Supportive teacher uses Twitter to show creative student how talented she is

Sometimes all we need is a little support from others to recognize our own talent.

In the case of 14-year-old Jada Allen, the support of her teacher and thousands of retweets from strangers on Twitter launched her talent for art into the universe.

Kwaku Mensah, a math and science teacher at Charles Drew Charter School in Atlanta, Georgia, asked his followers to retweet this photo of one of Jada's pieces she said was "not that good."

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"Jada is a bubbly, joyful student. And EXTREMELY smart," Mensah said of his student. "She takes advanced classes already and excels at them. She's very driven and wants to become a fashion designer when she grows up. For a 14 year old, she's beyond put together. At her age all I wanted to do was skateboard and play video games."

Mensah got the idea to tweet the photo when Jada first showed him some of her work.

"She told me that she did art. I LOVE visual art because I never was very good at it," he said. "So I asked to see some of her work. She was bashful at first but she showed me. Her sketchbook was amazing. I told her how I felt about it and she said, 'Oh it's ok. It's not that good.' I replied, 'Let me post it on my twitter and see what the world says.' And here we are."

The choice to show support for her in this way was driven by the fact the his students are growing up in the digital age. Mensah explained, "Teenagers these days live in the social media age. As much as we hate it, that stuff matters to them. So that's the tool I used. I figured if she got a couple of thousand retweets I'd make her smile, build some confidence, bring her some joy. I just wanted her to recognize the talent she has and be proud of it. I wish someone had done that for me at her age."

Since Mensah posted the photo, it's received over 131,000 retweets and close to 150,000 likes on Twitter. The post even reached Rosie O'Donnell, who replied with encouragement for Jada.

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Her supporters on Twitter showed her all kinds of love.

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"People are going crazyyyy!!!," Mensah said of the reaction to the post. "It's so positive and beautiful. I'm just so happy for her. She was all smiles! She's so excited and appreciative. Her reaction was everything I hoped for."

Jada now has a Twitter and Instagram where she'll be posting more of her creations. She also created an Amazon Wishlist for anyone interested in helping her get the supplies she needs to start her own business.

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"Her artwork is limitless. It ranges from clothing to human portraits," Mensah said of Jada's talent. "It's personal but relatable. She captures the beauty that she sees in herself and the people who look like her, even at an early age. At this time of civil unrest, she brings the positivity that her community needs to see."

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Mensah hopes that this experience for Jada will show other kids that it's never too early to go after their dreams. "Never doubt yourself," he said. "You're never too young to succeed! People put off working towards their true passions until their old and stale. Start now! That's what the internet is for! Use it to expand your outreach and then work to hone your skills and talents. Hopefully this is a huge step for both Jada and a lot of kids out there."

Amen.