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Peter J. Juran, Esq.
Blanco Tackabery & Matamoros, P.A.
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April 15, 2008 — C. Shawn Christenbury and Kevin J. Morris, both attorneys in Blanco Tackabery's Litigation Group, have volunteered as "coaches" for the "Graduate. It Pays" Senior Academy Mentoring Program. Shawn and Kevin have committed to mentor one high school senior at North Forsyth High School to the point of graduation. They began in early March, and the program lasts for five months.
The pilot program was developed by the Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce's Business Council in partnership with the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. The program has three major participants: (1) the Chamber, which serves as the Program Coordinator, (2) the North Forsyth Counselors, who serve as the School Coordinators, and (3) business volunteers, who serve as Senior Academy Mentors/Coaches. The program focuses on 12th grade students at North Forsyth High School who are in jeopardy of not graduating.
As coaches, Shawn and Kevin had to attend a two-hour mentor orientation and training session, and commit to meet with their student for a minimum of one hour per week. During the five-month program, they each develop a relationship with the student, which is expected to continue through graduation. The coaches support the student in meeting his or her high school graduation and career goals. This will involve helping the student overcome both internal and external obstacles to the student's success in school. The coaches' responsibilities also involve helping the mentee to find employment and/or enrollment in a post-secondary institution.
"The mentoring program gives us an opportunity to make a difference in a young person's life," stated Kevin. "It has been an extremely rewarding experience that hopefully results in one more student crossing the graduation stage to get his degree."
About Blanco Tackabery & Matamoros, P.A.
Blanco Tackabery & Matamoros, P.A. is a professional legal corporation founded in 1973, with offices in Winston-Salem and Lake Norman. The firm's 21 attorneys provide a full range of legal services to individual and business clients in North Carolina, the Southeast, and other regions throughout the United States in the areas of affordable housing law; bankruptcy, insolvency & collections; business law; civil & criminal trials; commercial real estate & development; environmental law; estate planning & administration; family law; intellectual property; labor & employment law; and taxation.