Detroit means home. It means character, hustle, creativity, love, originality, intellect, discipline; and failure isn’t an option. I never left Detroit. It was always important to me, whether I played in the NBA, worked in corporate America, or in multimedia, that I maintained Detroit as my residency.
I wanted to start JRLA (Jalen Rose Leadership Academy) to bridge what we call the education gap. Unfortunately in the US, the quality of a young person’s education has been defined by the zip code that they grew up in. I’m trying to bring in inner city young people who get limited resources on a limited budget. I took the toughest route possible, along with my founding team, in independently starting a high school in the neighborhood I grew up in. We’re an open enrollment, tuition free public charter in our 14th school year. We have 420+ scholars in high school, and another 1,000 in secondary education. We’re committed to changing the dynamics of young people not only in the classroom, but in life.
I told my mom I was going to make it to the league and buy her a new car one day. To see her happily driving a jeep of her choice until I lost her in 2021, was everything to me.
What normally happens, especially during political cycles, is that people are more outspoken about things they’re passionate about and what affects their lives. But this work is 24/7, 365. It’s important for me to be present. So, it wasn’t just about being a founder of a school in my neighborhood; it was about a community that helped raise me, and young people who want the opportunity to compete with their suburban counterparts.
Chrysler has always been a part of my life; I come from a union family. My grandfather worked at the plant for over 30 years, my uncle over 30 years, my other uncle over 20 years, and then my mother who worked at Chrysler as a key puncher for over 20 years.
For me, one of my favorite memories was driving up Livernois with my mother after she got off work. She used to drive this blue Chrysler Cordoba; I used to always sit behind the passenger seat. For this night, for whatever reason, I sat behind her. And she was like, ‘Slide over, slide over!’ I was trying to slide over, and it felt a little soft. I moved the mat, and realized we had a hole in the car. It was a shocking revelation for a young person, because not only was it winter time, but I felt like we were the Flintstones. At that time, I told my mom I was going to make it to the pro’s and buy her a new car one day. To be able to see my mother driving a Chrysler Jeep of her choice, and happily doing so until I lost her in 2021, was everything to me.
When I drive around Detroit, I think about the history and how far we’ve come and still need to go. I reminisce about how downtown used to be; going to Belle Isle, Edgewater, or the Renaissance Center and it feeling like a field trip from the North West side.
As a young kid, I used to sit on the porch and watch cars drive by, saying ‘That’s my car, that’s my car!’ To then actually be at the Auto Show and see the cars physically, and get inside of them was amazing. As Detroiters, this show is what we take pride in. We’re the motor city, we’re the car capital, and it’s only right you have to come here to get that.”