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Arts & Entertainment

Young Entrepreneur Turns Passion into Profit

Creativity, comedy, courage and compassion combine in Whiz Kid Jade Pope.

  • Whiz Kid's Name/Age: Jade Pope, 15.
  • Whiz Kid's School: .
  • Whiz Kid's Accomplishment: Pope started a small business selling T-shirts imprinted with custom-made illustrations and artistic photographs.  “They were a pretty big hit,” she says. She's working on a line that she plans to sell at The Local Collection, a pop-up store dedicated to community artisans in the Glendale Galleria.
  • Whiz Kid's Key to Awesomeness:  Pope, for the most part, is a self-taught artist, having only taken one art class in middle school and a cartooning workshop at Art Center School of Design. Her illustrations allow her an outlet for her self-proclaimed “teen angst” as well as her evident sense of humor. She exhibits her work under the name "Kiku Chan" at DeviantArt, an on-line gallery, which can be viewed here. Pope credits her participation in CV High’s ComedySportz League as another outlet for her desire to make people laugh. It takes courage for her to stand up in front of an audience and do improvisational comedy. Only a couple dozen students out of 2400 in the school have done the same.  “I'm really good at making mistakes seem funny and turning them into something positive,” says Pope. “Through ComedySportz, I’ve broadened my horizons and I’m a lot more confident now.” Read Patch's recent coverage of ComedySportz .
  • Bonus Whiz Kid Info: Pope also contributes to a culture of compassion at CV High by being an officer in the school’s Gay-Straight Alliance.  The GSA recently organized a "fish bowl activity" in which staff members observed student discussions with topics such as what it's like to be gay at CV and living with gay parents. “It was very successful,” Pope says, “giving insight into what goes on in the halls. It could really help change things regarding bullying and tolerance.” The program won the attention and support of many people, including the principal and some school board members. Pope’s chosen career path is in the field of illustration or photography. Her talent and her generous nature should take her far!
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