Brandon Curlee is a cadet
lieutenant colonel, a
certified life guard and a
pilot. And what makes his
accomplishments so amazing
is he's just 17 years old
and a product of a mentoring
program designed to shape
the leaders of tomorrow.
Brandon Curlee and 100
Black Men of America
vice chairman of operations
Curley Dossman spoke about
the mentoring program.
About Brandon
Curlee:
James Brandon Curlee (an
honor student) graduated
from Douglas County High
School in Douglasville,
Georgia in 2011 and was
voted DCHS Star Student. He
has been a Mentee with 100
Black Men of North Metro
Inc. in Roswell, GA, since
the age of 10 and is their
2011 Mentee of the Year.
He developed a heart of
giving back early on in life
when he joined Cub Scouts at
the age of 5 earning their
highest award The Arrow of
Light. His Life Motto: “Giving
Back Is Not an Option; it’s
a Responsibility!” He has
dedicated much of his life
to paying it forward by
serving others. He believes
giving back keeps you humble
and makes you feel good. His
life accomplishments are
vast for someone so young.
Brandon has been accepted to
the United States Air Force
Academy (a $458,000
scholarship) where he
aspires to continue flying
for the Air Force as a
commissioned officer.
Brandon developed a
passion for flying when he
joined the Civil Air Patrol
at the age of 14. He
completed his SOLO flight in
July 2010. He attends
Aviation Career Enrichment
(ACE) a youth weekend flight
academy at Fulton County
Airport in Atlanta, Georgia
as a Flying Senior in the
Eagle class. He fly’s
every weekend and will
obtain his Private Pilot
License by July 2011.
The
100 Black Men of America’s
National Conference was held in
San Francisco June 9-12, 2011.
North Metro mentees, supporters
and members witnessed our State
Farm Dollars and Sense Financial
Literacy Team win first place
honors in the national
competition. This was the second
consecutive year that our team
won the competition. We are
proud of their accomplishments
and their overall growth and
development. These young men are
really raising the bar for
excellence in the chapter and
the organization. Members of the
team were Kyle Likely, LaQuan
Rhoney, and Julian Kyles.
We salute these young men for
their dedication and commitment
to excellence!!! The team
is coached by chapter member
Julian Pouncy.
Kyle
Likely and LaQuan Rhoney with Al
Dotson
receiving the first place
scholarship prize
Congratulations
are in order for Brandon Curlee
who has been selected as the
2011-2012 "Mentee of the
Year" by 100 Black Men of
America, Inc.
Brandon had been named the
North Metro Chapter's Mentee of
the Year at this year's Annual
Youth Achievement Luncheon on
April 30th. What a
tremendous honor for Brandon to
also be the choice of the
national organization!
This selection is a first
for the North Metro Chapter. We
are extremely proud of Brandon
and his accomplishments.
The 100 Black Men of America
has 116 chapters internationally
and Brandon was selected number
one out of all the applicant
submissions. Please join us in
congratulating Brandon and his
mother Ms. JC Curlee on winning
this prestigious award.
Brandon will be recognized at
the 25th Anniversary
Conference of the 100 Black Men
of America, Inc. being held in
San Francisco, CA on June 8-12.
Dwight
Kelly
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mentee of the Year Criteria:
Age 10-23 years at the time of
application
Recognized among peers and
adults as a mentor, leader, and
role model
Current or previous participant
in a 100 Black Men of America's
mentoring or education program for
a minimum of one year
Minimum grade point average of
2.5 preferred (without known
disability)
Attending or planning to attend
an accredited institution of
higher learning (college,
university, trade school, etc.)
Irrefutable commitment to
community service: Completed 50
hours of "active"
community service within the last
12-months of applying for the
award
Varied involvement in
extra-curricular activities
Teaches and demonstrates strong
values, appropriate behaviors, and
a positive attitude
Personal Traits/Qualities:
Resilient, goal oriented,
self-motivated, compassionate,
cooperative, inspires excellence
Affiliate chapter must be in
good standing nationally
Congratulations
to the mentees and the mentors
for the strong showing in the
Robotics Competition on
Saturday, December 11,
2010. Thanks for all of
the hard work and preparation
that Brooks Lee, Keith Burbank,
Reggie Douglas, Yang Adija and
all of the boys did to make it
happen. Keep up the great work.
