Talk About Your Future, Inc. Launches New Website for Grady Talks Program

Non-profit organization's new website offers streaming video of 2011-2012 school year lectures

ATLANTA, Sept. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Talk About Your Future, an Atlanta-based nonprofit organization focused on helping at-risk students at Atlanta's urban high schools to graduate and move on to productive careers and happy, healthy lives, has launched a new website for Grady Talks, its volunteer initiative focused on connecting business professionals with urban high school students through a series of lectures and discussions. GradyTalks.org, which features streaming video of lectures from the 2011-2012 school year, includes video footage of previous assemblies and events, as well as an updated calendar of events for the 2011 – 2012 school year.

Grady Talks seeks to introduce at-risk urban high school students to a variety of local businesspeople from various professions, in a non-threatening small group setting. Topics vary from person to person, but all lectures focus on the importance of staying in school and graduating, while also encouraging students to find their passions, follow their dreams, and define their own successes. "We are so proud of the new face of our organization," said Liz Lieberman, founder of Grady Talks. "Through our new website, students will be able to not only learn more about the Grady Talks program, but will be able to easily view upcoming lectures and events and provide feedback."

About Grady Talks Grady Talks is a volunteer effort that endeavors to link urban public high school students with business professionals, in order to ignite the passion needed to develop a healthy life. This includes providing opportunities for these students to succeed through connections with business professionals, creating a plan to help students define success while encouraging them to follow their dreams and passions. The goal of Grady Talks is to provide every student in urban Atlanta Schools the chance to engage professionals in any business field and hear important stories of lessons learned by the great minds in the business world. For more information visit www.gradytalks.org

Press Contact:
Jeri Yoshida
Strategic Vantage Marketing & Public Relations
310 396 8813
JeriYoshida@StrategicVantage.com
SOURCE Talk About Your Future, Inc.
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http://www.gradytalks.org

Panel on Meet the Press says "Get Adults Involved in Kids Education"

Yesterday on Meet the Press there was a very relevant discussion about education.  I wish we could introduce Grady Talks to this panel. 

On the show Bill Bennett, Former Sec. of Education,  says, "We need to get adults involved in the child's world".   Tim Shiver, Chairman of The Special Olympics, says, "We can teach children to be optimistic and persistent.  He asks, "What would it take for kids to leave the school inspired?".   Tavis Smiley, NPR Host, says "Kids need to know how to think critically for themselves" and Donna Shalala, former Sec. of Health and Human Services,  says "Students need to know how to absorb new knowledge". 

Grady Talks is a volunteer effort which endeavors to link urban public high school students with business professionals, in order to ignite the passion needed to develop a healthy life. This includes providing opportunities for these students to succeed through connections with business professionals, creating a plan to help students define success while encouraging them to follow their dreams and passions. The goal of Grady Talks is to provide every student in urban Atlanta Schools the chance to engage professionals in any business field and hear important stories of lessons learned by the great minds in the business world. For more information visit www.gradytalks.org

Suneel Mandava to Speak October 14th for Grady Talks

William Blair & Company Managing Director, Suneel Mandava, is scheduled to speak on October 14th at Grady High School as part of the Grady Talks program.  Suneel is in the firm's Special Situations & Restructuring unit.  His company is a global investment firm offering investment banking, asset management, equity research, institutional and private brokerage, and private capital to individual, institutional, and issuing clients.  This is Suneel's first visit to Grady Talks.   He'll be sharing the class with Lawrence Toner of Turner Broadcasting. 

 

 

Lawrence Toner to Speak October 14th for Grady Talks

Turner Broadcasting Vice President of Operations/Project Services/Original Productions, Lawrence Toner, is scheduled to speak on October 14th at Grady High School as part of the Grady Talks program.  Lawrence addressed the students last year and talked about the TV business and how using common sense and building relationships is the key to job search. He told the students to be fearless and stop expecting that life is about fairness.



