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OUR NEWS
BLACK-LED COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT: CULTIVATING RESILIENT YOUTH
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Nikkia Ingram has been on call 24 hours a day, but she doesn’t mind. Ingram is the founder and executive director of Cultivating Resilient Youth, and she receives calls all through the day and night from the girls in her organization.
Ingram is also a security guard for Pittsburgh Public Schools, and during her everyday interactions with students at work, she felt as if there was a lack of mentorship to prepare them for college, look for jobs, or just simply guide and advise the students. With the suggestions of a few local high school administrators, she created her nonprofit as a way to help.
BRASHEAR SECURITY OFFICER TRANSCENDS TITLE TO MENTOR TEEN GIRLS, HELP THEM BUILD SELF-CONFIDENCE
Nikkia Ingram’s responsibilities at Pittsburgh Brashear High School have outgrown her job title of school security officer. That's because what began as informal mentoring sessions during lunch breaks and weekends has grown to include the creation of a local nonprofit called Cultivating Resilient Youth.
KIDSBURGH HERO: THIS SCHOOL SECURITY GUARD IS MAKING A BIG DIFFERENCE IN STUDENTS’ LIVES
From her post near the entrance of Brashear High School, security guard Nikkia Ingram greets students every morning.
She might say hello hundreds of times, but she knows each interaction matters. Often that hello turns into a conversation about how the students are feeling that day or what’s on their minds and how their grades are looking.
For the last eight years, Ingram has used her position as a school security guard to let students know she’s looking out for them beyond their personal safety. One thing she has noticed is when they don’t attend classes — and she holds them accountable. Three years ago, her efforts to curb absences culminated in the creation of her own nonprofit called Cultivating Resilient Youth.
PODCAST: CULTIVATING RESILIENT YOUTH W/KIA INGRAM AND ASHLEY LYNN PRIORE
Kia Ingram serves as the CEO of Cultivating Resilient Youth, a nonprofit organization in the city of Pittsburgh that empowers teens for success in life through mentoring, academic preparation and creating opportunities for social change.