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February 2016
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february 2016 | brparents.com 33
men
toring: what they see is what they will be ?what we do is what we call
men
toring through a lifetime,? explains michael victorian, president and chairman of the board of 100 black
men
of metro baton rouge. ?e group?s
men
toring
program
, project excel, starts with youth in middle school and remains engaged with them for as long as possible?through high school and, ideally, through college. ?we need to show these
young
men
what it takes to be a man and how to conduct themselves,? says victo- rian. ?you can?t just do it in one day and ex- pect change. we?re trying to cultivate these
young
men
not just to be better citizens in the world, but also to take our place. we have a motto: ?what they see is what they will be.? ?ere have been
men
who look like me that have been in and out of these kids? lives, so we don?t want to do that.? to begin the
program
, a
young
man and his parents submit an application to the group, who then meets with the family and draws up a contract including re- quire
men
ts of the organization, the
young
man, and his parents. ?e
program
works largely through its saturday academies, which guide the
young
men
in a group setting on a wide variety of topics, such as proper diet, why it is important to stay in school, or responsibility. ?we?ve found that group
men
tor- ing works better for us and for our kids,? says victorian. ?first of all, you have backup. we are a 100 percent volunteer organiza- tion. if i?m busy, i have somebody else that can help that
young
man. we have a whole group of guys that have a relationship with that
young
man.? recently the group has been responding to several highly-pub- licized tragic incidents nationwide involving
young
black
men
and law enforce
men
t. ?we?ve been focusing on respecting author- ity,? says victorian. ?we had people come in from the police depart
men
t and the sheriff?s of- fice, as well as parents and a high school principal.? ?if we could stop everyone from profiling in this country, we would. but what we can do is instill indi- viduals with respect for authority, so that you try not to put yourself in a position where you could be harmed. is that a guarantee that you won?t be harmed? no. but at least you know how to conduct yourself in certain situations.? excelling academically 100 black
men
offers an act prep
program
every spring and fall in partnership with lsu, southern university and baton rouge community college. ?e
program
aims to help high school students score high enough on the act to qualify for free tu- ition through louisiana?s tuition opportunity
program
for stu- dents (tops). participants have shown an average of a two-point increase in test scores over the course of the
program
. ??e act prep
program
helps to build
young
people?s confidence and test-taking skills, so even if you?re not going to college, it can be helpful with any test you might need to take in your cho- sen profession,? says victorian. promoting health and wellness because the rate of prostate cancer is very high in the afri- can american community, 100 black
men
offers free prostate screenings annually in partner- ship with the mary bird perkins cancer center. ?e group and its partners also offer activi- ties throughout the year at area schools to promote healthy life- style practices such as healthy eating and exercise, and they also incorporate these topics into the
men
toring
program
. economic develop
men
t 100 black
men
offers a finan- cial literacy
program
to teach children about wealth building, family wealth building, entre- preneurship, the difference be- tween money and wealth, and how to empower yourself eco- nomically. while one session is going on for the kids, the same session is also being provided for the parents, if they choose to participate. ?we make sure that we include the parents because we?re look- ing at this from a holistic point,? says victorian. ?it doesn?t make sense to teach all these things to the kids if it?s not going to be re- inforced at home.?
men
of character 100 black
men
of metro baton rouge currently has about 85 members ?from various walks of life: ministers, lawyers, doctors, sales
men
, entrepreneurs, law en- force
men
t?you name it, we?ve got it,? says victorian. victorian emphasizes that race is not a require
men
t to join, and neither is educational level. however, members must pass a background check and pay dues. ?we pay to help people,? victo- rian says. ??rough our applica- tion process, we are looking for
men
of high character within our community.? all of the organization?s pro- grams offer opportunities to vol- unteer, and you can also show your support by donating. to learn more about 100 black
men
of metro baton rouge, visit their website, 100black
men
br. org, or call (225) 356-9444. ? we?re trying to cultivate these
young
men
not just to be bet - ter citizens in the world, but also to take our place.
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