Page 8 The Skanner June 1, 2016
News
U.S. Lawmakers, Mentors Reach Out to Young, Black Males at Forum
By Lauren Victoria
Burke , NNPA News Wire
Contributor
R
ep. Frederica Wil-
son (D-Fla.) hosted
a recent summit
on Capitol Hill fo-
cused on mentoring for
African American males.
Wilson was joined by
Reps.
Danny
Davis
(D-Ill.), Debbie Dingell
(D-Mich.), Joaquin Castro
(D-Texas), and Hakeem
Jef ries (D-N.Y.).
Rep. Wilson created
a program called “5000
Role Models,” a dropout
prevention and mento-
ring program that op-
erates within the public
school system.
The forum, which fo-
cused on public policy
around mentoring, was
moderated by Michael
Smith of the White
House’s My Brother’s
Keeper initiative.
“One of the biggest
responses to the call to
action on this issue has
been from Capitol Hill,”
Smith said at Wilson’s
event.
“We need to make sure
that young people know
that they matter.”
Wilson said that she’s
experienced, i rsthand,
the powerful inl uence
FREDDIE ALLEN/AMG/NNPA
My Brother’s Keeper forum focuses on dropout prevention and mentoring
Rep. Frederica Wilson founded “5000 Role Models,” a dropout
prevention and mentoring program. This photo was taken during a
press conference about the missing Chibok girls in 2015
that a caring adult can
have on a young person’s
life.
“This inaugural [My
Brother’s Keeper Cau-
cus] forum is one of
many events to come,”
said Wilson.
Before she came to Cap-
itol Hill, Wilson worked
as a teacher and served
on the School Board in
Miami, Fla.
She told the audience in
“
ing program called NBA
Cares.
David Shapiro, the CEO
of MENTOR, a non-proi t
group dedicated to clos-
ing the mentoring gap,
said, “We need to make
mentoring a part of the
fabric of American life.”
Also present at the fo-
rum were Michael A.
DeVaul of the YMCA
of Greater Charlotte,
N.C., Arnaldo A. Gonza-
One of the biggest responses
to the call to action on this
issue has been from Capitol
Hill. We need to make sure
that young people know that
they matter
a packed room on Capitol
Hill about the work of
“5000 Role Models” and
what motivated her to
create the organization.
One of the many partic-
ipants on a long panel of
experts was NBA legend
and former Detroit Pis-
ton Bob Lanier.
“The NBA was one of
the i rst organizations
to step up to President
Obama’s call of action,”
Lanier told the full room
during his remarks.
The NBA has a mentor-
lez, the chief of growth
and development of Mi-
ami-Dade Public Schools,
Noelle Hurd, an assistant
professor at the Univer-
sity of Virginia, and Tom
“Satch” Sanders, a for-
mer Boston Celtics play-
er.
Lauren Victoria Burke
is a political analyst who
speaks on politics and
African American lead-
ership. She can be contact-
ed at LBurke007@gmail.
com and on twitter at @
LVBurke.
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