We are excited to recognize Jada M., a seventh-grade student at Most Holy Trinity Catholic School & Academy, as a Student of Achievement!

According to Mr. Cherry, Jada’s homeroom teacher, she is “an outstanding student academically, she always has a smile on her face, is willing and able to help other students as well as her teachers. Jada is also fully engaged in her extra courses.”

Favorite Subject: Mathematics because I like working with numbers. I am currently learning Algebra and working on integers.

Favorite Teacher: Mr. Cherry because he is nice and funny, and helps me with my work.

Favorite Academy Program: Basketball because I am a physical person.

Jada is also in Spanish, Student Council, and the ACCESS Academies Young Professionals program.

Fondest Memory of School (so far!): Last year, I was one of ten Academy students who went to Lindenwood University. I liked the people I went with and the tour, and am thinking this might be a good college choice.

Prospective High Schools: Incarnate Word, Bishop DuBourg, and St. Joseph’s Academy.

Career Aspirations: A health professional. Maybe a doctor or orthopedic surgeon.

Prospective Colleges: Lindenwood University or the University of Missouri – Columbia

Role Model: My mother is my role model. She is a nurse and independent. She has shown me she can do it all by herself.

Recently, Tom Mackowiak, Executive Director of ACCESS Academies, and Nick McDowell, Director of Graduate Support at Most Holy Trinity Catholic School & Academy, joined STL Live host, Sarah Thompson, in the studio! Click below for our two-part segment.
Part 1

Part 2

Recently, we had the opportunity to catch up with Shawn Taylor, an ACCESS Academies alum from Most Holy Trinity and De Smet Jesuit High School, currently attending Rockhurst University.

Q: Shawn, why did you choose Rockhurst University?

A: I looked at Rockhurst initially because my older sister studied there. She was the first in my family to go to college. I ended up choosing Rockhurst because of their degree program in Information Technology. Rockhurst partnered with the University of Missouri-Kansas City to advance their Information Technology degree program and provides tutors and supplementary instructors to help us learn.  The classes are small, I am able to bond with my professors, and the campus is beautiful. Overall, I love the environment.

Q: Why did you choose Information Technology as your field of study?

A: When I was at De Smet I realized I enjoyed being around, using, and working with computers. I started looking for opportunities that would allow me to enhance my knowledge and skills, and worked summer jobs in the IT Departments at the License Collector’s Office and YMCA, and for a local family center. I also had an internship at Ranken Technical College.  When it came time to apply for college, I knew a career in Information Technology was the best fit for me personally and professionally.

Q: Tell me about your classes.

A: My favorite class so far is Digital Image and Design, which teaches us how to use MAC computers for illustration, design, and cinematography. I am also pursuing a minor in psychology. At De Smet, I took several psychology classes, including Advanced Placement Psychology, and found it fascinating how the mind works- from the developmental stages as we grow as humans to why people do what they do. I have always done well in my psychology classes because they are so interesting.

Q: Tell me about the extracurricular activities you are involved in at Rockhurst?   

A: I am a Rockhurst Ambassador, helping prospective students explore what the school offers and what values they can bring to the school; a member of the Student Activities Board, which creates fun, free activities and events for fellow students so they feel more connected to our campus community; and a member of Alpha Delta Gamma, a Catholic fraternity founded on the five Jesuit morals of Scholastic, School Spirit, Service, Spiritual, & Social.

I also volunteer as a videography intern with the Athletics Department, taping games and creating highlight reels, and work on-campus at the
Phone-a-thon, helping to raise money for student scholarships. My job is fun and interesting, and I have been asked to serve in a leadership position next semester.

Q:  Wow, you sound busy!  Did you ever think you’d be doing all this in college?

A:  I believe the more you are willing to roll up your sleeves and get involved, the more doors will open, but never thought I would have so many opportunities. Mr. Nick (aka Nick McDowell), my ACCESS Graduate Support Director, has helped me learn to prioritize my responsibilities and manage my time.  He has been an awesome counselor and friend and I reach out to him often for advice. 

Q:  As you look back on what contributed to where you are today, how did ACCESS play a role?

A:  ACCESS has helped not only me but my younger sister. We both completed the Academy program at Most Holy Trinity, and benefitted from the enrichment programs, career days, and campus field trips that helped expose us to new opportunities.  ACCESS also helped pay for our tuition – mine at De Smet and hers at St. Joseph’s Academy. We would not have been able to attend either of these schools if it were not for ACCESS’s support. My sister is now a freshman at Rockhurst with me, and Mr. Nick continues to check on us both. He has been a huge influence on us both. Yeah, as I think about it, ACCESS has really helped me and my family out.

Q:  What’s next for you? 

A:  I’ve got finals right around the corner, so I’ll be studying! Over Christmas break I will begin researching and applying for summer internships. Then in the spring, I will be taking 18 credit hours, completing all my core class requirements. I also have my campus job, clubs, extracurricular activities and my family (six sisters and one brother) to keep me busy!

ACCESS Academies is excited to partner with Career & College Clubs, a not-for-profit focused on college and career readiness, to develop a school-based enrichment curriculum known as the ACCESS Academies Young Professionals.

The ACCESS Academies Young Professionals curriculum creates a culture of college-going success through career exploration, post-secondary opportunity awareness, financial literacy, and essential communications skills. Specifically, our students will:
– Identify and explore careers represented in the six career pathways
– Develop and use leadership skills as mentor leaders
– Discover educational post-secondary opportunities
– Learn about personal banking and explore options for paying for college
– Study and practice professional etiquette

The ACCESS Academies Young Professionals curriculum is aligned with grades 6-8 Common Core State Standards and the American School Counselor Association National Standards for Students. To learn more, please contact Tom Mackowiak, Executive Director, by calling (314) 898-0430.

