Aisha DaCosta lost her sister Kahdine Ann DaCosta in 2004 to breast cancer. Kahdine Ann DaCosta was the first in the family to go to college and had a great friendly spirit. “Kahdine was one of those people that when she came into a room she lit it up. She was one of those vibrant spirits that everyone wanted to be around,” DaCosta told the AFRO. “Kahdine had a way of asking people, ‘Are you ok?’ and sometimes when people ask that question they quickly move on before you have a chance to answer the question. But she honestly wanted to know whether or not you were ok.”
DaCosta created the organization I Am O’KAH to honor her sister’s legacy and to carry on a lifelong dream her sister never was able to fulfill. DaCosta knew her sister had financial support for college, but lacked guidance and mentorship. Before her passing, she talked about creating a foundation to help teach youth practical skills.
DaCosta in May 2011 started the I Am O’KAH foundation to teach Baltimore youth about financial literacy and entrepreneurship to better prepare them for the world they will enter. “Our parents gave us a blueprint of going to college and getting a job and that job would take care of us for the rest of our life, but that’s not true anymore,” said DaCosta. “I can’t give that blueprint to my son.”
A key program of I Am O’KAH is the Financial Rock Star Academy, an 18-week course with lessons about financial security and investing. Currently, DaCosta comes to Mars Estates Elementary school in Essex twice a week teaching 4th graders the mechanics of business development. “Our intention is not to turn every child into an entrepreneur, but it is our intention to have our kids think like entrepreneurs,” DaCosta Said.
She said not all people will want to be business owners, but will end up working for businesses and need to learn to be an asset to the company. As part of the program, the students learn how to identify an idea that can be a business and how to turn that idea into a profit. Along with getting the skills, the students interview current business owners to break down the barrier and fear of interacting with adults.
DaCosta said, “The very first objective was to teach kids to understand that kids can own businesses, it doesn’t have to be something you defer until you’re an adult.”
DaCosta’s son Ali DaCosta-Paul is a 4th grader in the class. He took the initiative, starting a T-shirt line called “Young and Talented.” DaCosta-Paul said, “It’s not easy to be an entrepreneur because you need practice now at a young age and that’s why you should be good at it when you get older.”
In addition to Financial Rockstar Academy, I Am O’KAH sponsors the Kahdine Ann DaCosta scholarship, awarded to two high school seniors. The seniors must be ambitious, have potential, and demonstrate great community service to go along with a good resume.
Aisha Elmore was one of the 2012 scholarship recipients, and is currently studying Early Childhood education at Towson University. Elmore is the first in her family to go to college and loves the support DaCosta has given her. “Out of all the scholarships I applied for she just seemed more involved and wanted to help us out as a mentor, said Elmore.
DaCosta knows that sometimes financial support is not enough and wants to prepare her mentee’s for the job market. “A college degree is great, but it is not penicillin or Motrin, it’s not going to cure everything,” said DaCosta. “There are more kids in college than jobs available.”
For more information on the I Am O’KAH foundation visit their website at http://www.iamokah.org/