You all represented North Metro
extremely well.
Dwight
Kelly
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Our
young men were successful in
advancing to the Regional
Robotics Tournament to be held
on January 8, 2011 at Southern
Poly Tech. They were
awesome to watch perform the
missions and task appointed to
them.
We
cannot sit back and relax. We
have a lot of work to do with
the young men in preparation for
the regional tournament, which
is only three weeks away.
Thank
you for your support as we
continue to teach our young men
to reach higher heights!
On
Saturday morning October 2, 2010
our Men of Tomorrow Mentees
partnered with members of the
Rho Zeta Omega chapter of AKA as
volunteers at the Atlanta
Community Food Bank. The
volunteer activity included,
sorting, packing, and weighing
various food items for
distribution to the needy. Our
team helped to sort
approximately 12,000 pounds of
food during the 3 hour time
frame that they volunteered.
Thanks to the mentees, mentors,
and AKA members for helping make
this a rewarding and successful
event for all parties.
We
had a great first day at the new
Cobb County location for our Men
of Tomorrow Mentoring session on
Saturday, September 11th. The
mentors really did a fantastic
job welcoming the mentees,
parents, and prospective mentee
parents. Hats off to Tim Hart,
Landon Brown, Ian Clarke, Eric
Cherry, Mike Brock, Jim Carter,
Yang Adija, Tracy Brumfield,
David Pressley and others.
Dwight Kelly
Michael A. Grant Boys &
Girls Club - Cobb County
875 Six Flags Drive, Austell GA
30168 map
Kyle Likely and LaQuan Rhoney,
mentees in the 100 Black Men of
North Metro's "Men of
Tomorrow" mentoring program
finished #1 in State Farm's
Dollars and Sense Financial
Literacy National competition
held June 18, 2010 at the 100
Black Men of America's National
Convention in Ft. Lauderdale,
Florida.
Kyle age 13 attends South
Gwinnett High School and is in
the 9th grade and LaQuan also
attends South Gwinnett High
School and is in the 10th grade.
The North Metro team finished in
a dead heat tie for 1st place
with the team from Long Island,
New York and won in dramatic
fashion in a sudden death playoff by answering a finance
question relevant to the case
study that was used in the
competition.
Fourteen teams from
chapters from all over the
country competed in the
contests.
The Dollars and Sense Investment
Education Program is a financial
literacy program sponsored by
State Farm and authored by the
National Association of
Investors Corporation. The
program was designed to provide
high school students grades 9-12
with the opportunity to learn
and apply "best
practice" strategies for
savings and investing. The
goal of this program is to help
students understand basic
savings/investment principles
and to apply these standards in
their day to day lives.
Kyle and LaQuan each received a
$3,000 scholarship award,
a first place trophy and a
wealth of knowledge about
financial literacy for being
champions!
The team was coached and
mentored by chapter member
Julian Pouncy who is a Certified
Financial Planner for Edward
Jones Financial.
Congratulations to the coach and
the entire team for this
fantastic win!!
The core missions of the 100
Black Men of America, Inc. are
direct service and advocacy for
improved life opportunities for
African American youth
specifically, and the African
American community and larger
community overall. Members
of the 100 Black Men of North
Metro, Inc. all share the common
goal of improving the economic
status of our communities as
well as providing programs that
enhance and enrich the lives of
youth in Cobb, Gwinnett and
North Fulton
counties.
Here
is a great success story from the
mother of one of our former mentees.
Stories like these really validate why
we all work so hard and spend our
time, talent and treasure with these
young men!! Jarred took us on a
guided tour of Tuskegee in February of
2009 on our mentee field trip to the
university. We are very proud of
his accomplishments and a sincere
thank you to all of our members and
sponsors for helping shape the lives
of our youth. Stories like this
one help reinforce our resolve to keep
on working hard and giving our time
where it really matters. Enjoy
this success story. It sure made
my day!!!
