I think a really major problem that is faced in schools today is not so much the teachers, but certain teachers, the way they look at things. A lot of teachers do bring bias into the classroom and it's kind of discouraging because if you have a teacher that disagrees with you in any way, it's not so much that they'll give you bad marks, but they'll always be down on you when it comes to certain things...I mean, I had a guidance counsellor that, she was nice, in fact I think she was head of the department at one point, but I'd come to her with certain things and she'd just discourage me. You know what I mean? I'd be like "Okay, I want to be a lawyer." "Okay, well, I see," and then she goes through my marks and my work, and "Oh well, you don't have this and you don't have that, and you didn't get a very good mark in this," and it's kind of like, why don't you suggest what I do then? 'Cause I'd even ask her, "Okay, I want to be a lawyer, but I know that I'm not good in math. I personally don't think that law has anything to do with math, but I need it to get into university. What course do you suggest I take that will help me get into university but still have the math?" Instead of her suggesting things, "Maybe you should look at a different career." ...It can be very discouraging for somebody. And then that can also tie into violence. You're going through all this violence at home, let's say, or violence in your community, or violence at school, and the only thing you can think about right now that takes your mind off of it is trying to get somewhere where you don't have to be around that violence any more, and then you go to a teacher or your guidance counsellor to say "What can you suggest I do?" And because that guidance counsellor is at a loss, they tell you "Well, you know, I don't think there's that much you could do. You should pick another career." or "Maybe this school isn't the type of school for you," or "Maybe you should be taking these type of courses." No, you don't tell me what I should be doing, I'm telling you what I would like to do, and your job as a guidance counsellor is to suggest-you're supposed to guide me, help me figure out what choices are appropriate for what I need. (Alternative school social studies class)

In contrast, a student spoke with praise of the way staff in her after-school program helped her believe she could do anything. It was this sort of encouragement and enthusiasm that students craved. Where they received it, as those in the LOVE leadership program all did, they glowed and spun dreams of their futures that were varied, creative and reflective of their hopes to make a difference in the world:

They make you believe that you can do anything you want. [By] their support-they talk to you. Say [you're] into producing, they would hook [you] up with somebody, an agency or somebody that they're working with so that he or she could talk to [you]. They just help you in every which way. When I applied for college, I was torn between these two programs. They sat down, they weighed out the pros and cons with me, they were like "If you do this program, it's a wider variety." They don't make decisions for you, but they give you enough help and support that you feel your decision is one that was well thought out. You feel like you know, I'm making the right decision...They're so happy for you, they get so excited for you, you really feel good. (Tammy)