2005 Young Achievers

Jordan Umstead likes to tutor other kids

(Fifth in a series)

Jordan Umstead

Eleven-year-old Jordan Umstead does a lot of school and community projects. But, he said he likes best the chance to tutor younger kids with their homework.

Jordan said, "I like to see younger kids learn. It gives me a very warm feeling."

This fall, he's a 6th grader at Keeven Elementary School in the Hazelwood District. He and his family live in Black Jack, in north St. Louis County.

His tutoring is just one of his school and community service projects. Those along with excellent grades helped Jordan earn one of the 2005 Gateway Young Achiever awards. The International, Leadership Network award includes a $1,000 scholarship.

(In May, Young Saint Louis.com published names of the ten 2005 Young Achievers. In June, YSL.com began a series of profiles of the elementary and middle school Achievers. This profile of Jordan Umstead is the fifth in what will be a six-part series.)

The Achiever award was given for his efforts in 5th grade.

In school, Jordan had perfect attendance and straight A grades. He also was an alternate on the school's student council. He had been council treasurer in 3rd and 4th grades.

He was the school's character education representative. In that role, he gave character announcements over the school intercom.

School activities included singing in the Keeven Chorus. One of the features was the Christmas program, where Jordan was Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer. That involved both singing and dancing.

They described the dancing as a "boogie blitzen," after the name of one of Santa's other reindeer.

Although he likes performing, he admits his singing isn't "career-type singing."

Jordan plans to be a student council candidate again this year. He also will continue work with the school's safety patrol. That safety patrol work is particularly important this year since Keeven has a complete street-rebuilding project right in front of the school.

This year, he'll be a patrol captain. He described that job as being the "head honcho," who makes sure the kids' patrol assignments are met. Also, "I do anything else that needs to be done," he added.

Another of his school projects was as a member of the Ambassadors. Those are kids who show visitors and new students around the school on their first-time visits.

Last year, he worked on the Student Council Book Drive. Kids brought in used books from home and then held a school-wide book sale. The sale prices were from 25 cents to $1. The money then was donated to charities.

Jordan has been active in Boy Scout Troop 717 at Christ the King Church.

He's a first-class scout now and is working to reach the highest rank of Eagle Scout.

One of the toughest Scout badges to earn was the Arrow of Light, Jordan said. "We camped out five times, learned to pitch a tent and learned all kinds of knots," he said. One of the hardest assignments was to "build a house in the woods out of sticks," he added.

He is now an assistant senior patrol leader. "That job is to make sure everything remains under control," he said.

His troop has been active in the annual Scouting for Food drives. That's when the kids pass out plastic bags one weekend and then, the next weekend, collect those bags that neighbors had filled with food.

He said he and his dad, Kevin Umstead, used the family's pickup truck to take bags to the scout's collection center. Another Scout fund-raiser is the September Fish Fry.

In addition, Keeven holds a number of school fund-raisers, selling everything from chocolates, wrapping paper, candles to peanuts. Jordan is active in all of them.

Jordan's favorites sports are basketball and soccer. He's been his soccer team's MVP for the last two years.

Among activities at his church, Jordan said he liked the Young Gospel Explosion. He said, "I love to be involved. It makes a warm spot in my heart."

His favorite subjects in school are social studies and science. He likes the chances to make "observations and inferences" in science experiments. His environmental experiment earned him a blue ribbon in St. Louis Science Fair competition.

He wants to pursue a medical education at a university either in Louisiana or Texas. He has a cousin studying medicine at Xavier University in New Orleans. His cousin is studying to be a gynecologist but Jordan wants to be a brain surgeon.