I am Jarred Conley's mother, a 100
Black Men mentoree, who is now about
to graduate from Tuskegee
University. Through your
mentorship Jarred acquired an interest
in flight training, has attained his
private pilots license, and is
graduating with a Bachelor of Science
degree, Magna Cum Laude, in
Aerospace Engineering Science.
Yes, I am the proud mother and
would very much like to mail you an
invitation. Please email me your
mailing address and that of Dwight
Kelly, at Jarred's request.
I am eternally grateful to you all
for the positive impact you have had
on my son's life.
We
had an excellent field trip on
Saturday February 6, 2010, as 35
mentees and 5 mentors made the trip to
Talladega and Birmingham,
Alabama. The day started with
breakfast at Talladega
College followed by student
ambassadors giving us a tour of the
campus facilities. We then went
to Birmingham to visit the Civil
Rights Institute. Mentees
were able to see the artifacts and
tour the museum. We viewed an
introductory film and each mentee was
allowed to walk through the museum and
see the history of the Freedom Rides,
the Selma Marches, the church bombings
in Birmingham and a replica of the
Birmingham jail that Dr. King stayed
in. We returned to Atlanta by 6pm. All
in all it was an excellent learning
opportunity. We had some mentees share
what they learned on the trip with the
group before we returned home.
Mentees were asked to do a one page
report on the Talladega College Tour
as well as a one page report on the
Civil Rights Institute tour. They are
expected to give an oral presentation
of these reports at the February 20th
mentoring sessions in Lawrenceville
and Mableton.
Many thanks to the mentors that
attended and assisted with the mentees
and chaperoned. Thanks to Mike Acie,
Bruce Clark, Eric Cherry, and Damon
Edwards (former mentee/mentee
alumni). Most of the photos took
place on the campus of Talladega
College (see
the activities gallery).
Photography is not allowed in the
Civil Rights Institute
Kyle
Likely attends the 2009
National Young Leader's
State
Conference
Kyle's
Letter to the Chapter:
Hello. I would like to first
say, "thank you" for
your contribution towards
helping me attend the 2009
National Young Leader's State
Conference on September 10-13,
2009 at the Westin Hotel in
Atlanta, Georgia.
I am now officially a
National Young Leader. I had the
experience of a life time
talking with many of my fellow
young leaders, enhancing my
leadership skills, and creating
bonds with other young leaders
that will last me until the end
of time
Just
to recap, the National Young
Leader's State Conference is a
conference for young adults that
have established themselves as
the leaders of the community to
practice and perfect their
skills in every area of
leadership. I was nominated a
few months ago by my Language
Arts teacher, Ms. Wickham,
because of my outstanding grades
and my quality of leadership.
The conference was very
informative, entertaining, fun,
and an overall great learning
experience. I was one of about
100 or so people nominated to
attend. The Faculty Advisors,
Eddie and Ronnie, immediately
began by having us all state our
names and something we like to
do. After the introductions were
through, we began a game of
charades. Why? Because the
things that we had to re-enact
were totally outrageous and put
us out of our comfort zones--one
thing we would have to overcome
to become a successful leader.
After the charade, we moved to a
slightly larger room to begin
our official group meetings. We
had to pair up with three other
people to be known as a support
group. My group consisted of my
new friends Ja'Von, Rasheda, and
Maynara, and was to be known as
Georgia-Code. Then we had lunch.
(Special note: The food was
amazing!)
I did many different activities
while at the NYLSC that taught
me how to resolve conflicts, how
to present myself and my
opinions, how to switch up my
leadership style, and best yet,
how to socialize professionally.
I even got to perform to
"You're a Jerk" by New
Boyz, and taught people how to
do the Jerk. The experience was
amazing.
I am honored to have been able
to participate in this
conference and truly thankful to
you for helping me to get there.
And again, thank you.
Damon Edwards has been in our
program for 4 years. He is a 16 year
old, A student at South Cobb High School in
Austell, Georgia. He has
participated in several of our events
including the 100 Black Men
African-American History Challenge
competition in Las Vegas, NV.
