On July 26, the excitement of an NFL Draft came to Detroit’s West Side. The night’s draft picks weren’t football players; they were high school graduates.
At Give Merit’s community center — aptly named Merit Park — graduating seniors from their FATE program walked a red carpet, heard their names called, and took the stage to announce their next steps. The inaugural FATE Draft Day event, presented by Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff, mirrored the energy of a professional sports draft while celebrating students heading into college, careers, the military, and skilled trades.
For Goff, the concept was personal.
“I went through the draft process myself 11 years ago. A different setting, but still, you get to be celebrating. You get to hear your name called. You get to have people talk for you, and I’m excited for those kids to experience that,” he says.
Goff, a longtime Give Merit supporter, helped bring the experience to life for the Class of 2026.
“These kids deserve to be celebrated, and it’s an honor to help facilitate that,” he says.
More Than a Graduation
FATE is a four-year, cohort-based program operated by nonprofit Give Merit. Through project-based learning, character development, career exposure, and mentorship, the program prepares students for life after high school. These students also receive continued support through Merit’s alumni program.
Give Merit’s Co-Founder and Executive Director Kuhu Saha says the goal is to give young people the tools and support they need to pursue their goals and make an impact in their communities.
“We want to instill confidence in them so that they believe in their ability to go after their aspirations,” Saha says. “… I hope that [this night] is also a memory that all of our students, all of our families, all of us in the room can kind of call back to, to think about hope and love and celebration and persistence and resilience, because life gets tough.”
Christian Brock, a member of FATE’s 2026 graduating class, will attend Saginaw Valley State University to study exercise science. He plans to try out for the basketball team, with the goal to eventually become an athletic trainer for professional athletes.
Brock says FATE helped him develop skills before reaching college.
“Merit gave me an opportunity to learn things like networking from freshman year instead of waiting until college and being behind,” he says.
He is nervous about entering a new environment without his family but excited about the independence that comes with it.
“It gives me a way to branch out and explore myself more,” he says.
For Makayla Burnette, FATE helped her find a voice she didn’t always have.
“They definitely helped me become the outgoing person I am today,” Burnette says.
Burnette will attend Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids to study psychology before pursuing a Ph.D. to become a therapist. She credits FATE’s mentors with showing her that there isn’t one path to success after high school.
Tony Crawford, another 2026 FATE graduate, says the lesson he hopes his classmates carry with them is simple: opportunity requires effort.
“You have to put in work to be successful,” Crawford says. “You gotta have that work ethic.”
Crawford will attend Michigan State University to study business and finance and hopes to walk on to the basketball team, with football as another possibility.
His advice to his peers is to stay open to what comes next.
“Take opportunities. Every single opportunity matters,” he says. “Literally, it could be anything.”
Building a Future on Detroit’s West Side
While FATE Draft Day celebrated its graduating class, it also marked a milestone for Give Merit: the organization’s new home at Merit Park.
The facility is being developed in Detroit’s Oakman Blvd. Community as a center to expand Give Merit’s youth programming. Plans include an NBA regulation-size basketball court, an NFL Play 60-style obstacle course, a 313-yard dash, a small turf field, and retail and food concepts.
Merit Park Vice President Tanisha Streeter says the vision extends beyond athletics.
“Our goal was to build a holistic life skills center to help build the confidence and self-belief in Detroit youth to take the shot,” Streeter says.
Sports will bring young people through the doors, she says, but the goal is to develop the whole person. The facility will build on the relationships Give Merit has developed through FATE and expand that model to thousands more young people.
“Our goal is to serve 2,000 youth a year … and then also a pathway to health, wealth, and opportunity in their future,” Streeter says.
To learn more about Give Merit’s FATE program, visit givemerit.org/pages/fate.
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