N'Keya Peters

International Experience Country:
Jamaica
Cohort Year:
2011
Home Institution:

Temple University

Heinz Programming Area:
Children, Youth, and Families
International Experience Summary:

N’keya Peters completed an international service learning program in St. Thomas, Jamaica for five weeks. N’keya served at a primary school and she worked with the Women’s Centre of Jamaica Foundation. In Jamaica, young girls are forced to leave school when they become pregnant. These young girls attend the Women’s Center to complete their education during the duration of their pregnancy. At the Women’s Center N’keya facilitated workshops on life skills such as “Healthy Relationships”, “Self Esteem” and “Career Options”. She gained additional experience creating workshops and leading group discussions. During the end of the program the writing of the young women at the center was celebrated and published in a magazine. At the Primary School N’keya worked with the school’s guidance counselor as she conducted sessions on “Anger Management” and “Conflict Resolution”, and here she gained experience with school social work. Moreover, she had the opportunity to complete expletory research and she conducted her very first focus group to aid in that research. Her research was titled Resilience and Teenage Mothers in Jamaica. N’keya lived in Yallahs, St. Thomas, a rural area in the country. N’keya’s free time was spent with the babies of the teenage mothers. On weekends, N’keya visited popular sites in Jamaica such as Bath Fountain, Reach Falls and the Blue Lagoon. Additionally, she was able to spend a week in Kingston and attend lectures at the University of West Indies, where she was able to connect with local students and view Jamaican city life.

Community Engagement Experience Summary:

CEE Title: Zones of Empowerment for Parenting and Pregnant Adolescent Mothers

For her CEE, N’Keya created an event called Zones of Empowerment for Parenting and Pregnant Adolescent Mothers at an all-girl’s high school in North Philadelphia. This event was designed to encourage young mothers to achieve their personal, professional and academic goals in order to narrow the achievement gap between parenting and non-parenting students. She focused specifically on college achievement as well as self-esteem and the effect it has on healthy relationships. Outside of workshop facilitation, the CEE linked young mothers with a mentor who was also a college student.