap separating income groups.  

“The summer Learning Institute has been successful because we’ve kept students engaged by offering them a variety of activities from traditional classroom education to exposure to entrepreneurs and community leaders,” added Warrior.  “Students in the program will enjoy courses in music, art, science and health taught primarily in a classroom setting, supplemented by field trips to various Dallas businesses, museums and facilities of interest.”

This year’s field trips include the International Museum of Cultures in Cedar Hill, the Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Institute in Dallas, the Nasher Sculpture Center and Wyly Theatre in the Dallas Arts District, the Texas Motor Speedway - Solar Car Challenge in Roanoke, and finally a campus tour of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, in conjunction with the Young Warriors Learning Institute Graduation celebration.

“The Young Warrior Learning Institute is designed to help underserved area-children bridge the gap in education and life skills that many would not otherwise have access to,” said Warrior. “Our program is not designed like the typical arts and crafts projects of summer camps past, but is carefully staffed with trained professionals who provide quality, hands-on instruction, along with enrichment programs that teach them the critical skills they need to be successful in life.”

About Heart of a Warrior Charitable Foundation
Heart of a Warrior Charitable Foundation (HOAW) is a 501 (c) (3) public non-profit, launched in early 2007 by founder, Gail Warrior-Lawrence, president and CEO of Warrior Group. The HOAW mission is to generate, facilitate and execute programs and resources that provide total enrichment opportunities that are educational, cultural, and experiential and life enhancing, through programs targeting underserved children. Additional information is available online at www.heartofawarriorfoundation.org.

About Warrior Group
Warrior Group, based in DeSoto, Texas, is a premier commercial construction contractor and a leader in the use of the PMC construction method (permanent modular construction) to delivery high quality, sustainable buildings on an accelerated construction schedule. The 14-year old company is one of the largest minority- and woman-owned general contractors in the U.S. with more than four million square feet of successfully completed projects in the last four years alone, and with an impressive roster of private and public sector clients across the United States. Warrior is dedicated to building long-term customer relationships by continually surpassing expectations and providing superior customer service. www.warriorconstruction.com.