ALUMNI SPOTLIGHTS

It's always a pleasure reconnecting with Breakthrough Alumni and celebrating the meaningful work and paths you have paved after Breakthrough. We'll keep posting new stories and updates here... read on!

BREAKTHROUGH ALUMNI STORIES

Teaching Fellow Alumnus: Manav Singh

A Budding Economist on His Own Learning Curve In his sophomore year at Yale University, Manav Singh was still unclear about a career path. He decided to explore teaching by joining Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia as a Teaching Fellow in the summer of 2023. “I always liked school and had thought about being a teacher before,” he said. Teaching science to rising 9th graders in the six-week program turned out to be Manav’s most challenging, most stressful and most rewarding

Scholar Alumna: Shakira Ray

Sowing Confidence to Reap Possibilities As a middle schooler at Hill-Freedman World Academy, an international baccalaureate school, Shakira Ray was on the path to a promising future. Her path widened irrevocably when she joined Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia in 2014. “The program was very instrumental to my academic success,” said Shakira. The depth and breadth of the curriculum, as well as the range of experiences shared with a diverse group of peers and teachers helpe

Scholar Alumna: Cristen Pierce

Mixing Tracks as an Eye Opener It’s not easy to predict what will spark possibilities in life, but it can be as unexpected as spinning records. As a Scholar in one of the first Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia classes, Cristen Pierce took DJing classes as part of her middle school electives and, besides the fun creative moments, she also felt her world expanding. “I don't know why I was into DJing, but I enjoyed it,” said Cristen. “I never would have thought of taking DJ

Scholar Alumnus: Rustin Smith

A Passion for Learning Finds a Home Rustin Smith always enjoyed studying and learning, so when he heard that an academic enrichment program for middle schoolers was starting up in his neighborhood, he knew he had to join it. Scholar Alumnus: Rustin Smith In the summer of 1995, Rustin enrolled in the first class at Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia (then Summerbridge). He can still remember feeling amazed when he met the Teaching Fellows, and even thrilled when he understoo

Teaching Fellow Alumnus: Rex Yin

As a Teaching Fellow at Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia, Rex Yin carried a small card in his folder with a personal reminder: Be the best teacher you can be. “That was like my daily mantra...and part of that was being authentic to myself,” he said. Whether rejoicing in the best classroom moments or wrestling with the difficult ones, the most important thing is “recognizing that those are the ways that we can grow as educators.” He was a Teaching Fellow in the summers of

Scholar Alumna: Kimberly Barnes

The Balm For Middle School Years. Fairly or not, middle school is often labeled as the most difficult years for growing children. For Kimberly Barnes, joining Breakthrough not only softened the bumps of that period, but it was the experience that defined her choice of career. “Seeing how the teachers worked with us and really connecting with the Teaching Fellows during the summer…and how Breakthrough just reached into the community and gave back to students – that made me re

Scholar Alumna: Charlette Hardy

Living The Breakthrough: Moving through or beyond an obstacle is the dictionary definition of breakthrough. It is also an experience all

Scholar Alumna: Kamryn Davis

As Breakthrough gears up for the start of the Summer Program, we enjoy connecting with and celebrating Scholar Alumni! This Alumni...

Teaching Fellow Alumnus: Matthew Tossman

A Breakthrough Teaching Fellow, Twenty Years Later “The type of educator I became came from the people that I worked with at Breakthrough.” Matthew Tossman Matthew Tossman has dedicated twenty years to being an educator, and it all started at Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia. When did you work at Breakthrough? It was the summer between my Junior and Senior year of college… that would have been 2001. I taught 7th grade science. Why did you decide to join Breakthrough? I wa

Scholar Alumnus: Drew Bukasa

Paying it forward “Being around kids who actually wanted to learn made me see school in a different light.” Drew Bukasa Drew Bukasa and his twin sister Arlene spent the summer before their 7th, 8th, and 9th grade years participating in Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia as scholars. Then, in the summers after his Junior and Senior years, Drew returned to Breakthrough to be a teaching fellow to teach the younger generations. How did you find out about Breakthrough? My sixth