The Elite Dreams Foundation and One Talent Inc., both (a 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations) is a collaboration that bridges intense, hands-on programs that work in conjunction with Elite Sports Atlanta to harness and guide youth and young adults towards success. At its core, our shared work is built upon a philosophy of action, accountability and excellence that guides youth and young adults in focused directions toward what they aspire to do. We do this by teaching life lessons and teamwork through sports training; integration of career development skills; and, exposure to higher learning, while offering a multidisciplinary tour of professions, fields and disciplines. Coupled with this is a thoroughly grounded and guided performing arts platform in which we offer youth an opportunity to have their voices, talents and gifts seen, heard and applauded in safe and nurturing environments. This 360 degree integration of athletics, artistry and scholarship enrichment and support services drive our youth and young adults towards becoming responsible adults and solid community citizens able to embrace and envision sustainable futures for themselves, their families and communities.
Throughout our programs, we integrate community outreach services from professional athletes, successful entrepreneurs and corporate role models to promote and encourage academic achievement and scholarship opportunities for those students who exhibit a desire and/or innate gift in a particular academic field or sport. We also work with troubled youth and their parents offering access to professional counseling and mentoring sessions by qualified practitioners to build strong and harmonious relationships that nurtures peace and trust in the home. Together, we are documented leaders with more than 50 years of experience in this space.
One of our greatest priorities is to combat the cumulative effects of the nefarious “Wicked Problems” we face as a society. These elusive and problematic realities create barriers to access and success in primary and secondary education for large segments of the populations we work with. Challenge areas range from economic, to educational, and to health to social well-being. Many of our program participants experience a wide range of these various iterations and combinations on a regular and sometimes daily basis. While there are currently several pathways for youth with the right supports in place to get into college, many often get left behind and never finish due to a lack of resources, direction and or support systems that address their everyday life challenges while in school. Primary school-aged youth especially have even further ranging implications. The activities and habits formed during this critical formation period impact their future trajectories and inform opportunities for advancement and success in their lives. For these reasons and more, the Elite Dreams Foundation developed an Entrepreneurship program *Entrepreneurshop® that provides resources, direction and support systems to help lessen the number of youths who through no fault of their own fall victim to the challenges of everyday life.
The Elite Dreams Foundation b-Great! Campaign housed within our Entrepreneurshop® uses a three-pronged approach to combat the social ills and impediments our program youth face as they participate in and navigate through the various programs and services we offer. This campaign under-girds and underwrites a plethora of social and cultural activities. We especially need your support in this area. We invite you to review the programs below, get involved and join us in making change happen at the grassroots level. We look forward to celebrating the success of our youth with you.
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Level I
The Elite Dreams Summit is a fun youth-led forum which fuses performing arts with peer mentoring and coaching. While it is structured, led and directed by Elite Dreams staff, participants set the pace and content that drives the activity. Elite Dreams Summit is one of our most highly requested and well attended programs. Youth are craving opportunities to have their voices heard in safe and open spaces, to get their questions answered by leaders they trust and respect and blocks of comradely to share ideas and focus their visions for the future with each other.
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Level 2
Our speaker series is housed in this element of our programming as well allowing participants from all our programs to hear and interact with our guest speakers. This highly interactive environment serves a dual purpose in that it places our partners in front of the youth who will utilize their services and products while simultaneously serving as an example of how to speak in a public setting. The synergistic openings during these interactions cannot be overemphasized. It is a strong platform that demonstrates in very real ways the importance of goal setting and the results of following through on commitments and strategically and thoughtfully seizing opportunities as they arise.
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Level 3
The most exciting element of the Dreams Summit for both youth and our community is the opportunity to watch youth perform their talents. These performances range from spoken word to singing, to rapping and dance. All youth are given an opportunity to perform provided they meet the rules and guidelines of the program. We do not limit their talents and are open to new and innovative ideas for youth to share and express themselves as individuals and as groups to b-great! The Dreams Summit is comprised of:
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Games, art shows and other related activities to showcase students’ talents and abilities.
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Monthly guest speaker events- invited speakers share about college preparation, job readiness, applying for college, researching and selecting schools, technical colleges, the armed forces, etc.
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Ongoing relationship building with local successful business owners, athletes and others will be formed and nurtured to ensure we have a robust roster of speakers to engage for sharing with our students the basics of business principles, tips and tools to guide their thinking in developing the right business mindset and practices.
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Life lesson activities that build strong communication skills. Students will each be required to prepare 3-5 minute speeches on “life lessons” they have learned during the week to help them internalize and appreciate the learning they receive. This process will also help to create structure and expectation, routine and language skills which are all necessary components to building successful habits in life.
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Birthdays, special holidays and major accomplishments for both students and program staff will be recognized and celebrated once a month to let them know how much they are appreciated. All participants are encouraged to assist in recognition and celebration events.
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Tonylenard34@gmail.com | (678) 266-7778
OneTalentInc@gmail.com| (470) 424-7120
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