On Friday, May 10, during Morning Ex, students on the Berkowitz Committee awarded the Dreamcatcher Foundation a $10,000 grant to assist them in their work addressing human trafficking of youth in Chicago. “To be chosen was incredible, we were just taken aback, we were so excited,” Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the foundation, Stephanie Daniels-Wilson said.

Founded in 2008, the Dreamcatcher Foundation “works to prevent the sexual exploitation of at-risk youth and helps them find confidence and stability through education, empowerment, and active prevention,” as said in their mission statement. The foundation was founded by Stephanie Daniels-Wilson and Brenda Myers-Powell after observing human trafficking in the city of Chicago.

The Susan F. Berkowitz Award for Outstanding Service to Children is an annual $10,000 award that was established to honor the life and work of Dr. Susan F Berkowitz, a member of the Parker community. The grant is awarded to a different organization each year that directly impacts the youth of Chicago. The committee is composed of students, who, throughout the year, decide on a focus and determine the winner of the grant.

At the end of her fifth year leading the Berkowitz Committee, Assistant Principal Ruth Jurgensen reflects on the purpose of the committee: “It allows students to be in conversation around social issues and to make a direct impact in a certain amount of time,” Jurgensen said. “I think that is the most amazing part of it. You all determine what the issue is, and then you support it, in real time.”

“Chicago is a hub for human trafficking,” sophomore and Berkowitz Committee member Olivia Hanley said. “And we wanted to combat that issue, seeing that it affects so many youth each year.”

Starting second semester, the committee begins to meet weekly, and after Jurgensen receives proposals after spreading the word across the city, the committee selects certain organizations to visit the school, and from there the winner of the grant is determined.

“I think the Dreamcatcher Foundation was the perfect choice for the grant,” Hanley said. “I was really drawn to them and the work they did, and how they have such a variety of different programs…Stephanie and Brenda are such amazing people. You can tell that they care so deeply about the people they work with, and they follow up with young girls.”

The Dreamcatcher Foundation has a variety of programs that work towards prevention, intervention, and outreach. Some of these programs include their “Reach for the Stars Outreach Program” a rescue mission program to save girls from dangerous situations of sexual exploitation; their “Community Awareness Training/Consultation” program, which offers training to people in schools, churches, and corporations about the reality and severity of sex trafficking; their “Bright Stars Prevention Program,” which works to connect vulnerable youth with positive role models in various neighborhoods, homes, and schools; and their “My Life, My Choice” program to motivate and encourage young girls.

“I think what is so dynamic about them is their leadership and who they are,” Jurgensen said. “I think Brenda and Stephanie are incredible people who I think really do reach kids immediately.”

In the process of determining the winner of the grant, the committee works to select the organization to which they think the grant will help grow the organization, rather than a short term solution. “They want the grant money to directly impact the people who are affected or related to a foundation’s work,” Jurgensen said. “That is what we tend to look for: how is this money going to be in support of those people.”

Hanley agrees. “We wanted to make sure that the award would make a long lasting impact on an organization, and that will definitely be the case for the Dreamcatcher Foundation,” Hanley said. “They have so many amazing plans for programs they want to create in the future, and I am excited to see how the grant allows them to accomplish their goals.”

One of the programs that the foundation is working to create in the future is a program specifically for the transgender population. “When we are out on the streets doing outreach, we see a lot of them, and there’s no services for them,” Daniels-Wilson said. “We want to be able to help.”

Although the winners of the 2018 Berkowitz grant were unable to do so, generally the winners of the grant return to Parker in the fall, and the Dreamcatcher Foundation hopes to run a program for the students. According to Jurgensen, she will be in touch will the organization at the end of the school year to help figure out logistics.

According to Daniels-Wilson, the foundation hopes to run a six to eight week program at Parker discussing life skills in a private, confidential space. “We know this is not a cookie cutter, and we do the program based on the audience,” Daniels-Wilson said. “That’s why we are a little different from other organizations, because we do talk about really intimate stuff that teenagers are going through.”

Although all organizations are welcome back at Parker, Jurgensen feels that some connect with the Parker community more than others. “We always have winners who resonate with the community, but there are always those special people you really just want to come back,” Jurgensen said. “Dreamcatcher is another organization where you feel that this ten thousand dollars is going to mean a whole lot to their work and improve the situation for many Chicago youth.”

“It was a surprise, and it was just wonderful,” Daniels-Wilson said.