Brown County POP Festival

Project Theme: Purpose exploration and college access

Target Audience and Location: High school students in Brown County, Indiana.

Mission: To increase college and career readiness for rural students by equipping them with the necessary skills to lead a purpose-driven life.

Project Description: Scholar Josephine Fields and educator Scholar Kristi Billings created The Pursuing Our Purpose (POP) Festival to increase students’ college-going mindset by providing ways for them to explore their purpose and various academic and career possibilities. The festival aims to engage high school students, many of whom will be first generation college students from low-income backgrounds to explore and learn how they can access various post-secondary opportunities.

The first part of their project will focus on the individual by leading students through a series of workshops focused on purpose, in partnership with nXu, a national non-profit organization whose mission is to catalyze and equip youth and adults to pursue their purpose. The workshops will culminate into a daylong festival that will be a college and career fair focused on exposing high school students to resources and opportunities to increase their desire and ability to continue their education after high school. Representatives from colleges, vocational schools and employers will share resources and provide workshops. Josephine shared that the team, “Hopes this will help to build a learning community focused on current and future success for ALL Brown County students based on their own unique needs and passions.”

Watch this team’s project presentation at our virtual showcase event!