JimShoes CEO James Hastings joined the Champaign-Urbana Area Project in 2007 and helped them with their CUper Star program through mentoring, volunteering, and being a positive influence and role model for the teens.

The CUper Star is a program that encourages social, career and leadership development that enables our youth to have a voice and influence in their community. The purpose of the program is to provide a venue for teens to get involved in and out of school, community involved projects that would be both youth inspired and youth desired. CUperStar is a non-traditional event that will cross all socioeconomic, geographic, and color barriers. Youth will achieve program objectives through numerous activities including auditions, interviews, career and leadership workshops, rehearsals, planning sessions, community service, and public appearances.