"This initiative is credited to General Jean-Pierre Kelche,” says Antoine d’Arras. “When he was Grand Chancellor of the Legion of Honor, he gathered a number of friends, partners, and contacts to help the youth of France who often struggle to even identify their potential.”
Yet this potential is recognized in schools by high school principals, who recommend profiles of young scholarship students to the Fondation Un Avenir Ensemble. Currently, there are 1,150 sponsored young people, of which 63% are girls. Among them, 70% come from regions outside Île-de-France.
The decorated individuals, meaning those who hold the Legion of Honor, the Military Medal, and the National Order of Merit, become mentors and commit to being available for these young people over a long period, averaging 6 to 7 years.
“It’s an "attention" given to this young scholarship student, in the sense of “taking care,” clarifies Antoine d’Arras. "It doesn’t necessarily require a lot of time; it can be a helping hand when they doubt themselves, assistance in finding an internship, or learning the social codes that a 14 or 15-year-old may not initially possess.”
Recently, employees of sponsoring companies can also become mentors for these promising young individuals. This partnership is particularly interesting as company employees can share their professional experiences, skills, and personal journeys for the benefit of these scholarship students, who can thus discover a wide variety of professions in sectors they might not have had access to or even considered.
"What’s interesting is the diversity of backgrounds,” explains Antoine d’Arras. “Some will have short initial paths, such as vocational training or within professional high schools. Then, as their abilities blossom, because they start to believe in what they could achieve, they will have a much longer, broader, and more open journey than they could have hoped for a few years earlier.”
These successful partnerships are evident as former mentees, once they complete their journeys, make themselves available to current mentees for sharing moments, collaborative actions, and testimonials.
“The value of example is really important for these young people,” enthuses Antoine d’Arras. “To see that "others have been supported and look what they have become.” They have simply become what their teachers recognized in them.”
