“My favorite outing of the year” said one scholar, who was delighted to hear words of gratitude from passers-by and see for herself the transformation she made to benefit others as part of PEAK's annual service day. For this year's service event, PEAK partnered with Comcast for the annual Comcast Cares Day. PEAK scholars, mentors, and mentors-for-a-day headed to the Paulo Freire Family Center of Chicago Commons, in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. On a sunny Saturday in May, the group pulled together to weed, clean, and paint at a site near the Family Center. Beautifying the overgrown lot was the first step in establishing a bee garden and, most importantly, removing an eyesore that was b

This April, a pair of PEAK mentors collaborated on one very, very special outing — an opportunity to meet 2010 first round draft pick for the Portland Trail Blazers Evan Turner. Every PEAK scholar-mentor relationship has its own magical components, be they monthly cooking nights together, weekly chats by phone, or daily tweets of support during exams. But across the board, “special outings” to sports events always score big...especially when they involve one-on-one time with a pro! Freshmen mentors John Mitchell and Bryce Yancy are already good friends now after a year mentoring their inseparable Freshman scholars, William and Gabe. Evan Turner, 2010 first round draft pick for the Portland T