Damon anchored the team and gave us a
tremendous opportunity to win the
challenge. He also participated
in our Football Game, parade and Food
bank.
Within 4 years Damon has become a
mentor to other young men. He is an
avid reader and enjoys reading
everything from history to mysteries
and can spend hours reading
books no matter how small or large the
book may be.
Damon's school
activities range from Band (Tuba
Player), School Security Team, Debate
Team, History Club Member, Junior
Achievement and Volunteer After School
Program Mentor for Orchard Mill
Apartments.
Damon's ultimate goal is to
graduate from high school and to
attend a prestigious college or
university and major in Corporate Law
while obtaining a minor in Business
Management. Damon recently went
on the college tour. He arrived
at every college looking professional
with his complete portfolio (including
grades, letters of recommendations,
SAT scores, etc). Damon was
accepted on the spot at Dillard
and Tuskegee.
Once he completes his path of
higher learning, he wants to own his
own company and continue to move
forward in becoming a successful human
being who can provide a positive
influence to those young men who will
follow in his footsteps.
I wanted to share the news
regarding Damon and the Program he is
participating in. The Justice
Robert Benham Law Camp
program ends Friday, June
20, 2008. At the end of the program
the participants are placed with Law
firms spread throughout Metro Atlanta.
Damon was selected to intern
at King and Spalding! We are so
excited because not only is this a
fantastic opportunity, but King and
Spalding is one of the Top Law Firms
in the Country. The internship is only for 1 week as
part of this program, however, Damon
has expressed a goal that he would
like to work on securing a permanent
internship with King and Spalding. I
know he can do anything he sets his
mind to so we will keep you posted as
he progresses.
submitted
by
Laurie Edwards, Proud Parent
---
More
great
news
on
one
of
our
mentees
from
the
Mableton
location.
Damon
Edwards
is
really
making
an
impact!!!!!
Congratulations
Damon.
Dwight
Kelley
Aaron Suber
Transitions to Georgia Perimeter College-----
Men of Tomorrow Mentee Makes News!
Fantastic
news! The success stories just
keep on coming and we love it!
CONGRATULATIONS to Aaron Suber
and his family. They all
played a part in Aaron's
success. This is an outstanding
accomplishment. We are proud
to have Aaron in our mentoring
program. Another great example
on how hard work, perseverance
and putting in the extra
effort in order to succeed
pays off!!!
Dwight Kelly
Our
son, Aaron Suber had his
Transition Ceremony on May 22,
2008 at Georgia Perimeter
College. He received a
certificate showing all the
requirements have been met for his
high school diploma from Dekalb
Early College Academy (DECA).
Starting in August 18, 2008
he will be considered a full time
college student at Georgia
Perimeter College. When he
completes the early college high
school requirements in 2010, he
will have a high school diploma
and a significant number of
college credits or even an
Associate’s degree. Either
outcome gives him a leg up
when he enters Georgia Institute
of Technology in the fall of 2010
in which he will have a seamless
entrance by maintaining a
minimum GPA of
3.0 All his credits
will be transferable base on the
Transfer Admission Guarantee
(TAG) that GPC currently has
with a list of participating
institutions.
Also,
he and 72 of his
classmates made history by
being the first class to
transition to GPC. The
ceremony was very emotional
for all the students and their
families. The reflections
spoken by several of the
students during the
ceremony and afterwards gave
us a greater insight about how
hard this program has been for
the majority of them. They
spoke about how much they
hated the DECA, initially.
The program started with 110
rising 9th grade students two
years ago and 73 students walked
across the stage last Thursday
morning. They spoke
about sacrifices of a normal
high school environment
--friendships, proms, pep
rallies, skate nights, sports,
band, and even video games.