Here are some highlights from last years talk:

Jeff Johnson to Speak October 13th for Grady Talks

Atlanta TV Personality, Jeff Johnson, is scheduled to speak on October 13th at Grady High School as part of the Grady Talks program.  Jeff addressed the students last year and again for the 9th grade inauguration assembly.

Jeff has participated in Grady Talks on two other occasions.  He presented to a class on October 13th, 2010 and talked about Making a Good Impression.  He and Dave Walker also spoke at the 9th Graders New Student Orientation this past August.  You can find Jeff's bio on Grady Talks here.  Jeff's LinkedIn page is has a his full history.  To read Jeff Blog, go to GetJeffJohnsonnow.com


Here are some highlights from last years talk.:

Feedback from Grady High Students on Jae Brown's Talk

Jae Brown, CDC Emergency Management Specialist, told stories of his youth and getting in the kind of trouble that would kill anyone else's career. Jae's inspirational tales remind us that you can bounce back from adversity, if you are persistent and can recognize opportunity when you see it.

Jae got a great response from the students at Grady High School. Here are some excerpts from the letters that he received after the talk:

1. "Thank you for enlightening me on 2nd chances".
   
2. "Your life stories and reflections were very inspiring and put everything in perspective".
   
3. "I know that I've made mistakes too. These mistakes made me think that they would stop me from achieving my dream of being a medical doctor. I know now that it is not too late for me to aspire for better things and have a good future".
   
4. "Your stories were very inspirational".
   
5. "I especially was inspired with the advice of you never know when a second chance will become your last chance. This nugget of wisdom really stuck with me".
6. "I feel as though your speaking time has touched my life and has allowed me to view aspects in my life differently".
7. "You gave me the instruction to want to strive harder to reach my goals in life".
   
8. "I really appreciate the information that I was given".
   
9. "I learned things that will stick with me the rest of my life".
   
10. "It's true that you can always get back up every time you get knocked down".
    
11. "Your speech has put me over the edge to completely rid myself of the issue (of procrastination)".
    
12. "The best part of the speech was when you (said)...don't let your past life bring you down".
    
13. "After hearing your speech I want to go straight home and research more scholarships and programs. I feel really encouraged to achieve my dreams. Thank you".
    
14. "I would like to keep in contact with you. Thank you for speaking with us".

Jae Brown: Second Chances and Last Chances from Grady Talks on Vimeo.
Jae Brown, CDC Emergency Management Specialist, told stories of his youth and getting in the kind of trouble that would kill anyone else's career. Jae's inspirational tales remind us that you can bounce back from adversity, if you are persistent and can recognize opportunity when you see it.

Feedback from Grady High Students on Genie Sockel's Talk

Recently, Genie Sockel spoke about her career path to kick off a series of 18 talks scheduled at Grady High this year. She talked about how she went to Yale Law school and made a transition to creating a sensitivity training company.

The students seemed to really respond to her inspirational message and many chose to send her thank you notes to express their feelings.  Here are some excerpts from the notes that Genie received from the students:

1. "You convinced me that you have to follow your dream.  I was absolutely inspired by your presentation."
    
2. "As you presented, every word you said was meaningful."
    
3. "You helped me put my future into perspective. You showed us when you said just because you went to college for law,  you still changed your career path."
    
4. "Your presentation has motivated me to take more control of my life and career path.  I admire your hard work and it makes me want to work even harder."
    
5. "I did learn something...thank you for coming on short notice."
    
6. "You made me realize that through work and perseverance, you can achieve anything." 
    
7. "I love you, you are awesome."
    
8. "I really took what you said into consideration."
    
9. "Thank you for being an inspiration and teaching us something new....thank you for bringing out important information about networking, discrimination, and tools that can get us through life." 
    
10. "You taught me "Akamai" which I think is cool."
     
11. "You have inspired me and releaved stress.  Now, I'm not worried about zig-zagging and changing my major or career path."
     
