CHGA’s Scholars in Service program began in the spring of 2018. Since that time, the program has fostered four cohorts of the next generation of Atlanta's philanthropists and community advocates. This meaningful experience is rooted in the spirit of service and designed to cultivate a dedication to community and lifelong learning to high school students across the Metro Atlanta area. Beginning in summer 2022, we have revamped this program into a month-long event to create a more immersive experience for our students!
Over the last 4+ years, more than 100 students have come together to learn the ins and outs of the nonprofit community in Atlanta and to contribute their own strengths and skill sets to the continual improvement of our community. After learning about youth homelessness, service, and giving from some of Atlanta’s foremost philanthropic leaders, the students have executed service projects designed to raise awareness and meet specific needs with respect to youth homelessness in Atlanta.
As they worked together to creatively address a prominent social issue, each student also raised funds and awareness to make a profound impact in the lives of an often invisible subgroup of their own generation. At the conclusion of each program cohort, one Scholar was awarded the $2,500 Scholars in Service Scholarship and had the honor of presenting college-bound Covenant House Georgia youth a matching scholarship of $2,500 to support our educational service.
During their journeys, Scholars have made personal and lasting connections with other students and Atlanta’s philanthropic leaders, built service into their resumes to reflect their personal values, and broadened their understanding of social issues and services.
Sign up for program updates leading to summer 2022. Contact program lead, Hannah Hamrick, at hhamrick@covenanthouse.org to be added to our contact list.
Check out testimonials and highlights from past scholars, see all Alumni Scholars, and gain insight on the Scholars in Service movement as you wait for the new program in Summer 2022!
For the first time in the Scholars program, the 2020 Scholars were tasked to reflect on all they learned throughout the program and display this knowledge of youth homelessness and trafficking via a creative media-piece.
Check out a few of the cohort's projects below to see how the program impacted the 2020 Scholars.
Parents and School representatives, learn more information specific to you by clicking the buttons below. Information includes program history, past schools represented, FAQs, and our program's contact to gain more information on the upcoming revamped program in Summer 2022.
In Session 1, Scholars learned more about Covenant House and the realities of youth homelessness. How do youth experience homelessness at such a young age? How does Covenant House help youth get off the streets while empowering them and building their resiliency? Why is homelessness an issue in Atlanta, a city bustling with economic growth? In exploring these topics we shared how Covenant House Georgia provides a health and human safety net for Atlanta’s most vulnerable residents. Session 1 discussed in full the Scholars in Service program and kickstarted each Scholar's fundraising efforts through breaking down the essentials of philanthrophy and peer to peer fundraising.
In Session 2, Scholars learned about special issue topic: trafficking and how trafficking specifically affects youth experiencing homelessness from the subject experts at CHGA. Then Scholars broke up into roundtables for a small group discussion with current Covenant House Georgia youth to hear firsthand the experience of homelessness as a young person and to create empathetic connections between young people.
In Session 3, Scholars learned about the importance of service and philanthropy from guest speakers and the impact they can create when they work together to help our community. Scholars also completed a holiday service project to turn the discussion into action for our community.
In Session 4, the Scholars' families and friends were invited to join for the closing ceremony to acknowledge and celebrate all that the Scholars completed throughout the 4 month cohort. The $2,500 Scholars in Service Scholarship was awarded and the winning scholar had the honor of presenting the $2,500 matching scholarship to college-bound CHGA youth. Afterwards, all were able to participate in the capstone service project sponsored by Gas South in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day for a family service event.
Sign up for program updates leading to Summer 2022. Contact program lead, Christine Milano at cmilano@covenanthouse.org to be added to our contact list.
