DALLAS, TX / ACCESSWIRE / June 7, 2021 / In a world that prizes individuality and self-reliance, the My Brother's Keepers Club asks one question of all of us: who, exactly, are we responsible for? If the answer is just "ourselves," then we are choosing to not help other people who could be our generation's next innovators and great thinkers. Our own lives may continue just fine, but those we ignore and leave to struggle on their own risk being relegated to lives of unfulfilled potential. However, what if the question's answer is ultimately more complex? What if we are, in fact, responsible for helping others to rise up whether we know them or not? What if helping one person's life could advance the lives of others in our community? Where will that choice take us and the people we help?
The My Brother's Keepers Club, founded by Harvard graduate Ollie Howie when he was in elementary school, has shown in its twenty years of service that communities and individuals prosper when those who need assistance are given the tools to succeed. The organization assists young men of color who are from historically disenfranchised areas, providing everything from school supplies to mentorship. It also confronts the reality that only 50% of Black men attend college and only 19% have a bachelor's degree or higher. The My Brother's Keepers Club is passionate about increasing these young men's access to college and has implemented programs that have been instrumental in opening doors for them.
The organization prioritizes rewarding college bound students who have shown excellence both at school and in their communities. To that end, the My Brother's Keeper Club offers four scholarships. The MBK Club Scholarship is awarded to high school juniors and seniors and is designed to find those who have shown exemplary service in their communities. The Monroe Bowman Scholarship is awarded to high school seniors and focuses on those who have demonstrated excellence in academics and public service and who have an interest in STEM. The MBK's Entrepreneur Award is unique in that the My Brother's Keepers Club donates to a venture led by a high school senior. The inaugural MBK Invest Award will be given to students who have the best private or public equity pitch to establish an investment club at their school. Any proceeds from the team's investment will be reinvested in their community. The MBK Club has been making a bigger difference each year since its first school supply drive in 2001.
As the twentieth anniversary of the My Brother's Keepers Club approaches, the results of its efforts continue to grow. The organization has empowered many young people to go to school, attend college, and form their own businesses. These students will ultimately change the course of society and make others challenge their preexisting beliefs as well as embrace change. It is, as Ollie believes, the ultimate definition of success: inciting positive change, challenging the status quo, and making a difference.
Contact:
Ollie Howie
[email protected]
SOURCE: My Brother’s Keepers Club