They learned the importance of
completing assignments even if
it meant staying up all night
and going to tutorials after
school and Saturday
mornings. They each complained
about the amount of homework
they had on spring break. Aaron
studied and did his
assignments the entire drive
to and from Florida. We
all laughed when one student
spoke about his parents
accusing him of playing videos
games online when he was
trying to complete his Physics
assignment after midnight. We,
the parents laughed because
often each of us had thought
the same thing and the
students had flashbacks as they
remembered all the work
assigned by Professor
Thorne-Brackett. She even made
a Physic project out of their
"Fun Day" to Six
Flags. They each
know how a rollercoaster and
airplane relates to science.
At
times Aaron struggled with the
amount of work and was
often frustrated with
performance, yet he never
wanted to quit. I asked
him a few times did he want to
go back to "regular"
high school but he was adamant
about staying. I even threaten
him if his grades dropped that
I was sending him back. He
learned to love DECA and his
professor. It brings tears to
my eyes when I say we are so
so proud of him. He's done a
great job and his father and I
have watched him mature and become
very responsible through the
first two years of this
journey. He knows the next two
years are going to have its
challenges but he already
knows what it takes to be
successful.
submitted
by Tonja Tucker-Suber
FYI...
Participating
Institutions in the Transfer
Admission Guarantee (TAG)
Program
The
list in the table below
indicates which institutions
GPC currently has TAG
agreements with. The
required grade point average
(GPA) is listed by each
institution. Click on
the institution you're
interested in for the Intent
to Transfer Form which lists
the full requirements for
the participating school.
The
good news just gets better and
better. This year's Men of
Tomorrow Mentee of the Year
Brandon Curlee won a tremendous
trip based on the delivery and
content of a speech he prepared
and delivered last night in a
major competition. (See
notice
below). Congratulations to
Brandon and his mother JC Curlee
for this outstanding
accomplishment!!!! We will
definitely write this one up for
our website and also forward it
on to the national office.
Wow
!!!!! This is terrific!
Brandon
the entire chapter and the Men
of Tomorrow are extremely proud
of you. Keep up the great work.
Dwight
Kelly
Vice President,
North Metro 100
404-353-0424
Brandon
Curlee contestant number 8, is
going to the Amazon Jungle in
Brazil, July 2008. Out of the 20
finalist who presented, he was
chosen as one of the 10 students
to travel to the Amazon.
Brandon
Curlee delivered an awesome
presidential speech last night
at Zoo Atlanta on conservation
of energy and preservation of
nature and the environment. Not
only did he win…but he scored
the highest of all 10
contestants with a score of 202.
I spoke with the judges last
night and they were very
impressed with his delivery.
As
part of his prize packet…
He
will travel to the Amazon
for 8 days with the Frank
Ski Kids Foundation (V103
Radio)
Each
winner received a $400 iPOD
to take on the trip
The
students will take a behind
the scene tour of Zoo
Atlanta
The
students will also take a
behind the scene tour of the
Aquarium
The
students will also get to
swim in the big tank with
the Whale Sharks and the
other Sharks at the aquarium
National
Geographics will be
traveling with the students
to the Amazon and they will
film the students and
produce a show featuring
these students.
This
young man is being afforded the
opportunity of a life time!!!
I
am sooooo proud of my son.
CONGRATS TO YOU BRANDON!!!! submitted by Jacquene
Curlee
Brandon
Curlee, a 9th grader at DCHS
was chosen out of hundreds of
submissions to V103 radio
station to present his
Presidential Speech on
Conservation of Energy and
Preservation of Nature and the
Environment. He was selected as
one of the 20 Finalist. He will
present his speech, Thursday,
May 22, 2008 @ 7 p.m. at Zoo
Atlanta's Coca Cola World
Studio. The finalist will
compete in a live competition
where he can be one of 10 to
take an 8 day exploration to the
Amazon Jungle in July, with the
Frank Ski Kids Foundation.
Please
join me in wishing him the best
of luck in his presentation and
hopefully he will be traveling
to the Amazon in July.
Here
is a picture of Jarred
Conley who is a former Men
of Tomorrow mentee.
He developed an interest
in flying while in high
school when he was in our
mentoring program.
We are extremely proud of
Jarred!!! It is
important that we
encourage our young men
and present them with as
many opportunities as we
can. Thanks for your
continued support of our
youth.
