Academic Support

We believe that a strong academic foundation is a key to the successful transition of young people into greater society and adulthood. When youth have the right foundation, they enjoy better occupational and economic success. We promote a healthy learning environment that fosters a love of learning and gives them the internal motivation they need to become lifelong learners.

Talent and Cultural Development

We believe that talent comes naturally to most young people, but they often need help with fine-tuning it. We take young people who have a gift and help them to refine it, and give them the motivation they need to work at it. Malcolm Gladwell, author of “Outliers: The Story of Success,” suggests that it takes about 10,000 hours for a person to become a master in their craft. That’s a lot of practice! By helping our young people develop their talents, we give them the tools they need to keep practicing on their own, becoming extraordinary in their skills.

Career Exploration

We want to send our students into the world prepared for successful careers, so we offer numerous opportunities for them to narrow down their skills and explore career paths. We assist our students in securing paid internships, polish up their resumes, conduct practice interviews and bring in industry experts for fun and engaging talks.

Character Development

We understand that being the best performer means little if a young person struggles with character challenges. There are so many influences in the world—-good and bad—-and young people often struggle to make the right choices. We strongly emphasize the importance of teamwork, self-esteem, good citizenship, responsibility and good sportsmanship. We offer a safe space for our students—who range in age from five to 18 years old—to express their concerns, ask candid questions and talk through their thoughts. We are not only a team of performers and coaches, but of caring adults who understand the importance of developing good character at an early age.

Mentorship

While we take pride in all of the services we provide, we are most proud of our mentorship program. We get to know each member of the team, their goals, their interests, and their concerns, and pair them with caring and engaging mentors who can help them to sort through their life’s journey.

High Aspirations Incorporated

http://www.highaspirationskc.org/High Aspirations

College Readiness

Now more than ever, it is important for young people to be ready for success in college. Many graduating seniors are not equipped with the tools they need to complete the first critical year, and often struggle to keep up with the demands of college while managing their newfound freedom. We prepare our youth through study skills workshops, test prep and counseling. We also help them to sharpen their soft skills like critical thinking, problem solving, motivation and time management.

Performance Opportunities

We love to perform! Whether we are performing locally or traveling to Washington, D.C., Disneyland, or New Orleans, our young people look forward to performing. We have opportunities for several major performance areas including drumline, acrobatics, junior drumline, majorette, rifle squad, batons, and pom-poms. We also tie our performance opportunities into our academic achievement as students must maintain their grades in order to be approved to perform. 

Performance is transformative for our students. The ability to take to the stage and receive the warmth and support from friends, family, and the community has a lasting impact on our students and helps to give them the self-confidence they need to be able to make the best choices in life.