ACCESS Academies, a not-for-profit that ensures disadvantaged students in the St. Louis area have access to a top-quality, character-based education, has named Tom Mackowiak the Executive Director. Mackowiak succeeds Betsy Liberatore, Interim Executive Director, who stepped down at the end of July.

“Tom has served on the ACCESS Academies Board of Directors since 2013 and as the Vice President of the Board for over a year. During that time, he has shown a deep passion for our mission and students, and we readily accepted his resignation from the Board so his extraordinary leadership could transition from a part-time advisory role to a full-time operational role,” said Marian “Bo” Mehan, Board Chair.

Mackowiak, who recently retired from Enterprise Holdings Inc., spent over 29 years in a variety of management positions, most recently as the Assistant Vice-President – Business Management, Truck Rental Division. He received a Bachelor of Accountancy from the University of Illinois.

“ACCESS has a rich and successful history of helping disadvantaged youth, and I look forward to finding opportunities to continue and expand our efforts serving more students in need,” said Mackowiak.

Since 2005, ACCESS has partnered with middle schools serving high-poverty populations to open Academies promoting a robust curriculum, homework assistance, service projects, and enrichment through extended school day and school year programming. ACCESS also provides a school-based Graduate Support Director who works directly with students and their families all seven years of their educational journey, from middle school, through high school, and into college. Services include mentoring, advocacy, counseling, and more. Academies are currently located in Most Holy Trinity School & Academy; St. Cecilia School & Academy; and St. Louis Catholic Academy. ACCESS is also laying the groundwork to open a new Academy at Sister Thea Bowman Catholic School in East St. Louis next year.

To date, ACCESS has served more than 500 disadvantaged students in the St. Louis region. Ninety-eight percent of its graduates have been accepted to private, college-prep high schools; 99 percent graduate on-time; and 95 percent are accepted to college.

For more information regarding this release, please contact Julie Linder, Public Relations for ACCESS Academies, by calling (573) 268-0639 or emailing [email protected].

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My name is Kyra Harris, and I am a 2011 graduate of Most Holy Trinity School and Academy, a 2015 graduate of Rosati-Kain High School, and a future 2019 graduate of Avila University.
There are people who doubt the power of inner-city schools, and the minority students who attend those schools, but with the help of ACCESS Academies, those people are proven wrong. Most Holy Trinity has been a part of my life since I was 7 years old. There I learned how to play the violin, ballroom dance, speak French, and built a strong academic foundation that has gotten me this far.
During my 8th grade year, my teachers and graduate support director asked us where do we want to go to high school and why? I told them Rosati-Kain was my first choice because I wanted to go to a good high school so I could get into a good college. With the support of my family, Holy Trinity, and ACCESS Academies, I was accepted to my first-choice high school.
At Rosati, I played the violin all four years for the school’s Performing Ensemble, a skill I learned in the 2nd grade at Most Holy Trinity. During my time at Rosati, Mr. Nick, the graduate support director from Most Holy Trinity, would come and visit me to make sure my grades weren’t slipping. One time I had a C in one of my classes and he gave me that look and said, “I see you have a C here” and all I could do was look at him and go “yeahhhhhh” (lol). But he told me that if I was having trouble with the class he could help me find tutors and resources. I think it’s pretty cool that he made sure I was doing my best in school. It’s a beautiful thing that ACCESS Academies helps get students through some of the best Catholic high schools in St. Louis.
After I was accepted to college, Mr. Nick asked me if I had the things I needed to start the semester. Through his support, and ACCESS Academies, I was able to purchase some of my books for school. And don’t let anyone fool you, books are VERY expensive (lol)! But even now, Mr. Nick calls me and asks me how school is going and if I need anything. When I told him I was having a little trouble with my tuition, and needed help, he offered me a spot with ACCESS’s work-study program.
I’ve been a part of the work study program for about a year now. Last summer, I worked at Holy Trinity’s summer school for the 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. It was so cool to see some of the kids who had gone there while I was going there. Each work-study participant had a different responsibility. Mine was to oversee the reading portion of the kids’ day and to make sure the work study participants signed in and out. I also worked at Holy Trinity over my Christmas break while I was home from school. One of the best parts of going back to MHT is being able to see all the people and families I’ve known from when I went there and watch my school grow and flourish.
God-willing, in 2019 I will graduate with my Bachelors in the Science of Nursing. I chose nursing as my major because I believe it has a lot to do with medicine and health and more to do with how you make someone feel in their time of need. I’m kind of a people pleaser—I like to see people happy and I hope I can engage this part of my personality into my career.
I think I am a pretty driven person but my mom has definitely given me the extra push and occasionally the shoulder to cry on when needed. I wouldn’t have gotten this far without her and she has definitely inspired my career goals. There isn’t a day when she has told me I couldn’t reach my goals and be what I wanted to be.
After I get my BSN, my plan is to work at a hospital in the emergency room, labor and delivery unit, or the neonatal intensive care unit. In the near future, I plan to get my Doctorate of Nursing Practice. I hope that within my career I can help bridge some of the gaps between nurses and physicians while giving my patients the best care I know how to, physically, mentally, and emotionally. I also want all the little girls and boys that walk the halls of Most Holy Trinity to know that they have the power within themselves to be whatever they want.
Through the support of people like you, I have been able to accomplish so much and I plan on accomplishing much more. So, with my sincerest gratitude, I would like to thank God, my family, Most Holy Trinity, and ACCESS Academies for helping me through my journey and continuing to support me. Thank you all.