Dwight Kelly
Mentoring Chairman
Thank
you Harold and the 100 Black Men
organization. Jarred
received a scholarship to attend
Kansas State University for a
summer flight training
program. After completion,
he will earn his private pilots
certification. Had he not
been in your mentorship, I don't
know that he would have acquired
his interest in flying.
Jarred is an upcoming junior at
Tuskegee University, majoring in
aerospace
engineering.
Article
Four Tucker recruits make
it official By Jeff
Haws The Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/07/07
09:26 AM
Left to Right:
Anthony Mosley
(University of Kentucky)
Mike Weaver (Centre
College) Devon Wade (Missouri
Valley College)
Brandon Lampkin
(University of Arkansas)
CONGRATULATIONS
Congratulations to Devon Wade on
signing a football scholarship
with Missouri Valley College. We
will recognize Devon on
Saturday, February 10th during
the Men of Tomorrow Mentoring
Session at Matthews Boys
& Girls Club, Mableton, GA Dwight
Kelly, Mentoring Chairman Email
I
want to inform you that
Kareem Charles, one of
your mentees, has been
chosen by the People to
People Student
Ambassador Program to
become a member of the
Atlanta delegation
representing the United
States, traveling to
France, Italy and Greece
in the summer of 2007.
It involves 20 days of
rewarding activities and
meeting the people of
these various countries
while earning university
credits.
I am so proud of him.
Laverne Arnold
CONGRATULATIONS
I want to recognize
Kareem Charles who is a
mentee in the Men of
Tomorrow. Kareem has
been selected to
represent the Atlanta
delegation in the People
to People Ambassador
Program. We are
ecstatic about his
selection and we are
extremely proud of
Kareem and his
accomplishments.
His leadership, academic
achievement, character,
and perseverance all
contributed to his
selection. Kareem is an
active member of the
mentoring group and a
regular participant.
We will recognize Kareem
at our upcoming session
on Saturday, September
23rd. Please join
me in congratulating
Kareem on this
outstanding
achievement!!!! Dwight
Kelly, Mentoring
Chairman Email
Devon
Wade was voted "Mr.
Tucker High School".
Voted by the entire
student body for the
overall student that is
well-rounded in sports,
grades, character, etc.
Thanks to the North Metro
Chapter and your mentoring
program for all the help
and support you have given
him, it really does take a
village to raise a child.
I am very proud of
Devon
he has always been a great
kid and it is nice that
other people see him as I
do.
Lisa
D Jefferson
CONGRATULATIONS
We are all extremely proud
of Devon Wade. His
leadership stands out
among the crowd in our
mentoring sessions and it
is great to see him get
recognized for it. Please
join me in congratulating
Devon
for this fantastic
award!!!
Dwight
Kelly, Mentoring Chairman
-----
Congratulations
Devon! Your
achievements in life are
now known to all of your
peers. Your strength and
character has already been
a beacon for others.
Please continue on your
upward path to make a
difference for the benefit
of yourself, your family
and your community. We
will continue to watch you
grow in the role of the
leader that you are and
endeavor to excel in all
that you will be.
With my most sincere
regards,
Darryl O. Wilson,
Membership Chairman
-----
Devon,
As an entrepreneur an
African-American male
business owner, it is
encouraging to see that
youth like you continue to
pave the way for others to
follow!
Congratulations and
continue to represent your
High School 'after' you
graduate!
God has given you
talents...use them!
In His name,
John W. Fowler, Chairman,
CEO | Facility Supply
Group, LLC
-----
Congratulations
to Devon. May his
achievements be an example
for the other 100 Black
Men mentees. GO
DEVON.
Great
news!!! Aaron
Suber, a
rising ninth
grader who is a
mentee in our
Men of Tomorrow
Program has been
admitted to the
DeKalb Early
College Academy
Program at
Georgia
Perimeter
College in
Decatur,
Georgia. The
program is
designed for
high school
students in
partnership with
the Georgia
Perimeter
College to
complete their
high school
diploma while
receiving
college credits
toward an
Associate’s
degree at the
same time. The
program goal is
to improve the
high school
graduation rate
of DeKalb County
high schools. It
is offered to
rising ninth
grade students
who are
academically
talented, but
under prepared
and academically
underserved.
