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The bold and the beautiful, Ms. Jay-Sheree
April 09, 2009
By CYRIL JOSH BARKER, Amsterdam News Staff, Published: Thursday, April 9, 2009 11:53 AM EDT
Between attending college, working at a public elementary school and running her own youth organization, 20-year-old Jay-Sheree Allen is on the path to success. Her aspirations are to combine her goal of becoming a doctor and help young women at the same time.
Allen is a junior pre-med student at City College majoring in psychology with hopes of working in the field of medicine dealing with women’s health. But when she’s not hitting the books, she’s busy running her organization, Women of Excellence, Strength and Tenacity (WEST), that works with young women ages 10 to 24.
“I started WEST because I felt it was important for women to get together and empower each other,” she said. A native of Jamaica, Allen moved to the United States when she was 11 years old in 2000, settling in Mt. Vernon, where she currently resides. She is the oldest of five children that includes two sisters and two brothers.
Originally starting her college career at New York University, she began WEST with a group of students. The program meets once a week at NYU and P.S. 154 in Harlem.
Girls learn about etiquette, self-esteem and personal health. The girls also take field trips like ice skating and dinner outings.
Allen said, “As CEO of this organization and as a future doctor, I want women to make better choices for their lives.” After leaving NYU for financial reasons, she received a full scholarship to attend City College. Allen maintained WEST at NYU while opening up a similar program at P.S. 154. Currently, WEST has a roster of 15 girls at P.S. 154 and 20 girls at NYU.
WEST also participates in community service projects. The organization recently collected several items for a Harlem homeless shelter. Allen said she does things like this to offer the girls lessons on giving.
Also at P.S.154, Allen works as a consultant for the NYU Metropolitan Center for Urban Education. She assists teachers in the classroom and has held the job for two years.
A well-traveled woman, Allen has been to China, France and England. Later this year she will travel to Tanzania, Africa, to teach science to high school girls. The one-month trip is an effort to get more African women involved in science-based professions. “The youth are the future,” she said. “I believe a lot has been given to me and it is my obligation to give back.”
In her community of Westchester County, Allen also serves as secretary of the youth ministry at Born-Again United Apostolic Church. There, she works with a co-ed group of over 40 kids. As for the future, Allen said that she wants WEST to grow in global measures.
“What I want for WEST is to not only become a registered non-profit organization, but I also want to expand and start chapters all over the world,” she said.
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