Devin Osborne's dreams took him to Disney World in February, and he hopes they will lead him next to a career as a professional musician. Osborne, a junior at Northwest High School in Germantown, was one of 100 high school students from across the country selected to participate in the second annual Disney's Dreamers Academy at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla. The academy started by the Disney company and comedian Steve Harvey, featured three days of workshops and activities for talented teens who need extra motivation to reach their full potential.

More than 4,000 students applied. "Disney's Dreamers Academy was a great experience. I learned that you can't let obstacles get in the way of pursuing your dreams," said Osborne, who has speech and language delays.
Osborne has sung since he was 3 and began playing piano when he was 7, and he sings with Northwest's chorus and Men's Ensemble. He plays piano every day and said he hopes to pursue a career in Christian music after college.

"Music is what I really love," said Osborne, of Darnestown, who has two older sisters in college. "It's helped me express myself in new ways, it makes me calm." At the academy, the group heard from motivational speakers, learned about networking, met with professionals from a variety of industries and learned about nontraditional and creative careers in sports business, animation, set design and production and culinary arts. "It was a wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that truly encouraged him to follow his dream of becoming a professional singer and musician," said his mother, Dorée Osborne. "… He's just a hard-working kid." When Osborne, who got straight A's on his last report card, returned home, he was inspired to write a song called "Bring Me Peace." "It was about exploring my emotions and my feelings and that I could be an overcomer," he said.