ALEXANDRIA, VA-Last Saturday (Feb. 24), Alexandria City Public Schools hosted a mentoring event, at Alexandria City High School, pairing students in grades six through 12 with adults. The event, Your Future Today, was specifically for young Black males. In January, The Zebra Press reported on National Mentoring Month and its promotion throughout the city.
More than 40 students attended this gathering, hearing guest speakers such as Ratcliff Thomas, Rashad Price, Christopher Harris, Gregory Baldwin, and Kevin Shumate. Dr. Melanie Kay Wyatt, ACPS Superintendent, gave opening remarks. ACPS Chief Financial Officer Dominic Turner led an activity focused on career development and the importance of understanding finances. Students also took part in an etiquette class taught by Crystal Bailey of the Etiquette Institute of Washington.
The five-hour program aligned with the Equity for All focus of the ACPS Strategic Plan. It was designed to meet the unique and specific needs of the school system’s Black students.
ACPS data illustrates that the population is “overrepresented in disciplinary outcomes, detainments/arrests and academic disparities,” according to a story in the ACPS Express newsletter. It says that “[b]y developing strong mentor relationships, some of the challenges that Black male youth face can be mitigated, and the strength of the communities, families and cultures can be drawn upon to bolster their potential for success.”
This event was sponsored by the Alexandria-Fairfax Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated and Community Praise Church of Seventh-day Adventists.
A similar event was held at Hammond Middle School last April.
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