3 Years of The Catalyst!
A few months back, The Catalyst celebrated its three year anniversary. Chloe Lewis, founder and programme director, shares her reflections on the amazing journey so far. Just over 3 years ago, we were in the midst of a Covid lockdown, and I had volunteered to run a GCSE exam prep workshop – virtually of course – with a group of students from Eastside Young Leaders Academy. The group happened to be all Black girls. They were – as I have found Black girls always are – brilliant, engaged and ambitious. I finished the session and sent a text to Eastside’s founder (who happened to be my dad!) “Do the girls have mentors?” ”No.” ”OK, I’m pretty sure I can find them some!” And so, that was it and we were off. The pilot cohort was that same small group – 6 girls in year 11, paired with me and 5 friends. We met monthly between January and August, had our first mentoring social on Zoom and wrapped up the year with KFC and games. It was, to me, proof of concept – that Black professional women, busy though they were, could spare an hour or so to be role models and support systems for the upcoming generation of young Black women. 3 years later, I have found that to be true, time after time. Now, we’re a team of 7 with 5 partner schools. We’re still working with Eastside, and have expanded to different schools across London, with an ambition to start working with schools in other cities in the coming year. We’ve matched 75 mentoring pairs this academic year, planned and delivered socials and career events, are developing some exciting partnerships with businesses and have a vocal Youth Advisory Board. Our pilot cohort girls are now applying to university, and some are still in touch with their mentors to this day. It’s been the steepest learning curve of my own career – taking something that started as a Covid project, and growing it into a non-profit organisation, with supporters and funders and staff. It’s busy work; relationships are important but not always easy, and in an ever evolving world, the advice and guidance young people need is going to have to keep developing and shifting. But 3 years on, my overriding feeling is gratitude. I’m really grateful to be a part of this community, and to have created the kind of thing I wish I had access to when I was a young person and the only Black girl in my school. I am grateful for the mentors that give so much of themselves to be present role models to our girls, and for their abundant patience, creativity and energy. I’m grateful for the schools that support our programming and recognise why we do what we do, for this group of young people. I’m grateful for the generosity of our funders who have kept this organisation sustainable. To the staff team, who hold everything together. All of this makes it possible for the Catalyst girls to have easy access to brilliant Black women from all professional fields to support them. It means that their first contacts in the career fields they’re aspiring toward are people who look and live a bit like them. Most of all, I’m grateful to the young Black women that make up the Catalyst community, all of whom are on their way to very successful places, but choose to let us be part of their story. Our girls have said: “It’s one of the best decisions that I have ever made. It helps you build a network and someone that you can talk to about anything” and that “being able to talk about my struggles as a young black women felt more at ease because there was someone there who related.” So, if it works for them, it works for me! Here’s to 3 more great years. Our first end of year party, and our most recent one!
What a difference a year makes: Celebrating our first cohort!
This August we brought our first ever cohort to a close. Here, we share a video of our brilliant End of Year event, and Amara – our Summer Programme Intern – shares more about the event. Videography by Melissa Morgan Our end of year celebration was the first time that many of our mentoring pairs met in person for the first time, and it was the perfect way to draw our first cohort’s journey to a close. For Ernesta, one of our mentees, the event was a chance “to bond with other mentors and mentees and celebrate the journey that we have all been on.” With balloons hung and food on the table, the scene was set for what turned out to be a magical evening! In between games, mentors and mentees shared about the difference that mentoring had made to their lives. Girls who had previously shied away from public speaking were now expressing their thoughts confidently, sharing the clarity they’d developed on their career path, and the personal growth they attributed to mentoring. Our mentors too had learnt a lot, explaining how inspired they were by their mentees’ character and drive, and how they had really enjoyed the opportunity to be a part of their mentees’ journeys. A few happy tears were shed! The mentoring pairs soon grabbed some props, ready to take polaroid pictures at our makeshift photo booth. As creative and eager as ever, the mentees began to use the photo frames and stickers from their goody bags to decorate their new polaroids, and the mentors soon followed, creating another opportunity for them to bond. “I don’t think there could have been a better event for us to meet our mentors. Everyone had fun and felt comfortable.” – Caitlyn, Mentee 2020-21 We are very grateful to our first cohort for their enthusiastic approach to mentoring, and for how they have shaped The Catalyst over the past 8 months. We also appreciate everyone who contributed to this celebration, from hosting us to doing videography. Thank you all for making the end of year celebration such a fantastic event. Words by Amara Agwo
