Tulsa Teachers Take College & Career Fair Virtual To Make Students’ Dreams Reality

Teachers at Tulsa’s McLain High School are going virtual to make sure their students are thinking about life after high school and ensuring they have the tools they need to make their dreams a reality.

Every junior at McLain High School knows the words by heart to the poem See It Through by Edgar Albert Guest. The message of the poem is one of hope, one of persistence and one that staff members like Maurice Walker want to make sure their students have written on their hearts and minds.

"There are a lot of difficulties. There are a lot of challenges, but we teach our students that despite those challenges and despite those difficulties, they are not the first to face them," said McLain High School Assistant Principal Maurice Walker.

That message has been carried into the theme of the school's annual Dare to Dream event.

"Our students get the opportunity to meet with entrepreneurs, colleges, different sororities, frats as well as different businesses in the community," said Dr. Sylvia Chandler.

This year's event has gone virtual because of COVID-19 but students are rotating in and out for sessions on social media, financial aid, what to expect after high school and more.

"Over the last few years I have seen our Valedictorians, I have seen our bright students working at Walmart, Burger King, because they think that is all they can do,” Dr. Chandler said. "We want to expand the horizon for our students.”

The event is presented by OSU-Tulsa and organizers have worked hard to make sure it's a space where a student's dreams matter and where they are given the tools and the support they need to turn those dreams into realities.

"I want our kids to know that we are still here for them and we are will still pretty much be willing to do whatever we can to ensure that their life, their goals- we don't stop when they walk across the stage," said McLain Principal Renne Rabovsky.

You can find the full list of programs and speakers below:

Along with: Elisa LeSieur, the Academic Counselor with OSU Tulsa