Dream schools, diplomas, and a decade with the Acklin sisters “Amid my emotional and environmental upheaval, education became the proverbial ‘yellow brick road’ to lead me to a place of normality.”
That’s what Nybria Acklin wrote in her college application essay, six years ago. She told admissions officers the story of her childhood, like moving with her mother and younger sister, Yahnee, from the suburbs of Kansas City, Kan., to a challenging and uncertain inner-city existence in Philadelphia.
Like so many parents in marginalized communities, Nybria and Yahnee’s mom, Annetta, had to move mountains to find the type of educational opportunities her daughters deserved.
In the summer of 2012, they found TeenSHARP.
Nybria was a shy and studious rising junior. Yahnee was a cheery and curious 5th grader.
They were both about to commit their Saturdays — 9am-4:30pm— during each school year to accelerating their learning in TeenSHARP’s unique community.
“As a TeenSHARP scholar,” Yahnee Acklin said, “I spent my Saturdays and summers immersed in learning about apartheid when reading Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane or grappling with topics outside of the mainstream US History curriculum when reading Howard Zinn’s A People History of the United States.”
Nybria was blossoming from a quiet and compassionate student to a vocal and action-oriented leader. She organized her school’s first College Awareness Week and spoke at the district’s school board meeting about the impact of their plans to lay off nearly 300 guidance counselors.
It was hard to imagine then but the Acklin sisters and Annetta have now been part of the TeenSHARP family for nearly a decade.
This means TeenSHARP has had the opportunity to guide both Nybria and Yahnee into highly-selective colleges and to support Nybria through college and into the workforce. For instance, when Nybria was selected for an elite Venture for America fellowship in 2019, she called our team for career guidance.
Today, both of the Acklin sisters have inspiring stories to tell. Earlier this year, for instance, Yahnee made her film debut when she opened her college decision live on camera. We encourage you to watch, but spoiler alert: she’s just started her Freshman year at her dream school, Carleton College, in Minnesota. They have less than a 20 percent acceptance rate and they have given her $70,000 a year in financial aid.
When Nybria applied to college with her powerful essay about education as a life-changing resource, she had a rich set of amazing options to choose from. All in all, colleges offered Nybria a collective $1.3 million in grants and scholarships, including a full ride to the University of Pennsylvania. She chose to attend Smith College in Northampton, Mass., where she earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology.
During her college years, Nybria participated in a prestigious Stanford University fellowship to stoke and harness creative, entrepreneurial problem-solving. And since graduation, she’s made great use of her time, completing four fellowships/internships in project design and community aid. Today, she’s a Venture for America fellow working in the education sector as an Associate with Catalyst:ED.
In spring 2020, when Yahnee was preparing to open her college decision on camera, we asked her about her college dreams. Yahnee’s answer captures the spirit of TeenSHARP, and the spirit of our talented scholars who face tremendous challenges in their lives but remain committed to being the best they can be.
“I just want to be an example for everyone that’s coming after me,” Yahnee said. “I want to let people know that it is possible.”
