 Dr. Betty Shabazz Delta Academy
In honor of our deceased Sister and charter member of the North Manhattan Alumnae Chapter, Dr. Betty Shabazz, and in response to the need within our communities to use sisterhood to enhance the future of our African American girls, Delta Academy was developed. The symbol for the Delta Academy is the Dream Catcher. A Dream Catcher in Native American culture is believed to possess the power to capture bad dreams entangling them in the web, thus allowing only the good dreams to pass through to the center of the dream hoop into the person's being.
Delta Academy was created "to catch the dreams" of our African American girls aged 11-14 and guide their positive dreams and aspirations to a successful future. Our purposes are:
To save our girls from the perils of academic failure, low self-esteem, and crippled futures
To demonstrate the relevance to a girl's future of scholarship in the areas of math, science, technology, and non-traditional careers; sisterhood as it relates to relationships with peers and Delta members; and service in the form of leadership and service learning
To expand the thinking of our girls about possible careers and educational goals that include science, math, and technology
Additionally, we have expanded our commitment to the community & inspiring young African American girls by forming our newest component, Delta Academy II: The Delta GEMS program (Growing and Empowering Myself Successfully). Introduced at the Regional Conference, Delta GEMS builds upon the premise on which the Academy was created and is a natural outgrowth for the continuation of this successful program expansion. Delta GEMS provides the framework to actualize those dreams through performance of specific tasks and development of a "can do" attitude in high school girls ages 14-18.
To demonstrate the relevance to a girl's future of scholarship in the areas of math, science, technology, and non-traditional careers; sisterhood as it relates to relationships with peers and Delta members; and service in the form of leadership and service learning.
To expand the thinking of our girls about possible careers and educational goals that include science, math, and technology.
|
