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SEEKING CHANGE WITH THE ASPIRE MOVEMENT
Seeking Change
Aspire Movement is transforming the world, one student at a time
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By Paige Townley
Seeking to positively transform the lives of students across Birmingham is no small task. It takes sincere care, a strategic vision, and a whole lot of patience – and it is precisely what Jason Williams is striving to do with the Aspire Movement.
The Aspire Movement’s vision is to “transform youth to reflect Christ and restore their communities.” The movement got its start from the personal experience of Williams, its founder, when he found Christ after some really hard times.
“I grew up in the Washington, D.C. metro area in a broken home,” he explains. “I had been looking for identity and purpose and the meaning of life through all the wrong things, but by God’s grace, He saved me. I moved to Birmingham, and I immediately felt drawn toward kids growing up fatherless and in broken homes. I felt God gave me the experience I had growing up and coming to Him not only to heal me, but also to stand in the gap for so many kids.”
That gap, at least for kids in Birmingham, is rather high. According to a study from Haven Life, Birmingham has the second highest percentage of single parents in the country (based on the analytics of a city its size). He further saw the impact of that statistic when he spoke to men in various correctional facilities around central Alabama.
“Every time I spoke, I asked how many of them grew up without their father,” he explained. “Nine out of 10 hands would go up every time. I saw there was a huge need for children to have godly advocates in their lives.”
That was the beginning of Aspire Movement. After seeking out how other organizations worked toward a similar mission, Williams landed on the model the nonprofit still employs today: multiplying leaders through mentorship. The organization utilizes mentoring to create relationships between adults and students that wouldn’t normally exist. It works by men and women being matched with fourth grade students, and they are asked to commit to mentoring that student for nine years. “We ask that they walk alongside the students in a mutually transforming relationship until the student graduates high school,” Williams says.
Through one-on-one mentoring, the nonprofit encourages its mentors to spend at least two times per month with their students, all based around their schedule. “We know that adults have a lot on their plates, including their own families,” Williams explains. “We don’t want mentoring to take away from their own family, but instead include another young person’s life in their family so they don’t just see it as another thing they have to do. They can bring the student into their world.”
That means time between the mentor and student can include simple plans such as eating lunch with the student one day at school, or picking them up on a Saturday and taking them to see a movie, going to the student’s sporting event, or even taking the student to church on Sunday with their own family. The organization also plans activities that the mentors and students can attend as well.
“We want to make it as easy as possible for them to spend time together,” Williams says. “We want to facilitate opportunities and options for both the mentor and student to enjoy together.”
In addition to the one-on-one mentoring, the organization also offers small group mentoring, which provides opportunities for college-aged kids to visit the schools to talk with students about character development, basic soft skills, relationships, and more.
The nonprofit is even adding to its offerings with the addition of a holistic residential apprenticeship program called Launch Pad. The plan is to purchase a campus that allows for housing of up to 100 18- to 24-yearold students at a time and help them learn needed skills to transition into careers. “There are so many job opportunities out there, but many students aren’t connected to those opportunities and haven’t been trained to take advantage of them,” Williams explains. “We want to equip them and give them hands-on experience where they will be working at these companies and supposed while living in a safe environment that is encouraging and equipping them.”
Over its 11 years thus far, the organization has impacted more than 650 students. Aspire Movement recently graduated its third class of students. Today, the organization currently has approximately 200 mentor/student relationships.
“This is what I live for,” Williams says. “When I think about the brevity of life, I really don’t know of many things more important than standing in the gap and helping a young person succeed It’s such a joy.”
To volunteer or learn more, visit aspiremovement.org.
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