Aaron
is excited about
this opportunity
and being
classified as a
college student.
He is guaranteed
a seamless entry
into his school
of choice in the
Georgia
University
System upon
completion of
the program. He
wrote an essay
describing the
impact he felt
this program
would have on
his future
success as one
of the
requirements for
admission to the
program.
Early
college is a new
model that
blends high
school and the
first two years
of college for
the purpose of
finding more
successful ways
to educate young
people through
high and the
completion of
some form of
post-secondary
education, so
that more will
be prepared to
contribute to
our
knowledge-based
economy and to
improve their
quality of life.
Congratulations
to Aaron and his
family!!!!
We are proud of
this
accomplishment
and we wish him
success and
continued
achievement in
this program!
Dwight
Kelly (Mentor) and
Terrence Taylor (Mentee),
100 Black Men of
North Metro win
national MENTOR
Spotlight Award!
Chairman
Albert E. Dotson,
Jr. Esq. and
Harold Hamilton,
100 Black Men of
North Metro were
in attendance
along with
Terrance’s proud
Mother. Read
the full story
below.
Source:
MENTOR;
Corporation for
National and
Community Service
Press
Release
WASHINGTON, May 3 /PRNewswire
Spearheaded
by the Corporation for National
and Community Service and
MENTOR, leaders from government,
nonprofit, and corporate America
today launched a national
campaign to close the mentoring
gap, unveiled a comprehensive
blueprint for action, announced
a new Federal Mentoring Council,
and shared commitments by
Fortune 500 companies to find a
caring adult mentor for every
child that needs one. They also
set an initial target of 3
million additional mentoring
relationships by the year 2010.
MENTOR
unveiled the National Agenda for
Action: How to Close America's
Mentoring Gap, a detailed
roadmap for closing the
mentoring gap that resulted from
an 18-month national
conversation. The National
Agenda for Action identifies 21
action items focused around five
interconnected strategic areas
related to mentoring: Generate
Adequate and Sustainable
Funding; Foster a Culture of
Mentoring; Safeguard Program
Quality, Elevate the Role of
Research, and Build Necessary
Infrastructure.
"The
plan of action we are announcing
today is critical to stepping up
the pace of using the nation's
resources, both public and
private, to give every young
person access to someone with
experience who can guide them
toward a successful and
productive life," said Alan
Schwartz, President and Co-COO,
Bear Stearns & Co. Inc., who
co-chaired the national
conversation on mentoring with
Haim Saban, Chairman and CEO,
Saban Capital Group.
The
Corporation for National and
Community Service announced a
new Federal Mentoring Council to
increase collaboration among
federal agencies and develop
policies to enhance mentoring.
The Council will include
high-level representatives from
the Departments of Education,
Labor, Justice, Health and Human
Services, Housing and Urban
Development, and others. Theresa
Clower, past director of the
Delaware Mentoring Council, was
named as the Council's new
director.
To
help inform the work of the
Council, the Corporation and
MENTOR announced today they will
co-convene a new National
Mentoring Working Group
consisting of leading mentoring
experts and practitioners,
including the CEOs of Big
Brothers Big Sisters of America,
the Boys and Girls Clubs,
America's Promise, and more.
This group will provide input
into policymaking, share
effective practices, increase
collaboration, and help build a
culture of mentoring.
At
the press conference, MENTOR
announced several significant
commitments by key players in
the corporate and foundation
world to help close the
mentoring gap. HBO pledged to
lead the development of a
national awareness and
recruitment campaign to get more
male and minority mentors; the
MetLife Foundation pledged to
support mentoring research; and
LPL Financial pledged to engage
their network of 6,000 employees
in mentoring.
"Only
by harnessing creativity of the
private sector, the passion of
nonprofits, and the resources of
the federal government can we
close the mentoring gap,"
said David Eisner, CEO of the
Corporation, which invests
significant funding each year
through its Senior Corps,
AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve
America to mentoring and
mentoring-related activities.
