Austintown Fitch is proud of Melissa Stroud

Austintown Fitch Junior, Melissa Stroud, is the true representation of what it means to “overcome the odds.”  Melissa is a student currently in the foster care system having been taken in by an Austintown family this year. Prior to being placed with a family, Melissa was in a youth group home where she was elected into office by a group of her peers to serve as the media spokesperson for the Ohio Youth Advisory Board.

 Melissa was chosen for this opportunity due to her leadership skills, maturity, and strong sense of responsibility.

The Overcoming Hurdles in Ohio Youth Advisory Board is an organization of young people (14-24) who have experienced foster care. It exists to be the knowledgeable statewide voice that influences policies and practices that affect all youth who have or will experience out-of-home care.

Sunday, March 13th through Thursday, March 17th Melissa participated in Three Days on the Hill, which is an annual educational trip to Washington D.C. designed to provide foster care youth and alumni with opportunities to further their leadership development. Only 6 youth from the state were able to participate, and Stroud was placed on the short list of pre-approved attendees.

During the trip Melissa participated in a full day of training along with a meeting at the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) headquarters. In addition, she also attended a meeting with 15 different legislators to discuss how to end the foster care to homeless pipeline, and how to effectively prepare youth in foster care to build successful adult lives. Lisa Dickson, Communications Chair at ACTION Ohio, says she took the training very seriously and excelled during meetings.

After a long week of representing the Ohio Youth Advisory board, Melissa returned to school Friday, March 18th, for yet another major accomplishment; she came back from D.C just in time to be inducted into the Austintown Fitch National Honor Society (NHS)! Students selected for NHS are voted in by their teachers for demonstrating excellence in scholarship, service, leadership, and character. Junior Principal, David Purins said, “It was wonderful to see her walk onto that stage as a member of this prestigious organization.”