GUIDE RIGHT
Impact of Jay Crosby Awardees
By Damon Peebles
K appa League, the fraternity’s national program for youth leadership development, is celebrating 50 years since its founding this year, and as the 84 th Grand Chapter Meeting nears, the National Guide Right Commission is preparing to award several chapters for their Kappa League programs. The Jay Crosby Award is provided to alumni chapters for outstanding achievement. During the last Grand Chapter Meet- ing, Columbus (MS) Alumni Chapter (small chapter); Berkeley (CA) Alumni Chapter (medium chapter); and Mobile (AL) Alumni Chapter (large chapter), were all awarded for the exceptional work they are doing with their Kappa League members. Columbus (MS) Alumni’s Guide Right Program consists of students from seven different high schools, with a Guide Right advisor in each one. The schools all operate with a functioning program, averaging 20 young men per school, and each program is catered to the needs of the individual school, according to Polemarch Vince Davis (Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti (MI) AL 1990). Having a program spread out among the metropolitan area works great, he said, because, “these kids interact with each other through sports and other activi- ties, and it gives them an opportunity to come together.” Each advisor meets with the young men in their respective schools to coordinate the program, and then once a month, they combine the members from all schools for a Kappa League meeting. When they all come together, said Davis, it’s usually a whole day or weekend event, where they are exposed to various speakers and then
fellowship over a meal at restaurant. Some of their signature events include Learn to Live, Active Shooter Educa- tion, Voter Registration, Anti-Bullying, and Students Against Gun Violence, to name a few. Berkeley (CA) Alumni’s Guide Right Program, according to its director, Dorian Bohler (Lambda Delta 2004), consists of high potential students and others who need a stronger sense of self; 70 in total. “The reason why that’s so pervasive, is because the west coast is much more diverse…so, a lot of our young men have very little interaction with Black people, outside of their church,” he said. So, the program tends to focus on the areas of improving academics, leadership, and self-identity, which is conducted through its Saturday academy, held monthly, and one-hour conference calls each week, hosted by various leaders within the program. Students benefit from the conference calls, he said, by having the opportunity to express what their challenges and successes have been that week, and participate in structured activities, like discussions that follow reading assign- ments. “It allows us to really get more touch points and continue to sort of re- inforce what it is we’re trying to do with our young men…it’s a tool to keep the students engaged,” said Bohler. Seeing his first Kappa League members gradu- ate from high school this year and go to college will be the proudest moment for him and the program. Mobile (AL) Alumni’s Guide Right Pro- gram is celebrating its 40 th anniversary this year. Its director, Carl Cunningham (Hattiesburg (MS) AL 1997), says it has great partnerships with businesses in
the community, which provides intern- ships opportunities for the young men. Startup Weekend is a program they are involved in, which provides scholarship and entrepreneurial guidance. Ronald McDonald House, and Big Brothers, Big Sisters are also key components that work with the program. All of them provide the Kappa Leaguers an opportu- nity to develop leadership development training, and networking opportunities, he said. Cunningham, who has been Mobile (AL) Alumni’s Director of Guide Right since 2002 (after taking the posi- tion over from his father), attributes the Kappa League alumni as a strong part of what makes the chapter successful. He has kept records since 2002, and since then, he says, 76 members of the Kappa League program have become members of the fraternity. “It’s grown tremendous- ly. When I started advising, we had 12 young men…and now we have 100,” he recounts. What keeps him going after 17 years, he says, is that he sees the need in the community, particularly for young men of color. The Guide Right team, who he also credits for the program’s success, consists of two brothers who have been with him for 10 years, and three advisors who are former members of the program. Each of the directors of these Guide Right programs have in common the ac- colades of being honored with national recognition, but they also have common the position that while it’s great to be recognized, their motivation isn’t for the award; it’s knowing that they are posi- tively impacting the young men in their communities and preparing them for leadership, so they can continue to pass it down through their generations.
136 | 84 TH GRAND CHAPTER MEETING ISSUE THE JOURNAL
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