As a former beneficiary of South Bronx United (SBU), I have experienced, at first hand, the transformative effects of the various social, academic, and athletic programs that it provides to the Bronx community. The sentiment of “SBU is my club, my home…,” is something that I have heard my class, as well as current participants, utter frequently.
Alhousseine Kallo, a recent alumnus attending Boston College said, “[SBU is], a place where I feel comfortable to share myself with everybody else around, and have fun playing the sport I love.” The organization’s mission, “to help youth build character, teamwork, and leadership so that they can succeed in high school, college, careers, their community and beyond,” has resonated with me since graduating college in May.
Therefore, when I was presented with the opportunity to become a fellow for Future Leaders in Action (FLIA), to work as the Alumni Coordinator Fellow for SBU, I accepted the offer with great enthusiasm. My coaches and mentors at SBU played an instrumental role in shaping the person that I have become. Moreover, it was an opportunity for me to participate in the important behind-the-scenes work that has made SBU a beacon of hope for many low-income and immigrant families across the Bronx.
SOuth Bronx United Overview
SBU is located in the lowest-income congressional district in the United States, and works with communities whose complex legal, racial, and economic standings have relegated them to the margins of society. However, despite these stringent circumstances, many of which have been exacerbated by the current political climate, SBU participants continue to graduate high school and attend colleges all over the country. 100% of SBU’s participants graduate from high school and 96% of them attend public and private institutions of higher learning throughout the nation. This impressive record has also been reflective in the increase of participation in its numerous athletic and academic initiatives and programs.
SBU has made great strides as a sports-based youth development program. When it hosted its first soccer practice in the early months of 2009, not even its executive director, Andrew So, could have imagined the success that it has been able to have over the past 10 years. SBU went from serving just 15 boys in its early days to serving 1333 boys and girls in the fiscal year 2018. SBU runs youth development programs 49 out of the 52 weeks of the year. A typical participant in its academy receives an average of 10 hours of programming per week. These programs consist of soccer practices, academic tutoring, leadership development, volunteer opportunities in other community organizations, etc.
It was an opportunity for me to participate in the important behind-the-scenes work that has made SBU a beacon of hope for many low-income and immigrant families across the Bronx.
The provision of these outlets of expression, learning and growth, is a fulfillment of the organization’s mission to mold agents of change in underserved communities like the South Bronx. SBU’s participants are highly resilient kids and young adults, who, despite their difficult economic, social and political realities, dare to dream of a brighter future for their families and community. SBU welcomes these visionaries and provides them with a platform to create the future, of which they can be proud.
The organization’s success over the past 10 years has been made possible by committed coaches and role models, the company of whom I hope to join in this role as the Alumni Coordinator Fellow. Coach George Nantwi, for example, is a native of the South Bronx who understands the significance of SBU’s programs and services to his community. According to him: “my commitment to SBU is essentially my commitment to making sure the young people in my hometown are receiving all the support they can get to ensure they have a shot at a bright future.”
As a former player and mentee of Coach George, I can attest to this sentiment. In fact, it is part of my intention to create a curriculum and a framework of assessing the alumni’s experiences and needs after the program, to ensure their long term personal, academic, and professional successes. This will consist of working with the current high school senior class to ensure that they are receiving the assistance they need to successfully apply to colleges, and to apply for financial assistance programs like FAFSA and other scholarship opportunities.
SBU, Social Emotional Learning and College
More importantly, I am working with Jessica Marroquin, SBU’s Director of College Guidance and Alumni program, to make the concept of social-emotional learning a cornerstone to this transition. Nearly all of the alumni who are attending colleges this year are first-generation college attendees. In addition, they come from communities that are seldom represented in institutions of higher learning; therefore, if they are not mentally and emotionally prepared, the often challenging social, economic, and academic realities of college could become detrimental to their personal growth, interpersonal relations, and academic success.
Therefore, a more serious approach to social-emotional learning is rudimentary to the immersion process of SBU’s participants in often racially homogenous and affluent institutions of higher learning. To put this into perspective, 75.9% of New York City public high schoolers graduate high school, however, only 51% of these graduates are college-ready, and less than half of them successfully complete college. This disparity is underpinned by a variety of factors; nonetheless, the lack of proper college readiness training is a considerable one. SBU can equally improve in this regard, given the racial and economic demographics of its participants. Fortunately, the organization is very young and is constantly seeking new ways to better serve the Bronx community. This will allow me the creative control to enhance the level of success its participants have been able to attain over the course of the last 10 years.
I am thrilled to be part of this important juncture of SBU’s journey to provide immigrant and low-income youth, like myself, the chance to imagine possibilities beyond their current and often difficult economic and social circumstances. More importantly, the outcome of this project will inform the organization’s approach to social amelioration, as well as youth development in ways that will ensure the long-term success of its participants.