Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Youth Programs topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
My Brother’s Keeper mentors and students describe out-of-state college visits and local mentoring work
Summary
District mentors and 24 students described a recent My Brother’s Keeper trip to Washington, D.C., and local mentoring, college-prep and volunteer activities; students credited the program with changing college aspirations and building life skills.
Mentors and students involved in the district’s My Brother’s Keeper (MBK) program updated the Enlarged City School District of Middletown Board of Education on April 10, saying the program has grown and helped change participants’ academic goals through mentoring, leadership activities and exposure trips.
Everton Brown and Kenneth Ward, who identified themselves as MBK mentors, said the local chapter — in its fifth year locally — runs weekly sessions that emphasize leadership, professional presentation and community service. The program holds a themed “tie” day on Wednesdays, runs canned-food and clothing drives, and does community service events and holiday activities, they said. The mentors said MBK has expanded from the high school to the middle school and plans to bring elements to elementary grades.
Brown and Ward described a recent out-of-state trip that took 24 young men to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Morgan State University and Howard University. Students who spoke to the board said the visits opened their awareness of college opportunities; one student, James Mays, said he had planned to attend a local SUNY campus but decided instead to enroll at Hampton University.
Students described MBK sessions that teach practical skills — how to tie a tie, handshake skills, public speaking and financial literacy — and credited the mentors with creating a family-like atmosphere. Board members, including Pastor Williams and Freddie Williams, praised the program’s leadership and encouraged its expansion; several board members said they would like to be more involved and requested continued updates.
Mentors said MBK is volunteer-driven and thanked chaperones and staff who helped organize the trip and ongoing programming. The board and speakers emphasized the program’s role in exposing students to higher-education options, leadership opportunities and civic engagement.
