By CRA News Service
A dean at Boca Raton High School has been honored with Take Stock in Children’s 2014 Alumni of the Year Award.
“Wilnic Gideon is an inspirational leader in his community who is continuing his commitment to the program by mentoring and empowering the next generation,” said Madeline Pumariega, president and CEO of Take Stock in Children. “We are proud to honor Wilnic Gideon, and all nominated alumni of excellence who exemplify our values of transforming lives through education.”
One of 14,041 Take Stock in Children program graduates, Gideon said the news caught him by surprise.
“I was shocked and a little humble as well,” said Gideon, who has been a School District employee for two years. “I’m a very humble person so just finding out that I was being honored for something was shocking. I wasn’t expecting it.”
Gideon will be honored during a ceremony on Feb. 12 at Take Stock in Children’s Leadership Conference: Pathways to Success in Tallahassee.
The Riviera Beach resident is an educator, coach, mentor and motivational coach. He attributes his success to the Take Stock in Children program that significantly impacted his life and helped him succeed both personally and academically.
It was while a student at Lauderhill Middle School that Gideon enrolled in the program and was matched with a mentor. He attended Piper High School and later transferred to Palm Beach Gardens High from where he graduated. He attended Florida State University and majored in Secondary mathematics education. While at Florida State, Gideon spent countless hours tutoring, implementing programs, and mentoring students in the Tallahassee community.
“It’s been a lifelong passion to help students that came from similar background,” said Gideon, who taught Algebra 1 his first year before becoming a dean. He previously taught in Tallahassee. “My idea was to implement whatever programs to get them the necessary things they need to be successful.”
When he returned home, he signed up to be a Take Stock in Children mentor and meets regularly with his mentee, Brion Crawford, a Boca Raton High School student. Gideon is continuing his education at Lynn University to receive his master’s degree in Educational Leadership.
Since 1996, Take Stock in Children has awarded scholarships to more than 1,000 students.
The scholarship program is designed to motivate and assist students who show academic promise and who might not otherwise have the opportunity to attend college. The scholarship recipients are matched with adult volunteer mentors from the community who provide guidance and encouragement. All the selected scholarship recipients sign a contract agreeing to maintain good grades, to stay out of trouble, to stay away from drugs and alcohol and to graduate from high school.