Shakhila was looking for a job that would prepare her to lead.
“I first heard about Rêve Academy when my school was offering mini-courses over spring break. I saw one that said “Shark Tank” and thought it sounded really interesting. I knew I wanted to go to college for business, so I thought, ‘Let’s be smart and pick this.’ I’m so glad I did, because while I came to Rêve Academy expecting it to be formal and quiet, the first thing we did was prototype with play-doh. I’m like, ‘Oh yeah, this is definitely a place I want to be.’
I’m an aspiring YouTuber and want to eventually have a big following and develop a community center in North Minneapolis to better the community. I just want there to be a heart in the city—in my neighborhood—that everyone can go to.”
I am…
// 17
// Calm, optimistic, collaborative
// A graduate of North Community High School
I dream of…
// Developing a community center in North Minneapolis
Working with team members to plan out their summer project and day-to-day tasks.
She embodied the value of Collaboration.
“I’ve gotten better at sharing ideas and making sure I’m collaborating with others to make that idea better. I always have my opinion on how the experience is going to go, but being able to step back, take input, and plan something in great detail—that’s the biggest thing I’ve learned. It’s important to look at the financials and all the details of how the business is run.
This experience made me think, ‘Wow, collaborating with people is cool.’ You can’t just shut people out and and say, ‘I don’t care what you’re saying.’ You really have to be open and listen.
You don’t get much of that at school. People complain about group projects in school because their teammates are slacking, but I feel like at Rêve Academy, the energy in the room is so enthusiastic that people are willing to stay on task. They’re really passionate about what they’re doing.”
Shakhila and Carlos meet with Graveti member Brianna to talk about their plans for the future.
She made the connection between intern tasks and professional growth.
“One of my internship projects was Voice = Vision, which is a business idea for gathering the community’s opinions through kiosks we call Voice Boxes. Then we share those opinions with politicians so they can be more engaged with their constituents. The second project is Lincoln Playground; it’s a playground in Minneapolis that’s really outdated and it needs some help.
My team worked on a potential entrepreneurial space at the site. We thought about the interior, the exterior, what the lesson plans would be. And that’s been beneficial for me because I hope to one day open a community center. Being able to sit down and learn how to formulate my ideas is pretty cool because it’s going to be similar. So I’ve gained a lot more confidence in my ability to be an entrepreneur.
If I had a classmate who was interested in coming to Rêve Academy, I would say yes, si, oui, definitely, in any language that I can because Rêve is awesome. It’s a program that says it’s gonna help develop you, and it actually happens. I feel like that’s pretty rare.”
See the difference that Rêve Academy makes.
Shakhila gained both technical and professional skills in her internship—and she didn’t have to pay a cent. In fact, we paid her a fair wage for her work each week, while she learned:
Professional skills
// Empathy
// Authenticity
// Collaboration
// Achievement
// Ingenuity
// Agility
Technical skills
// TinkerCAD
// InDesign
// Photoshop
// Project management
// Agile development
Rêve Academy’s student interns of summer 2017.
Help students along their path.
If you have a heart for students, we have a place for you.
Become a digital volunteer and help our interns as they work on real-world projects. Or show our kids what an ordinary day looks like for a working professional. There are lots of ways to get involved, so don’t be shy—we can’t wait to meet you!