Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Duval Schools Celebrates 1 Year of Mentorship Program, New Participants

Lindsey Kilbride
/
WJCT News

On Tuesday, 25 Ribault high schoolers were inducted into a leadership program for minority male students. They were given the signature accessory of participants, a red tie.

The program called 5,000 Role Models was started in Miami, and Duval County adopted it last September, spending $80,000 to fund the program.

Principals hand pick minority students they decide are “at risk,” and they become role models for their peers. The teens also meet with mentors a couple times a week.

The mentors come from all walks of life, and many of them come from similar backgrounds as the students, said Larry Roziers, Duval’s assistant superintendent of family and community engagement.

“At the end of the day, a child can feel like, ‘If you made it, I can make it too,’” Roziers said. “It’s about giving hope. It’s about teaching life. It’s about creating relationships with young people so they know that they’re not in this thing alone.”

Roziers said last year’s students were transformed, raising their GPA’s, volunteering to feed the homeless and going on college tours.

“Prior to that, they were not coming to school, some of them,” he said. “Nothing [was holding] them accountable, but this organization kind of holds them accountable.”

Over the last year, the students were invited to participate in a Jacksonville Jaguars town hall meeting about social change and served as moderators in a community discussion about education and school resources.

"The community is becoming aware of ‘the 5,000’ and what they stand for, and they’re actually asking for the 5,000 to be a part of their events,” said program supervisor Lawrence Hills. “That’s the excitement for me.”

Participating students’ GPAs have risen from an average of 1.71 to 2.51, district data show.

Roziers said as the program matures and more students are graduating, he hopes to track much more, like how many are going to college and becoming successful in their careers.  

Around 350 students from 10 Duval middle and high schools are participating in the program this year. The name of the program comes from its goal is to reach 5,000 students and mentors over the next decade. 

Reporter Lindsey Kilbride can be reached at lkilbride@wjct.org, 904-358-6359 or on Twitter at@lindskilbride.

Lindsey Kilbride was WJCT's special projects producer until Aug. 28, 2020. She reported, hosted and produced podcasts like Odd Ball, for which she was honored with a statewide award from the Associated Press, as well as What It's Like. She also produced VOIDCAST, hosted by Void magazine's Matt Shaw, and the ADAPT podcast, hosted by WJCT's Brendan Rivers.