12. "I have learned a few key tips to find my goal in life." 
     
13. "You are good people!"

The entire talk can be viewed here:

Genie Sockel: Being Your Akamai Self from Grady Talks on Vimeo.

Experienced Lawyer, Genie Sockel, owner of Akamai Sensitivity Training (akamaisensitivitytraining.com) talks to a class at Atlanta's Grady High School about her career and the student's future. Genie shares her experiences with the students and asks them to think of the benefits make a good impression on people and avoiding unintended offenses due to a lack of cultural sensitivity. She explains what it means to understand your own personal "Smarts" and to use your "Smartness" to leverage improvements in other parts of your life.

http://bit.ly/nmnYdu

NEW VIDEO: Jae Brown on Finding Success after Getting In Trouble

On his third trip to Grady High School as part of Grady Talks, Jae Brown, CDC Emergency Management Specialist, reveals a story about how difficult it was to be a success after being convicted of a crime.

His inspirational tale reminds us that you can bounce back from adversity, but only if you keep at it.

NEW VIDEO: Genie Sockel on Being Your Akamai Self

Today we post a new video of yesterday's talk by Genie Sockel which she titles, Being Your Akamai Self. Genie explains that Akamai means Smart in the sense that your smarts are your strengths. The short version of the talks is posted below. To find the full length talk, follow this link to our Vimeo Page here.

In this short clip, Genie teaches an important life lesson using dating as an example. Do you have a similar story you might share that happened in your life?

Here are 9 Full-Length Talks from Grady Talks

Genie Sockel to Talk at Grady High This Week

As a last minute change, workplace sensitivity expert Genie Sockel,  has agreed to present her career perspective to students at Grady High School.  We are lucky to have get Genie jump in on short notice.

Genie has worked as a employment litigator at one of the nation's top employment law firms.  She now runs Akamai Sensitivity Training.   She helps managers who may not be aware of the impact of their communication and behavior on their colleagues and subordinates.

For students, misplaced humor, sometimes heard in their own homes, can easily blow a job interview and make the difference between success and failure.   Look for Genie's talk to be posted in the coming days.

Also, we've been fortunate to receive support from Atlanta-based Prommis Solutions.   Prommis recently provided marketing support, logistics and technical support for the launch of our website,  GradyTalks.org.  Prommis Solutions is a leading  provider of technology-enabled knowledge processing services for the management and resolution of defaulting residential mortgages, including home retention, REO closing and other mortgage-related services.  We are grateful for their support.

Grady High School Graduation Rates

We'd like to see everyone at Grady graduate on time!  Plus, we'd like to see all students go on to college and then on to meaningful careers. 

For the 2009-2010 school year, Grady High School reported a 91.6% graduation rate.  That's well above the APS average of 66.3%, the Georgia average of 80.8%, and the national rate of 69%.   Now, we've learned that the new superintendent,  Erroll Davis, has just ordered an audit of graduation rates after the discovery of 18 APS students who were incorrectly coded as graduates.

Also, the state has changed their reporting method to be consistent with other states and some fear the new graduation rate will not look as favorable.

Nationally, 70.1% of high school grads enrolled in college (in 2009). 

Joy Goodman

This week Joy Goodman kicks off the twice monthly speakers series for Grady Talks. Joy spoke to a class at Grady High School last year and told some inspiring stories of her years as an educator. In this quick excerpt from her talk, she shows her skill at "turning lemons into lemonade" in handling a child with stage fright.

  

The Grady Talks Channel (Sorry about the Commercials)

Watch live streaming video from gradytalks at livestream.com

Grady Talks Greatest Hits

Now that Liz Lieberman and Dave Walker have started the Grady Talks Classes at Grady High, I thought it would be great to see some of the greatest moments from last year's Grady Talks.  Here is Chris Webber talking about your career dreams and how to make them a reality.