Activism

Full College Scholarships Given to Entire Student Body at 5 Chicago High Schools

The scholarships cover not just tuition, but completely cover room and board, books and fees, and other related college expenses and can be used to attend any of Hope’s 21 partner colleges in Chicago and throughout Illinois, including several local Chicago community colleges, the University of Illinois, Loyola University, and Northern Illinois University. Hope Scholars, as the scholarship recipients are dubbed, also receive mentoring, counseling, and wrap-around support services before starting school and during college.

Published

2 years ago

June 4, 2022

Oakland Post

Pete Kadens, co-founder and co-chairman of Hope Chicago

By Brandon Patterson

In February, Hope Chicago, a Chicago scholarship program, made headlines for surprising students at five public high schools in Chicago with full college scholarships. On Sunday, “60 Minutes” aired a special about the incredible program.

“I’m still processing those feelings,” said Kavarrion Newsom, a student at Noble Johnson College Prep, one of the schools where students received scholarships. “I’ll remember this day for the rest of my entire life.”

Hope Chicago awarded full scholarships to the entire student bodies — not just graduating seniors — at five public high schools in Chicago in February, awarding scholarships to a total of more than 4,000 students, according to HOPE’s website.

Recent research from Hope Chicago shows that 93% of Chicago public high school freshmen want to attend college, according to the organization’s website. But just 63% of Chicago Public Schools’ 12th-graders enroll in college — and just 27% complete their studies — with financial costs being a primary barrier.

Among students who drop out of college, nearly half do so because they can’t afford to continue, according to Hope Chicago. And students who do earn their degrees are saddled with $30,000 in debt on average. In fact, Hope Chicago says, nearly half of Black students owe about 12% more than they originally borrowed 12 years after they’ve graduated.

“With Hope Chicago, students can worry less about how they’ll pay for and stay in college or trade school and more time being the best students they can be,” Pete Kadens, co-founder and co-chairman of Hope Chicago, said in press release. “Hope scholars will know that when challenges arise — and that’s life, challenges always arise — they can turn to Hope Chicago and our community partners for the help and support they need to succeed.”

But the scholarships don’t stop there. Hope Chicago also awarded scholarships to one parent or guardian from each student’s family to attend or return to a two- or four-year college if they choose. The scholarships were awarded to families at the South Side schools Benito Juarez Community Academy, Al Raby School for Community and Environment, Morgan Park High School, Noble Johnson College Prep, and Farragut Career Academy.

“We have always had a too close relationship with poverty and lack,” said Yolanda White, mother to one of the students who received a scholarship at Noble Johnson. Now she plans to take technology classes to grow her baking business.

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Activism

WOMEN IMPACTING THE CHURCH AND COMMUNITY

Published

10 hours ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Juanita Matthews

Sister Juanita Matthews

55 Years with Oakland Public School District

The Teacher, Mother, Community Outreach Champion, And Child of God

Juanita Matthews, better known as “Sister Teacher,” is a walking Bible scholar. She moved to California from the great state of Arkansas in 1971. Sister Teacher has a passion for teaching. She has been a member of Bible Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church since 1971. She followed her passion for teaching, and in 1977 became the lead teacher for Adult Class #6. Her motto still today is “Once My Student, Always My Student”.

Beyond her remarkable love for the Lord, Sister Teacher has showcased her love for teaching by working for the Oakland Unified School District for 55 years, all but four of those years spent at Emerson Elementary and Child Development School. She truly cares about her students, making sure they have the tools/supplies needed to learn either at OUSD or Bible Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church.

She’s also had a “Clothes Closet Ministry” for 51 years, making sure her students have sufficient clothing for school. The Clothes Closet Ministry extends past her students, she has been clothing the community for over 50 years as well. She loves the Lord and is a servant on a mission. She is a loving mother to two beautiful children, Sandra and Andre. This is the impact this woman of God has on her church and the community.

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Activism

Oakland’s ‘Green the Church,’ Others, Host a Climate Revival

On April 20, Oakland’s Green The Church California (GTC) and the Center For Food, Faith and Justice will celebrate Earth Day and present a Climate Revival event titled “Growing Healthy Communities From Soil To The Soul” at McGee Avenue Baptist Church at 1640 Stuart St, Berkeley, CA. The day will include inspiring talks, interactive workshops, networking opportunities, and a special panel on Food Sovereignty and Global Food Resilience.

Published

13 hours ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

The revival will take place at McGee Avenue Baptist Church in Berkeley on April 20. Courtesy image.

Growing Healthy Communities from Soil to the Soul in Berkeley

By Y’Anad Burrell

The day will include inspiring talks, interactive workshops, networking opportunities, and a special panel on Food Sovereignty and Global Food Resilience.

The keynote speaker is Rev. Danté R. Quick, PhD, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens in Somerset, N.J. Quick is well known in the Bay Area, having served for more than 10 years as pastor of Friendship Missionary Baptist Church in Vallejo, CA.

Green The Church, founded in 2010 by Rev. Dr. Ambrose Carroll, Sr., and headquartered in Oakland, helps galvanize Black churches and their local communities and leaders to address issues critical to populations historically disengaged from conversations around pollution and health, climate change, and sustainability and energy efficiency.

The organization collaborates with major environmental, sustainability, food security, faith, and community-based non-profit organizations, and is committed to “creation justice”—care and justice for God’s people and the planet—and building the Beloved Community.

Environmental justice has long been a pressing concern for communities of color who bear the brunt of pollution and ecological degradation. Climate change exacerbates these issues, disproportionately impacting vulnerable communities. Recognizing this urgency, Black churches across the country are taking action.

With deep roots in the African American community and its commitment to social justice, the Black Church has become an essential advocate for sustainable practices and policies.

Over the past 14 years, in a powerful collaboration with significant environmental, sustainability, food security, faith, and community-based non-profit organizations, GTC has created a cadre of Black churches engaging in the environmental justice, climate, and sustainability movement.

GTC presently works with more than 1,000 pastors and congregations across the U.S., and groups in the Bahamas, Ghana, Nigeria, and the UK, showing that we can make a difference together.

The partnership between environmental justice advocates and the Black Church extends beyond individual congregations. Green The Church provides resources and support for faith communities seeking to address climate change and promote environmental justice.

Through collaboration, initiatives such as energy efficiency programs, solar installations, and environmental education have been implemented in Black churches nationwide. These efforts reduce the carbon footprint and save money on energy bills, benefiting the congregations and their communities.

The involvement of the Black Church in the fight against climate change is not just a participation, it’s a powerful message that galvanizes action across communities.

By integrating environmental justice into their ministry, Black churches are demonstrating that addressing climate change is not only a matter of science but also of social and moral responsibility, inspiring change at a grassroots level.

For more information, go to: www.greenthechurch.org.