Mosaic Community Lifestyle Realty has long advocated for the outstanding community organizations that work tirelessly to support the residents of Asheville and surrounding areas. As Giving Tuesday 2023 approaches, Mosaic will grow its community support by offering a matching donation to benefit Asheville City Schools Foundation’s DREAM program. From now until November 28, Mosaic will match donations dollar for dollar, up to $5,000, to help fund DREAM – Dedicated, Responsible, Enthusiastic, After-School Mentors – a program that brings a sense of home and belonging for students, just as Mosaic brings a sense of home in the Asheville area. Make your donation at https://www.acsf.org/giving-tuesday.
Students growing together
DREAM, a youth-centered, paid internship program for high school students to support the mission and programming of Asheville City Schools Foundation, comprises 18 diverse high schoolers who provide mentorship to middle schoolers in the “In Real Life” after-school program at Asheville Middle School. DREAM offers an outlet for tenth- through 12th-graders to work and grow together. The program provides high schoolers with a non-traditional work environment that includes competitive wages, structured professional development, varied skills and work experiences, support in pursuing higher education, and opportunities to participate in extracurricular trips and events. DREAM is the ideal avenue for social-emotional learning, offering the professional life skills that will prove advantageous in the workforce.
Students in 10th through 12th grade at Asheville High School and the School for Inquiry and Life Sciences at Asheville are eligible to apply every fall. Each student commits to one to three days per week and is compensated $15-$20 an hour.
Learning leadership skills
Being part of this inclusive program allows participants to explore different career paths while developing leadership skills. Leadership development for DREAM participants includes classroom and behavior management, cultural responsiveness, conflict resolution, and effective written/oral communication. DREAM interns take part in creating appropriate lesson plans for IRL students, and have the opportunity to incorporate the skills they learn from leadership development sessions.
Structured, peer-mentoring programs such as DREAM have been proven to increase students’ social, emotional and academic growth. DREAM students reflect a considerable boost to leadership skills as a result of participation, and enjoy increased sense of agency, self-advocacy, team-building, collaboration and conflict resolution skills.
To match Mosaic’s donation to DREAM, visit https://www.acsf.org/giving-tuesday.
To learn more about other ways Mosaic contributes to the Asheville community, visit https://mymosaicrealty.com/donations-volunteer-program/.
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