"If we do this right, we
can double the number of mentors
by 2010 and have a profound
impact on children and youth in
America."
MENTOR
and the Corporation also
released new studies that shed
additional light on the
dimensions of the mentoring gap
and the characteristics of
volunteers who mentor. According
to MENTOR's new study Mentoring
in America 2005: A Snapshot of
the Current State of Mentoring,
the number of young people
involved in structured
one-to-one mentoring
relationships has increased
nearly 20 percent in just three
years, from 2.5 to 3 million.
Given that there are 17.6
million young people in need of
a caring adult to help them
succeed in life, that leaves a
mentoring gap of nearly 15
million youth in need of
mentors.
"Our
new study finds that 44 million
adults in the United States are
willing to serve as mentors.
Finding ways to bridge the
mentoring gap and unite these
millions of interested adults
with young people is one of the
principal challenges facing the
mentoring community," said
Gail Manza, Executive Director
of MENTOR.
The
Corporation's new report,
Volunteers Mentoring Youth:
Implications for Closing the
Mentoring Gap, analyzes the 2005
Current Population Survey data
on volunteering in order to
develop a greater understanding
of the characteristics that
distinguish volunteers who
mentor from those who do not.
Among the key findings: 43
percent of volunteers engaged in
mentoring serve in or through a
religious organization; and 59
percent of volunteers who mentor
also work full-time.
"This
research suggests several key
target populations for growing
mentoring, especially college
students, people of faith,
full-time workers, and current
volunteers," said Dr.
Robert Grimm, the Corporation's
Director of Research and Policy
Development. "The study
will help us target our efforts
and measure success."
Previous
research has confirmed the value
of mentoring as a strategy for
helping young people live up to
their academic, emotional and
social potential. Studies of
formal mentoring programs
provide strong evidence that
mentoring successfully reduces
the incidence of delinquency,
academic failure and substance
use and promotes positive
outcomes such as improved
self-esteem, social skills and
career development. Furthermore,
students who take part in
successful in-school mentoring
programs are less likely to
engage in risky behavior, are
more likely to attend classes,
and feel more connected to
school.
To
showcase the effect that mentors
can have on individuals' lives,
MENTOR also announced the
recipients of the first annual
Spotlight Award, which
recognizes outstanding mentoring
pairs. The recipients, who will
be honored at a "Spotlight
on Mentoring" dinner May 3
at the Willard Hotel, are:
* Evonne Burkink and Catherine
Leick, TeamMates of Norfolk,
Norfolk, NB;
* John Garnica and Mario
Rodriguez Cortez, Big
Brothers/Big Sisters of Ventura
County, Fillmore, CA;
* Senator Tom Harkin and Amii
Young, Everybody Wins DC!,
Washington, D.C.;
* Dwight Kelly and Terrence
Taylor, 100 Black Men of North
Metro, Alpharetta, GA;
* Charmaine Robin and Chris John
Garcia, Baldwin School District,
Baldwin, New York; and
* Donald Wilford and Adam
Hutchinson, State Attorney's
Office, Fourth Judicial Circuit,
Jacksonville, FL
Thanks
to a generous support from
Freddie Mac, each of the young
people honored by MENTOR's
Spotlight Award will receive a
$5,000 scholarship.
MENTOR
is leading the national movement
to connect young Americans with
caring adult mentors. As a
national advocate and expert
resource, MENTOR delivers the
research, policy
recommendations, and practical
performance tools needed to make
quality mentoring a reality for
more of America's young people.
For more information, go to http://www.mentoring.org
The
Corporation for National and
Community Service provides
opportunities for Americans of
all ages and backgrounds to
serve their communities and
country through the AmeriCorps,
Senior Corps, and Learn and
Serve America programs. Together
with the USA Freedom Corps, the
Corporation is working to build
a culture of citizenship,
service, and responsibility in
America. For more information,
go to http://www.nationalservice.gov.
Young
Pilot Honored by 100 Black Men
of America: TV Interview from 
