On April 28-29 several My Brother’s Keeper fellows from Ossining High School had an opportunity to participate in the virtual 2022 New York State My Brother’s Keeper Symposium hosted by the New York State Education Department. They joined students from throughout the country for the fifth annual symposium, which featured several guest speakers.
Ossining’s own Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Ray Sanchez, and district Director of Literacy, Eleana De Luna, spoke on the second day, discussing the district’s Raising a Reader program and its adoption of an Academic Parent Teacher Team model.
Participants heard from keynote speakers New York City Department of Education Chancellor David Banks and former teacher, principal, author, and speaker Baruti Kafele, known as Principal Kafele.
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“The symposium is the biggest event for MBK Fellows every year,” said OHS MBK Coordinator Oumar Sarr. “This symposium is an opportunity for current Fellows to connect with other Fellows all throughout New York State and to participate in several presentations by leaders in their communities. It is also an opportunity for incoming Fellows to be officially inducted and have a glimpse on what to expect.”
This year OHS seniors Fellows Nicholas-Ajani Davis and John Jarama and two incoming Fellows Mohamed Loum and Sethe Newman participated.
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“Ossining Fellows appreciated being part of a powerful and impactful movement. They learned a lot from each one of the presentations and most importantly, they felt supported in their journey to excellence,” Mr. Sarr said.
Throughout the symposium, Fellows had an opportunity to participate in several breakout sessions led by leaders throughout the country. Some sessions included the topics of “Motivating, Engaging and Empowering African American and Latino Males,” and “Cultivating Genius and Joy in Education through Culturally and Historically Responsive Pedagogies.”
My Brother’s Keeper, an initiative begun by former President Barack Obama to help young Latino men and men of color, was founded in 2014. Three years later Ossining joined the program and today has approximately 120 young men in a program that has expanded to serve scholars in grades 3-12.
