21st Century will one day be the alma mater of a
professional, maybe even celebrity chef! Jasmine Bowles is a senior at 21st
Century Charter School at Gary. Jasmine
arrived at 21st Century at a freshmen in high school after her
grandmother disapproved of the environment of her previous school, as well as
Jasmine’s grades.
When Jasmine arrived at 21C, she was pushed hard. Never before had she been pushed to maintain
A and B grades in classes. Never before
had she received so much attention from teachers to maintain good grades and
positive behavior. Her previous grades
had been D’s and F’s, and she had gone without notice by her teachers. Now, she attends tutoring hour from 3-4pm
Monday through Thursday every week where she is required to work on homework or
get help—chatting and hanging out is not allowed. Jasmine has homework every
day, so keeping busy during tutoring hour is not difficult at all.
Part of what keeps Jasmine busy are the AP papers she’s been
learning to write, or the college essays that she’s been practicing. In her spare time, she does track and
volunteers at the Sojourner Truth Women’s center. She’s also a part of the
dance team at 21C.
Part of her future dream is to become a professional chef
and open up a non-profit organization to help feed people who are homeless.
She’s currently looking into culinary school programs, including at the Art
Institute of Indianapolis and Chicago.
