Future Steps

Over the course of the remainder of this year and into the next school year, we are committed to fostering continued growth and expansion of our project. Our goal has evolved significantly, expanding from a small initiative to a larger aspiration aimed at raising awareness in as many places in the community as possible. After recognizing the number of students at our school who feel unheard and isolated, we realized the importance of building stronger connections with students and organizations across neighboring cities, creating a broader network of support and collaboration. Additionally, we plan to enhance our online presence by posting regularly on social media, sharing our events, achievements, and initiatives with a wider audience. Through these efforts, we hope to engage more members, raise awareness about our cause, and establish our club as a prominent and active part of the community.

Currently, we have set up partnerships with an assortment of organizations and known individuals in our community, such as Heights of Philadelphia, Step-Team, Launchpad, Project Always Receiving, The Block That Gives Back, the Pennsylvania State Senator Sharif Street, and State of Pennsylvania Representative Danilo Burgos.

Heights of Philadelphia is an educational space of opportunities for low-income and minority students. The Step-Team is led by our school psychologist to alleviate student depression and stress. We believe the pressure to find internships for future career paths can be stressful, so we would advocate to build a space for students who feel overwhelmed to join the Step-Team and contribute to small activities for building coping mechanisms.

For Launchpad, we are planning to upgrade our website and build an app, in order for people to talk about their experiences with isolation, stress, depression, detachment, and more. Our goal is to make it like the popular apps Reddit and Quora, so anyone can answer and ask questions about experiences with mental health. 

The nonprofit organization Project Always Receiving aims to maintain community gardens, develop skills in project management, engage with potential donors and sponsors, conduct research of the issues around the Philadelphia community, and attend local community meetings. They are helping us write grants to organizations in order to fundraise money, and increase our budget to carry out more events. Additionally, they are helping us attend community volunteer events and town hall meetings in the Northeast Area, so we as a team are more notified of the activities and issues that are occurring in the neighborhood. 

The Block That Gives Back is an organization that “gives back” to the community by offering social events and basketball games at different schools, after accomplishing a charitable act, such as a community cleanup. Currently, we are planning to set up guest speakers affiliated with mental health, and is known by the President of The Block that Gives Back, Hakeem Ruiz.

As for PA State Senator Sharif Street, and PA State Representative Danilo Burgos, our goal is to network with them to spread the word to prominent mental health organizations. We aim to collaborate on events that extend beyond just Abraham Lincoln High School, reaching across the city.

Furthermore, for in-school activities, we will continue the anonymous bowl event every week, posing a different question. Every Wednesday, there will be a bowl left out in the hallway in order for passing by students to leave an answer to a question of the week, such as “What is the most hurtful experience you’ve experienced?” or “What’s the kindest words someone has said to you?”

We hope that our dedication to this project, beyond HOSA, is clear through our passion and that these ideas will make a lasting impact on many people over the coming year!