An interview with Danielle Pascale
Danielle Pascale is founder of Reach for the Stars, a program to address the emotional and educational needs of students experiencing financial and housing instability. Danielle is a junior at St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes High School in Alexandria, Virginia and a participant in the Incubator Program at LearnServe.
What inspired you to create Reach for the Stars?
I have been interested in helping children who are affected by financial and housing instability since 5th grade. I read a book called Runaway, which provides an in depth look into the life of a twelve year old girl whose parents pass away, causing her to become homeless. For me, this book illuminated struggles that many kids my age face every day. Up until that point, I was completely unaware about these struggles. I attempted to volunteer hands-on with children in my community but it is really difficult to volunteer when you are under 18. I tried to help through various donations of clothes, food and toys, but I was constantly looking for ways to directly help these children. When I began the research phase of the LearnServe Fellows program, I was further motivated to help these children because of the staggering numbers of homeless/impoverished children in Virginia. In 2016-17 there were over 280,00 children living in poverty in Virginia according to ‘Voices for Virginia’s Children’.
Such power in a book that it continues to inspire you 5 years later! Having found few opportunities to volunteer with other community-based organizations, you decided to start your own. Tell me more about it.
Reach For the Stars (RFTS) is a program dedicated to addressing the emotional and educational needs of children experiencing financial and housing instability. These children often endure high levels of stress and anxiety. RFTS attempts to reduce these negative emotions through a series of after school, summer and weekend programs containing: arts and crafts, stretching and breathing, team sport/exercise and reading/tutoring. All of these activities have been proven to reduce stress and anxiety in youth in a variety of college level studies. Children facing financial and housing instability also experience more educational disruption. To address these needs, we are working with my school’s Lower School Librarian to improve our reading and tutoring curriculum.
What successes have you seen so far?
In the summer of 2021, I started the pilot program of RFTS in partnership with a local community center, Mother of Light Center (MOLC). The program ran twice weekly for six weeks. Fifteen children ages five to ten participated and around ten high school volunteers from both St. Stephens and St. Agnes School and Alexandria High School acted as counselors. At the end of the program I designed a survey for the parents. 100% of parents said that RFTS was fully successful at having their child relax, have fun and gain skills to help them throughout the school year. One parent said “you have motivated my son” and another said “it was a beautiful new experience for the kids… it helped them a lot in their everyday lives.”
In light of the success of the summer programs, we are running an afterschool program also in partnership with MOLC. The after school program has 20 children ages five to twelve, and 15 volunteers from St. Stephens and St. Agnes School. Both the children and the volunteers have been enriched by the school year program. The children and their parents consistently remark on the ability of RFTS to provide them with experiences and opportunities that they would not receive in school or at home.The highschool volunteers found the program equally as rewarding, one writing “It was a rewarding experience that is fun and inspiring to be a part of.”
Congratulations on your impact so far! What is next for Reach for the Stars?
I hope to expand RFTS to another location, probably a homeless/women’s shelter in my area. I am hoping to have the programs implemented at the next location by summer of 2022. I also hope to expand my student leadership team. I currently have a treasurer and a co-leader. I am seeking to find a volunteer coordinator and website designer to make the program easier for someone to take over when I go to college.
That is exciting to hear how you are already thinking through how you will sustain RFTS as you prepare to head off to college. How has being part of LearnServe shaped the way you approach your work, or see the world?
LearnServe has changed the way I see the world in a multitude of ways. It has made me more open minded, more focused and more inspired. Having the chance to connect with so many people in the social impact space (guest speakers, mentors, and fellow students) has given me the ability to think about solutions in different ways and to better understand different members of my community. Additionally, the hands-on guidance and strong curriculum in social entrepreneurship that LearnServe provides gave me the tools to make my visions a reality. LearnServe really sparked my interest in the whole entrepreneurship world and it is now one of the main things I am interested in pursuing in college.
Two things that are keeping me most inspired at the moment are my weekly RFTS sessions and weekly LearnServe Incubator program. The looks on the kids’ faces as they run excitedly into RFTS every week reminds of the true impact that my program is having on these children and their families. Additionally, getting to join other highschoolers who are also interested in social entrepreneurship and getting to hear about their ventures every week in the incubator program really inspires me.
Thank you! I’d like to conclude with one more question: What advice do you have for LearnServe students or other young social entrepreneurs who are just starting out?
Be open-minded and willing to work hard. Know that there is no limit to the impact you can make on someone’s life.