TIFTON, Ga. — A Colquitt County High School student is among six debutantes and five pre-debutantes who are “Taking the ‘A’ Train to Leadership, Scholarship & Service” as participants in the Precious Pearls Strands of Excellence Leadership & Scholarship Cotillion Program.

The program is designed to provide young ladies with tools to transition successfully from high school to post-secondary education and into young adulthood and to put them on the path to become local and global leaders.

The debutantes include Laquashia Miller, Tift County High School; Janya Sims, Tift County High School; Kiara Douglas, Tift County High School; Brooke Snow, Tift County High School; Shae’ Erica Horne, Fitzgerald High School; and Nykeria Walker, Colquitt County High School. Each will be formally presented at the Cotillion Ball fundraiser and is eligible to receive scholarships and awards that evening.

The pre-debutantes include Kristian Norris, Turner County High School; Alexandria Miles, Tift County High School; Kiara Green, Tift County High School; Quaneisha Ezell, Turner County High School; and Mia Carithers, Turner County High School. These 11 young ladies stepped on board the “A” Train in November 2016, and will make their final stop of this journey at the Cotillion Ball fundraiser on Saturday, June 17, 2017, at the UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center. The doors open to the public at 6 p.m., and the program begins at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $75 per person.

Their journey has included several stops at stations (workshops, cultural activities, and service projects) along the way: preparing and delivering treat bags and Christmas cards to residents at Golden Living Rehabilitation Center, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day service project, “Hidden Figures” book and movie chat, Feeding the Hungry at the Tiftarea Soup Kitchen, Betty’s Diner experiences, the African American Experience Workshop, Fundraising Workshop, Leadership Team Project for senior citizens, play attended in Albany, mini writing sessions, Business Etiquette Workshop, Social Etiquette Workshop, Financial Planning Workshop, My Personal Brand Workshop, formal dance workshops and rehearsals, and much more to come.

The community is encouraged to support these young ladies with sponsorships and other donations as well as attendance at the Cotillion on June 17, according to a press release from the organization’s sponsors. All donations are fully tax deductible as well as a portion of the $75 Cotillion Ball ticket price.

This LSC program is sponsored by West Johnson Parson Foundation, a 501(c) (3) tax-exempt entity, in partnership with Sigma Alpha Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. in Tifton, Georgia. All proceeds benefit scholarships and vital community programs.

For more information about this program and opportunities to support, contact Attorney Sharon Nixon, general chairperson; Marilyn Burks, co-chairperson; Dr. Kim Ezekiel, president of Sigma Alpha Omega; or Joyce Barlow, president of the Foundation: (229) 402-9306 or wjplscotillion@gmail.com.