Vakentae C. from the I.G. Homes Branch!
Vakentae C. from the I.G. Homes Branch!Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley is thrilled to announce this talented teen and our 2021 Youth of the Year. Vakentae competes next at the Arizona Boys & Girls Clubs State Youth of the Year competition in March.
On Friday night, Larry Fitzgerald of the Arizona Cardinals announced Vakentae’e win. Fitzgerald will be honored by BGCAZ for his contributions to Arizona’s youth at Today’s Kids, Tomorrow’s Stars on May 1st.
A senior at Central High School, Vakentae joined I.G. Homes when he moved here a few years ago. He’s looking forward to pursuing a college degree that will allow him to teach and become an author.
His win marks the I.G. Homes Branch’s 3rd Youth of the Year winner in a row – a Three-Peat! And Vakentae was our very first intern hired from the AZYouthforce program in recognition of his outstanding work at the Talking Stick Resort Arena.
Special thanks to our Presenting Sponsor – General Dynamics – for making this evening possible!
Youth of the Year Program
Youth of the Year is Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s premier recognition program for Club members, promoting service to Club, community, and family; academic success; strong moral character; life goals; and poise and public speaking ability.
Locally, our Clubs recognize members who are high school sophomores through seniors to represent their Clubs at Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley annual competition. The winner of the Youth of the Year title moves on to the state competition. State winners each receive an academic award and participate in regional competitions. Five regional winners each receive a $10,000 scholarship and compete on the national level. The National Youth of the Year receives up to an additional $50,000 scholarship and is installed by the President of the United States.
In the United States, the statistic shows only 69% of our high school-aged youth are graduating. We are proud to say at Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley teens that are members have a 90% graduation rate! We focus on making sure that every member that attends the Club gets the support and academic resources necessary to progress from one grade to the next at the appropriate age and that they are graduating on time. Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley believe that continued education is just as important. We provide scholarship money to help get our teens into the trade schools or colleges of their dreams. Our annual Youth of the Year program raises the funds necessary to let this happen.
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