Friday, September 23^rd

Jennifer Lopez, Denzel Washington And Ne-Yo Launch Mentor Campaign

Superstars Jennifer Lopez, Denzel Washington and Ne-YO have teamed up to front a new campaign for youth mentor program Boys & Girls Club Of America.

Singer/actress Lopez, American Gangster star Washington and So Sick hitmaker Ne-Yo were all members of the organisation during their youth, and now they're helping to launch a public service advertising campaign for the group, called Great Futures Start Here.

The project is very near and dear to Washington's heart - he joined the club when he was just six years old and he's certain the guidance of the program's mentors helped put him on the right path in life.

He says, "I am a prime example of the need for a community-based safe haven like Boys & Girls Clubs. Without the support and mentoring of the Club, I'm afraid to think where I would be today. I certainly would not have the life I do now." Read More

Back to top

An Australian Entrepreneur is Leading the Fight Against Online Predators with a World-First Service That "Puts Social Media Back in the Hands of the Parent"

New website Chatsec monitors all interactions on Facebook and sends weekly updates to parents worried about such things as bullying, inappropriate photographs or drug use.

The site scans all pictures and messages sent and received and flags content that could affect "a child's safety, health or their future life".

Even messages or photographs that are deleted seconds later can be picked up.

Creator Ryan Jones, 26, said Chatsec used complex algorithms to scan for suspect content.

"Chatsec allows your child the freedom to talk privately with their friends, yet you are notified immediately every time they are in danger or take a wrong turn," the Brisbane entrepreneur said. Read More

Back to top

Campaign Aims to Keep Teens in High School, Decrease Dropout Rate

A student in the United States drops out of high school every 26 seconds.

At Newark High School on Wednesday, about 400 members of the class of 2015 signed a banner pledging they wouldn't be part of that statistic.

Some would label them naive or foolish, calling attention to Newark's 72.4 percent graduation rate. But one local company is launching its portion of a national campaign to fight the statistic and, ideally, improve the community as a result.

"We want you guys to finish high school, and we're going to do whatever it takes to do that," said Blake Zitko, public affairs specialist at State Farm Insurance, to the freshmen who had assembled in Newark High School's auditorium Wednesday for a presentation of State Farm's 26 Seconds campaign. Read More

Back to top

African-American Graduation Rate in Berkeley Surpasses National Average

The west side may be the “best side”… if you’re talking about education. New data is showing that in Berkeley, California, high school students are completing high school at rates higher than the country average.

Data from the California Department of Education shows that of the 896 high school students that were due to graduate in 2009-2010, 727, or 81 percent, did successfully receive their diploma compared to the national average of 72 percent.

Most notably, African-American students in Berkeley are breaking barriers. Almost 76 percent of Black students successfully completed high school compared to the national average of just 55.3 percent. Almost 82 percent of Latino students in Berkeley graduated, surpassing even the district’s overall rate of 81 percent.

“We are doing quite well," Debbi D'Angelo, department of education director of evaluation and assessment said at Wednesday’s school board meeting. "Our students are hanging in there, they’re graduating, and they’re graduating on time.” Read More

Back to top

Warren Buffett's Daughter Susie Is Taking On Early Childhood Education And Gangs

By just about any measure, Susie Buffett and Latron Louis have a remarkable friendship. Both are from Omaha, but Buffett is well-off and white. Louis is a much younger black man from the poor neighborhood of North Omaha.

Buffett is also the only daughter of the billionaire investor Warren Buffett. And Louis is the product of a troubled childhood that led to five years spent in a gang.

Now 26 and an ex-gang member, Louis is the anti-violence coordinator at Girls Inc. of Omaha. He is adapting the violence interruption model pioneered by CeaseFire in Chicago to better fit the lives of young women in Omaha.

Buffett, born in 1953, is a board member of Girls Inc. She is also the founder of the Sherwood Foundation, an Omaha- based charity, and the Buffett Early Childhood Fund. About once a week, they meet for lunch to discuss life's twists and turns. Read More

Back to top