Sarah Kerr has been honoured by being named to the “100 Rising Stars” list by Invest Ottawa. Kerr’s contributions through SchoolBOX’s Indigenous Youth Empower Students (IYES) Program were recognized by Invest Ottawa. The list included individuals from a wide array of different industries including innovative high-tech firms, fashion and food enterprises, social businesses, and non-profits such as the IYES Program within SchoolBOX.
SchoolBOX President Tom Affleck is proud of Sarah’s achievement. “The entire SchoolBOX and IYES community is ecstatic that Sarah’s leadership, dedication, and innovation are being recognized by Invest Ottawa. It is exciting and very well deserved. The IYES Program is innovative and is proven to empower communities in Nicaragua, as well as in Canada.”
Kerr made it to the “100 Rising Stars” list by demonstrating creativity, growth of the operation, and overall impact in the community for the IYES Program. The IYES Program is an international youth development program run through the grassroots charity SchoolBOX. It provides Indigenous youth from Canada the opportunity to create meaningful change in the lives of Nicaraguan children though education.
Indigenous youth from across Canada are brought together to travel to Nicaragua where they have the opportunity to participate in a school build and to share their culture with Nicaraguan students and communities that they encounter. In the process, the youth grow in confidence and have their eyes opened to a much broader community. They come back with redefined goals and plans for their home communities that have lasting effects.
The IYES program began through the vision of Kerr. Her desire was to see Indigenous youth overcome the cycles of struggle and be inspired to lead their communities. She is also the Operations Director of SchoolBOX.
About the IYES Program
Indigenous Youth Empowering Students (IYES) is an international youth development program run through the Canadian Charity, SchoolBOX. IYES is a catalyst for Indigenous youth volunteers from Canada to create meaningful change in the lives of Central American children through education and cross cultural exchanges.For more information, please visit www.schoolbox.ca/iyes
About SchoolBOX
SchoolBOX is a registered Canadian and Nicaraguan Charity that helps children in Central America go to school. SchoolBOX uses simple, cost effective initiatives to allow children to go to school. SchoolBOX delivers education packages to students and teachers, builds classrooms, creates libraries within schools, and run soccer tournaments to promote education. For more information, please visit www.schoolbox.ca
